Personal Narrative Essay
Shaquile Garces-Phillips
Old Dominion University School of Cybersecurity
IDS 493: Electronic Portfolio Project
Dr. Sherron Gordon-Phan
Abstract
This paper will tell the story of my Journey from serving in the United States Air Force to working towards a career in cybersecurity. After completing my enlistment with the United States Air Force, I enrolled in a surgical technologist program and worked in the healthcare field for six years. However, my career goals changed due to physical challenges, I decided to go back to school and pursue a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity at Old Dominion University. The classes that I have completed helped me improve my technical skills, problem solving skills, and prepare for a career in IT and Cybersecurity. In addition, my internship with the City of Virginia beach allowed me to gain hands on experience and see how classroom lesson apply in the workplace. This paper will discuss the challenges, experiences, and opportunities that shaped my career path and future goals in cybersecurity.
GP, GP, hello Airman GP, are you there? Sorry sarge. I was out of it for a second. You know my enlistment is ending, and I do not plan on reenlisting. I am just trying to figure out my next career path. What do you plan on doing when you get out? Honestly, I have already enrolled in the Swedish institute Surgical Technologist program. Once I finish, I plan on becoming a travel surgical technologist. Sounds like you have it all planed out.
For those of you reading this who know me and what I am currently studying, you may be a little confused because I am now finishing my bachelors degree in cybersecurity. The truth is that life does not always go according to plan. Sometimes our goals changes as we discover new interests, face new challenges, and create new opportunities for ourselves. In which we all have a story to tell, and this one is mine. Join me on this journey as I explain how I went from enrolling in school to become a surgical technologist to now completing my bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity. Throughout this paper I will discuss the reason why I decided to pursue my degree in cybersecurity, the course work I took while attending Old Dominion University and the valuable experiences I have gained throughout my internship. I will also talk about the opportunities that helped shape my career path along the way. Finally, I will talk about my plans and career goals after earning my bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity
18 June 2018, marked the end of one chapter and the beginning of another one. After serving six years in the United States AirForce, my military enlistment had finally come to an end. While may people were unsure what they wanted to do after leaving the military, I believed I had my future completely figured out. I had already enrolled in the Swedish Institute Surgical Technologist program and was excited to begin a new career in the medical field. At that time I though that by becoming a surgical technologist it would be a perfect fit for me. In which I completed my associate degree, earned my certification and quickly found success working within the operating rooms. For six years, I really enjoyed helping patients and being part of Sentara Princess Annee surgical team that made a difference in peoples live. I truly believed this would be the career I would retire from. However, life tends to have a funny way of changing our plans. Life tend to throw jabs hooks, uppercuts, and haymakers from every direction. Sometimes you get knocked down and other times you find a way to keep fighting. In my case, I kept fighting. Although I really enjoyed being a surgical technologist with Sentara Princess Anne Surgical team, years of standing for long periods, wearing heavy lead vest during procedures and dealing with chronic back pain eventually took a toll on my body. What I thought would be lifelong career slowly became something that was no longer sustainable. As a result, I found myself searching for another path. At first I was considering pursing my bachelors degree in psychology because I have always been interested in understanding how people think and eventually becoming a high school guidance counselor. However, after taking some time off to reflect, researching a numerous of different career fields and better understanding my strengths, I end up realizing that cybersecurity offered opportunities that aligned more closely with my long term goals. That decision would ultimately change the direction of my life once again.
The reason that I decided to purse cybersecurity is because it is a broad field that has many different opportunities instead of just being limited to one specific area. Unlike my previous career cybersecurity provides multiple pathways for both growth and advancement. For instance, entry level positions such as help desk, desktop support specialist, system administrator and cybersecurity analyst allows people to gain valuable experience while exploring different areas of information technology. In which what attracted me most to cybersecurity was the flexibility and opportunity for continuous growth. With technology constantly evolving over time, there will always be something new to learn. In which this field has so many different opportunities to specialize in areas such as cloud security, network security, digital forensics, risk management and incident response. Knowing that I could continue learning throughout my career made cybersecurity an exciting choice. In addition, cyber security also fits my personal situation much better than my other career options. Because of my physical limitations cause by years in the military, I needed a career that would not be to stressful or physical. In which cybersecurity provided exactly that. Looking back, changing my degree from psychology to cybersecurity was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Once I made my commitment to cybersecurity, the next challenge was earning my degree. Although I was motivated, I quickly realized that the road ahead would not be easy.
While attending Old Dominion University, by me switching degree programs, it extended the amount of time it would take for me to complete my degree. I went from needing roughly only two semester to five semesters. However, I was up for the challenge. During that time I was taking six to seven classes each semester. I was not just studying to pass, I was studying to understand the material and learn how to apply it properly. I took a variety of courses, which included general education, elective, and major requirement classes. Some classes were boring, while others were exciting. Some classes came easily to me, while others were more challenging. In which many assignments required research, writing skills, presentations, and hands on activates that allowed me to apply what I was learning. As I moved through the program, I became more confident in my ability to solve problems, do research and explain technical information clearly. In addition to gaining technical knowledge my coursework taught me many useful skills such as time management, writing skills and problem solving skills. Furthermore by balancing multiple classes each semester taught me to manage my time responsibilities successfully. Also research papers, discussion posts and technical assignment help strengthen my writing skills, while labs and cybersecurity related projects helped improved my ability to analyze issues and develop solutions. These experiences helped me succeed in school and prepare for my future career. As I continued through my coursework, I realized that the information I learned in the classroom was only one part of the experience that I need to succeed. While my classes provided the knowledge and foundation needed to understand cybersecurity concept, I wanted an opportunity to apply what I had learned in a professional environment. In which that opportunity came through one of the most regarding experiences of my college career, my internship with the City of Virginia Beach.
One of the most rewarding experiences of my college career was securing and internship with the City of Virginia Beach Human Health Services Information Technology Department. This internship allowed me to gain real world experience while apply many concepts that I was able to learn throughout the school year. When I first started my internship, many of my tasks involved password resets, unlocking users locked accounts, and user account management. I regularly worked with applications such as Cerner Millennium and Doma to assist users who were having trouble accessing their accounts. Although these tasks seemed simple at first, I quickly learned that every user and every situation was different. In which as my confidence grew, I was trusted with more responsibilities. I learned how to create user accounts, assign permissions, troubleshoot technical issues and assist users with their laptops, iPad and printer issues. I’ve became more comfortable using systems such as Cerner and learned the importance of maintaining security while ensuring user had the access they needed to perform their jobs. In addition to account management, I also assisted in several large scale Human Health Services IT projects. These projects Included workstation deployments, printer replacement, monitor upgrades and laptop replacements. During the deployments, my responsibilities included helping set up equipment, I had to make sure everything work properly, document assets, and ensure users could continue working without issues. In which these experience provided valuable hands on training that could never be fully replicated in a classroom. I would have to say that one of the biggest lessons that I learned throughout my internship was that technical skills alone are not enough to succeed in IT. Communication, patience and teamwork and customer service are just as important. Every day I would have to interact with users who depended on technology to do their jobs. Learning how to explain technical concepts in a way that that others could understand became one of the most valuable lessons of my internship experience. In which the experience and skills I have gained during my internship not only prepared me for a career in information technology and cybersecurity but also helped shaped the goals I have set for my future.
My future five year plan has already started through my internship with the City of Virginia Beach. By landing this internship, this opportunity has allowed me to apply what I learned in school while gaining real world experience. One accomplishment I am especially proud of is that my supervisor extended my internship twice. Knowing that my work was valued gave me confidence and motivation to continue pursuing a career in information technology and cybersecurity. After graduation, I hope to obtain a contractor position with the city of Virginia Beach and eventually transition into a full time role. Around my three year mark, I would like to move into a System Analyst one position while continuing to earn certifications such as Security+, Network+, and additional cybersecurity certifications. I also plan to purse my master’s degree in the future. Continuing my education will allow me to expand my knowledge, increase my career opportunities, and remain competitive in a career field that is continuously evolving. By year four and five, my goal is to switch over into a cybersecurity position with the City of Virginia Beach and continue developing my skills and experience. Ultimately, I would like to become a successful cybersecurity professional who is able to help organizations protect their systems, their networks, and sensitive information from up and coming cyber threats. As I am working toward these goals of mine, I often reflect on the experiences and decision that led me to this point and how they have shaped my journey.
As I reflect on my past journey, I cannot help but to sit back and laugh at the past conversation that I had years ago with my sarge while I was still serving in the Untied States Air Force. At that moment, I was definitely convinced that becoming a surgical technologist and traveling was my future. If someone along the way stopped me and told me that I would one day be completing a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity and working in an IT internship I probably would not have believe them. However, life has a way of rewriting our stories and creating new paths for us to follow. What began as a career in healthcare turned into a journey that brought me back to school and introduced me to the cybersecurity field. During this journey I was able to gain valuable skill, overcome many challenges and discover a career field that has continued to motivate and inspire me. Today, I stand only a few more jabs, hooks, crosses and uppercuts away from knocking out my bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity and reaching a goal I have worked hard to achieve. Although this journey has been longer than expected, every challenge, setback, and opportunity has help shape the person I have become. As I sit back typing this and reflecting on the past I would not change anything because every chapter of my story has played a major role in bring me to where I am today. The bell still has not rung, and I am ready for whatever comes next.
