From Marine to Cyber Warrior

CORPORATE PARTNERS

From Marine to Cyber Warrior

While alumnus Matt Wilkes, BS Cyber Security Engineering ’18, was busy serving his tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mason Engineering was busy forging an alliance with its advisory board members and corporate partner Northrop Grumman. His goal was to come home safely; the school’s vision was to develop a program to educate a new generation of cyber engineers.

The leaders who envisioned this program often needed the same kind of dedication and -perseverance that Wilkes showed in completing the program. A member of Mason Engineer ing’s inaugural cybersecurity engineering class, Wilkes has spent the past three years balancing full-time school, a family, and part-time jobs.

“It’s always about hard work and dedication,” says Wilkes, who rose to the rank of sergeant before leaving the Marine Corps. “What I learned in the Corps is that you have a job, and you’re going to do your job. No matter how hard it is, it’s your responsibility.”

Mike Papay, Northrop Grumman’s vice president and chief information security offcer, is an industry advisor to the Volgenau School. It was Papay’s thought leadership and determination that helped create the degree program. “The cyber threat is real, and it’s not going away,” says Papay. “In fact, it’s getting worse.”

One of the ways to jump ahead was to think differently about cybersecurity. “A common reason for the prevalence of these attacks is that we are dealing with most of the attacks after they happen instead of before,” says Papay. “Cybersecurity needs to be integrated during the design process, not after. This program addresses that issue by teaching students how to design large, secure systems from the ground up.”

The program helped Wilkes transition from fghting battles on the ground to learning how to safeguard existing fnancial networks, utility systems, and lines of communications, as well as building resilient new ones. It’s hardly been easy, but it beats getting shot at it or nearly killed by incoming mortar rounds exploding around him, which he experienced on three combat tours during the 12-year stint in the Marines that preceded his arrival at Mason.

“This frst class of [cybersecurity] graduates is an incredible group of engineers—our country’s future leaders,” Papay says. “They’re motivated by giving to the present, and our world will beneft from that motivation. I’m really proud of them.”

––Martha Bushong

GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT

Students and faculty reach across borders to engage with international partners.