government. I also learned about breaches and hacking — anything from mass malware to specific, persistent threats — as well as regulations and compliance, and about annual vulnerability scans for payment card industrial standards. “I had learned these skills in my classes, but when I did them for a company it really broadened my knowledge. I feel that when I graduate, I’ll be ready to be a valuable employee the day I start my career.” OSUIT President Bill R. Path says his university is not only “militaryfriendly” — as it was named recently by G.I. Jobs magazine — but also “military-committed.” “We at OSUIT are proud to serve those who have so proudly served us. Our university is dedicated to providing military veterans with an education that will gain them meaningful employment in fields that have a tremendous need for highly-skilled, highly-educated employees,” he says. “Our degree programs are designed specifically to meet the needs of the workforce, and we educate our students with the specific skills they need to perform at a very high level the first day they go to work.” Nearly 100 percent of OSUIT graduates with technical degrees have at least one job waiting on them the day they graduate, Path says. “Not many universities can say that. OSUIT is just as focused on career attainment as it is on degree attainment.”
Since retiring from the military in 2010 and enrolling at OSUIT, Barnet has earned associate degrees in science in information technology and in applied science in information technology. His wife, Erica, is also a veteran and is currently working on her bachelor’s degree in Tulsa. She has applied to enter medical school next year. They have a 2-year-old daughter, Abigail. “We also wanted to continue our educations to set a good example for our daughter, and to provide a good future for her,” Dave Barnet says. S haron S mith
PHOTO / CLARENCE SMITH
U.S. Navy veteran Dave Barnet will graduate from OSUIT in December with a Bachelor of Technology degree. Like many veterans, Barnet was looking for a way to start a career when he found OSUIT.
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