This internship thus far has been very engaging like moments we’re with Dr.
Baaki and challenging like when we must turn the gears and think about what company
interests us, and the internship so far has been making me more prepared.
Through this course/ internship there has not been a dull moment. There has
constant been reminders through canvas and GroupMe. Every meeting day we have
something to do or look over. Also, I am glad we had the time as well to go back over the
NIST framework because I thought it was very important personally. Last example I have
would be with Dr. Baaki, how he made the class interact was the one thing I felt was missing at the beginning but once we had him talk to us everyone felt more open and available to talk to than before.
Something else I felt important to reflect on was how we were given the ability to
choose which company we want to work with. This semester we were given 6 options to
choose from and in the form where we chose the company, we wanted to associate with
was put together very well. I was able to list my options from most liked company to least
liked. I had trouble placing some companies over the other because every option had
interested me in its own way, so it was a task to really think about which to go with.
Lastly, I have been prepared because of Carla, Lee, and Prof. Duvall, on what to
expect with this internship and how to handle everything going down the line. It has given me confidence to know that they went through the same process we are currently going
through and having those ideas and past knowledge I feel prepared me to move forward.
With what I’ve been through so far personally this experience is going well and I
haven’t had many problems, but if I ever do I know I can count on the engagement and
preparation from everyone involved.

Reflection #2

This internship has yet to give me a dull moment. From the last time we did a
reflection paper to now, we have had a lot going on and a bunch to do. From having
multiple guest speakers, to meeting Greg Tomchick and learning about his cybersecurity
company and interests, then finally meeting our groups, to then going to the “streets” to go
out and associate ourselves with other companies to spread cybersecurity awareness and
help with Valor Cybersecurity, and finally we also met our company owner to establish a
connection and common understanding about our program.
I am happy about my opportunity with this program. It feels educational yet
experimental all at the same time because this is my first time really being able to be more
associated with cybersecurity on this level. I thought it was great to meet Greg Tomchick
and finding out more about him, I personally found it really neat that he was a professional
Baseball player. I also liked learning that his company start up was because of a past loss
due to lack of cyber security. I think what Greg does is great for spreading awareness and
was good for us as a class to go down a cyber security “checklist” with other companies
that may or may not have needed help with cyber security.
Another thing I thought was important to reflect on was getting paired with our
groups. I think I can work with my group members the right way without any issues. There
was a slight hiccup at the beginning where we actually had somebody else in our group but
later down the line I got figured out and we have a solid group now. I also find it good that
we got paired with Brevin, I think we are a great team for him to be shadowing.
Lastly, I want to say that it was a great experience to be able to meet the owner of
our law firm of William B. Parkhurst. Mr. Parkhurst was a easy guy to communicate with
and to get through to. He made our client meet up go smoothly with his curiosity and good
personality.
Overall, I will say I am enjoying this experience, and everything is still going well. I
am happy to be involved in this clinic, and happy to work alongside my group and Lee,
Carla, and Professor Duvall.

Reflection #3

Yet again, this cybersecurity clinic has been keeping us busy and continuously on
our toes. That has been done by keeping us interacted with our groups and companies,
involved with reports and presentation slideshows, and a lot of research.
These last credited hours have been interactive with our groups and our company.
Unfortunately, our company, The Law Office of William B. Parkhurst, is a busy company
and the owner, Bill Parkhurst, is just a busy guy. Between work, court, and vacation it has
been a rollercoaster of events trying to make sure everything is on task and things are
scheduled when they are supposed to be. It has been great being able to work with my
group members and get this report completed for our client.
The report we have been working on hasn’t been one of the easiest tasks. I believe
my group members wanted to focus on the report on their own time, which is fine,
although, we did have to make sure we were on track to get our report and slide
presentation done in a timely manner in order to meet due dates and guidelines. I have
enjoyed putting work into this report because I’ve been really liking learning new
techniques and ways to prevent and protect in different environments and for this one
specifically, a law firm.
Since our last reflection paper, I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of research. As
research lead, I was able to fill a document with information that would and has helped our
group. The information I’ve been gathering and looking into has proved to be useful as we
go through our report. Overall, this is a good internship to be involved with. There are so many opportunities and connections available to be made at many points of time in this
CYSE368 course. The service that we provide as a cyber clinic is becoming more and more
obvious of how important it is especially for small businesses and business owner’s
knowledge.

Final Reflection

Throughout this internship, a lot went right, but there were also some challenges that taught me important lessons. One thing that went really well was the level of engagement throughout the entire experience. There was never a dull moment, from the constant updates on Canvas and GroupMe to our weekly meetings where we always had something meaningful to work on or contribute to. Interacting with Dr. Baaki was big, especially at the beginning, because he immediately made the class more comfortable, more involved, and more willing to talk amongst eachother. Meeting guest speakers like Kristen and Greg Tomchick, getting paired with our groups, and working with real clients all made the internship feel more hands on and valuable instead of just academic.

Challenges

What went wrong was mainly related to scheduling issues, especially with our company being very busy. Also, trying to accommodate our own schedules, balance between school and other outside responsibilities, and deadlines made staying on track stressful at times. Another challenge was group coordination, at times we would be wanting to work individually sometimes, but we knew that would have slowed down the team process. In general it took effort to make sure everyone stayed on the same page. My biggest lesson learned from all of this is the importance of communication, time management, and being adaptable when things don’t go smoothly. I learned that sometimes it may be best to just take initiative and work out the quirks later. If I could do the project over again, I would try to set earlier internal deadlines with my group, reach out to our client sooner, and stay more proactive with planning so we weren’t rushed near the end.

Learning Curves

From beginning to end, many goals could be fulfilled by staying organized, working consistently each week, keeping communication open with our professors and TA’s, and using the rest of our resources early instead of waiting to revisit it later. Each part of the clinic I realized built on the last, like, group formation, company outreach, research, and report writing, so staying steady from the start would make the entire process much smoother.

The most motivating part of the internship was the exposure to the real cybersecurity world. Meeting guest speakers and cyber related people, interacting with Greg Tomchick, and learning how cybersecurity impacts real businesses made the experience exciting. Going out to help Valor Cybersecurity and talk to real companies was also exciting because it showed how important cyber awareness is for small businesses and gave us a real world experience to begin with. The most challenging aspect was balancing the workload with group schedules and a client who was extremely busy. This taught me how it feels to be a Cyber Risk Management Specialist, fast paced, unpredictable, and dependent on other people.

For future interns, I would recommend coming into the course prepared to communicate often and work consistently. New interns should be familiar with basic cybersecurity concepts, especially the NIST framework, because it becomes a major foundation in the work that will be produced. They should also be ready to be flexible, take initiative, and step out of their comfort zone in general, especially when working with companies or presenting. Most importantly, they should take advantage of the mentorship available from Lee, Carla, and Professor Duvall because their input truly helps.

Conclusion

My main takeaway from this internship is how valuable real world cybersecurity experience can be. This program helped me learn how to think professionally, work in a team, communicate with clients, and participate in work that actually matters. This experience will definitely influence the rest of my time at ODU because I feel more confident, more prepared, and more motivated to continue learning cybersecurity. It also gave me clarity about my future career path because this internship showed me that I enjoy hands on work and client feedback, and solving problems, and I can see myself pursuing a professional path through this.

As for recommendations for the course, I would keep the engagement, the speakers, and the interactive style exactly the same. The only thing I might change is giving groups slightly more structured check-ins earlier on to help with meeting deadlines, especially when clients have a full plate. Overall, the course is well designed, beneficial, educational, and full of opportunities, and I’m grateful for this experience.