Purdue Cybersecurity Apprenticeship Program is Ready to Enroll

Does your company need to upskill your cyber-team? Are you an individual working in a cyber role and want to become a cyber-apprentice? Are you a US citizen? Then get in here and let’s have a chat about how we can make you a Purdue Cyber Apprentice.   

We are very excited to announce that cyberTAP has recently adopted the Purdue Cyber Apprenticeship Program (PCAP), and are ready to enroll apprentices today!  The Cyber Apprenticeship Program is part of a larger grant distribution from the US Department of Labor designed to close the skills gap on nearly 500,000 open cybersecurity jobs across the United States.  As such, the grants were awarded to a number of institutions across the county that have the ability to upskill and reskill cybersecurity professions via apprenticeship programs.  Hallmarks of the program include an on-the-job training component, the ability to earn industry recognized credentials, and the prospect’s upward mobility within the sector.   

Since the initial adoption of the program in December of 2021, we’ve restructured the program in a way that is now more accessible and more palatable to the working professional and the companies for which they are employed.  The first step of this reorganization was to allow non-registered apprenticeships.  The US Department of Labor recognizes two types of apprenticeships: Registered and non-registered.  Registered apprenticeships require a minimum of 2000 hours of training, and a pile of red tape in order to qualify. Non-registered apprenticeships lower the barrier of entry and allow apprentices to complete bite-sized training that results in industry-recognized certifications and credentials.  The second pillar of our reorganization was to set aside grant funds that can subsidize learners.  As a part of the program guidelines, apprentices cannot pay for their own way through the program, so we’ve set aside funds that can help offset that cost from the companies that wish to participate in a cyber apprenticeship program.  And lastly, we’ve expanded the course catalog.  We’ve cut our teeth upskilling and reskilling cybersecurity professionals for nearly four years now, so we’ve incorporated our tried and true catalog into PCAP delivery.  This allows us to deliver high quality, industry recognized certifications on a shorter timeline than full-blown degree-seeking programs.   

So how do I get involved, you might ask?  Well, if you’re an employer looking to enroll apprentices then contact me, Jim Stratton, and I’ll get you pointed in the right direction.  If you’re an incumbent worker currently working in an IT/cyber role, and you wish to become an apprentice, contact me, Jim Stratton, and I’ll get you pointed in the right direction.  If you are NOT currently employed in an IT/cyber role, don’t fret, we can still help.  Navigate to the PCAP portal located at cyber.tap.purdue.edu/pcap/portal.  Here you will be able to register as a potential candidate and complete skills assessments that we can then use to promote candidates to potential employers. 

We are very excited to be able to provide this option to our partners, and sincerely believe that we can address the industry’s ever-growing needs for a talented, eager cyber-workforce.