Introduction
Hello, my name is David Smetek, and I am currently in my final semester of college to receive my B.S. in Cybersecurity at Old Dominion University. I will be honest and say that cybersecurity wasn’t my first choice of a career path when I first entered college, but throughout my entire life I’ve always felt I’ve had a natural pull towards the digital world that our society was constantly evolving in. Whether if it was when I was younger and trying playing video games and watch You Tube videos, or present day, when I’m constantly on my computer for school or work purposes, I’ve always enjoyed learning the vast details and concepts that go behind how technology works, and its ability to impact our lives. With this passion that was introduced to me at a younger age, I knew that it was a field of work that I wanted to invest much of my life in, but after encountering various challenges, it’s clearer to me that it’s not as simple as I initially envisioned it would be when I started being introduced to the real world.
Early Life
The first real experience I can remember with physically engaging with technology was when I’d play the Super Nintendo gaming system with my siblings, or we would have the original Xbox, or have a blast on the game cube at my grandparents house. I grew up in a generation where there weren’t really smart phones when I was younger and it wasn’t a societal norm for younger kids to possess their own gaming systems and cell phones. My household had one landline and that was the main point of contact for every one other than my parents personal cell phones, and we all shared the same computer and same gaming system. So, going through that restrictive time where my parents were strict on what we purchased and owned, but also how personal devices, such as smartphones and lab tops weren’t as accessible as they are today, it astonishes me how much I’ve progressed personally with adapting to these multiple sources of technology that I’m able to own at once.
I believe a key factor in me enjoying gaming and other digital activities more than others was how naturally simple it felt for me to understand the concepts. Not to come across as arrogant, but I would always be on top of the leaderboards when I gamed with friends or other people, and I would also enjoy navigating throughout a computer desktop to understand important functions so I can, not only do well for myself, but also explain it well enough for others if they experience issues. By doing this, it helped create that initial spark and connection with technology that has stuck with me ever since and has continued to evolve with the evolution of technology.
Growing up throughout my childhood, that connection to technology generally stayed the same until I was able to receive my first smartphone. When I was old enough to get my first cell phone, it opened more opportunities for me to search and be exposed to more information and skills that that didn’t require me to have school to assist me with. I was able to find my own resources in my own time to help grow my drive for IT more than ever before and at a faster rate. I would constantly watch YouTube videos for tutorials about Windows and how to navigate through a computer, but also start searching for essential skills, like programming languages.
My older siblings all had to take C++ in high school because my dad made them, but when the opportunity came from me to take it, I went in with an open mindset and a willingness to learn because it was more complex than anything I’ve ever really encountered in the digital space. That class brought a new aspect of technology that I didn’t really know existed, but I enjoyed the whole concept of computer languages, and how I can have the ability to script what a webpage outputs for a user to interact with. When it was visible to me that I enjoyed performing these skills, it helped filter degree options for me when I was entering the point of applying for colleges.
Choosing My Path
I will say, even though I’ve always loved surrounding myself with technology, it still was a difficult decision on deciding what path I wanted to choose for my academic career. Growing up in my household, if you’re going to go to college, you better know what you’re going to do, and you also better choose something that is worth going to college for. With this mindset, I didn’t want to make a decision that I’d eventually regret, so I had to be realistic with what interest of mine is more valuable with a college degree, brings in the most annual income, but also will leave me the happiest because I will be doing this career for the next large portion of my life.
My top three choices were sports journalism, healthcare, and, of course, IT. I’ve always had a passion for playing sports and when that opportunity was taken from me to continue participating, I continued surrounding myself with constant analysis and watching games myself. By doing so this caused a lot of thought for possibly becoming a journalist or some other occupation that puts me in that sports world.
Healthcare was a big one for me because of how much I’ve dealt with medical issues and ongoing conditions that I still have. At first these health problems weren’t a major factor in my life, but entering college it grew to its peak and has been a rough adjusting to. From countless hospital visits and doctor’s appointments, I thought it was possibly a calling for me to answer the medical field. I love engaging in conversation with others and helping people out as much as I can, so I thought those traits of mine would mesh well with that career path, But the closer I got to choosing that field I realized I just didn’t have enough of a draw to it compared to sports and IT.
Computer science, or cybersecurity more specifically, was another easy choice for me because of how much I’ve enjoyed it throughout my life and the dependency that modern society has on individuals who understand one or more skill sets in the tech field, which allows for higher paying opportunities for post-grad career paths. Another important variable I had to weigh in was my health conditions. It’s difficult for me even to maintain a job throughout college because of my various conditions (Epilepsy and Inflammatory Bowel Disease), so if I were able to develop skills in IT, it would open doors to remote opportunities, which would help me greatly.
College Life and Beyond
College from the start was not a fun experience for me. I was going through terrible health conditions that took me away from my original university, Virginia Commonwealth University, and brought me back home to Fredericksburg, Va, to continue college online at a local community college. One thing I constantly told myself as I dealt through my health challenges was that, until presented, I have no excuse not to continue my education because of online resources that we have in modern society. From this mind set, I kept my head down and completed my associate’s degree in Information Systems and Technology, with a focus in Networking, and am now getting prepared to graduate this upcoming May, which is when I was initially planned for.
Some of the best skills that I’ve developed in courses that I’ve taken have been all IT related. I’ve learned the basic concepts and policies for safe practices of a computer, to ethical hacking, to all the various online threats that we are constantly exposed to and how to mitigate any vulnerabilities and threats that may be presented. I’ve also taken various other computer languages, like Java and Python, which allows me to keep more future possibilities open by possessing these computer science skillsets that are desired by many companies.
The reason why I specifically chose cybersecurity was more so due to me experiencing multiple occasions of being scams and as a result losing thousands of dollars. These moments created rage within me, not only due to the fact of me being scammed, but also because I knew I could have easily avoided these incidents by just being more aware of suspicious activity. By continuing to learn new concepts of cybersecurity throughout my academic career, I’ve been striving to not only grow in these skills that I obtain in the courses that I’m taking but also grow in that awareness that I was lacking prior so I could help a companies or other everyday people mitigate or fully avoid instances that could relate to mine.