Ian Burd

Date: 03/09/26

Employer: Steven Reese

Company: FedWriters

Instructor: Professor Teresa Duvall

TA:  Joshua Russell

Class: CYSE 368 – Cybersecurity Internship

Term: Spring 2026

• Table of Contents:
• 1: Introduction …………………………………………………………………………Page 3
• 2: Management Environment……………………………………………………Page 4
• Work Duties, Assignments, Projects…………………………………………..Page 4
• 4: Cybersecurity Skills Used and Learned……………………………………Page 6
• 5: Preparation from Old Dominion University……………………………..Page 7
• 6: Defined Goals And Results…………………………………………………….Page 8
• 7: Most Exciting Internship Aspects……………………………………………Page 9
• 8: Most Discouraging Internship Aspects……………………………………Page 10
• 9:Most Challenging Internship Aspects……………………………………….Page 11
• 10: Recommendations for Future Interns…………………………………….Page 12
• 11: Final Take Away……………………………………………………………………..Page 13
• (TABLE OF CONTENTS APPLIES TO ORIGINIAL DOCUMENT HERE)

1: Introduction

My internship was completed with FedWriters, an organization located in Fairfax, Virginia. FedWriters specializes in technical writing, editing, research, and communication services with government agencies. They produce professional documentation for a variety of clients, including reports, policy documents, documentation, and training materials. Their primary goal as an organization is to break complex information into a clear and professional format that can be easily understood by those without technical backgrounds. This type of work is crucial for organizations that must communicate with technical or policy information, while continuing to be compliant with industry standards and regulations, such as CMMC. Considering that most of the company operates off-site, maintaining a secure and reliable cloud infrastructure is crucial to the proper operation of Fedwriters.

The 150 hours required for the internship were met remotely, with a primary focus on expanding and securing cloud infrastructure through the use of Virtual Desktops and automation tools, ensuring they were secured correctly. At the beginning of the internship, we had an orientation meeting and an interview with Steven Reece, the IT Manager and FedWriters, and the host of our internship. We were provided with an orientation that included an overview of what we would be working on. This included information about the size of the team, what technologies would be used, what the weekly assignment expectations were, how meetings would be conducted throughout the internship, and the types of systems we would be utilizing or interacting with during our projects over the course of the internship. 

Several important tools and technologies were introduced during the orientation process of our internship. These tools included Microsoft Azure, for managing cloud infrastructure, Microsoft Power Automate for building and automating workflows, SharePoint, for storing and organizing project information, and Azure Log Analytics Workspace, for linking Azure Virtual Desktops to the workspace, and allowing the collection and analysis of logs. Many of these tools, especially SharePoint, allowed me to communicate effectively with the other interns, considering the internship was conducted remotely. 

Another major focus of the internship involved learning about cybersecurity and compliance concepts that are commonly used in professional organizations and environments. In particular, FedWriters emphasized the importance of gaining familiarity with cloud infrastructure, cloud security practices, and meeting well-known compliance frameworks, such as the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification, also known as CMMC, and the Capability Maturity Model Integration, or CMMI. These frameworks are significant achievements once compliance is met in an organization, because they demonstrate that their systems follow established security and management standards, allowing them to confidently work with government agencies or otherwise sensitive data. By incorporating these concepts into our assignments over the internship, we were provided with the opportunity to gain theoretical knowledge and practical, real-world experience with technologies that are commonly used in Information Technology and Cybersecurity environments.

2: Management Environment

The internship program was supervised by Steven Reece, the IT Manager, who was responsible for coordinating the work done, ensuring that tasks and projects were completed successfully. The management was organized to balance independence, supervisor oversight, and teamwork. This allowed interns to work through any issues or technical problems with guidance when needed. This structure helped create a productive learning environment in which interns could gain experience solving problems while also receiving feedback from someone with professional experience in the field.

Assignments were assigned to each intern and tracked using the project management app called Jira. Each intern had access to the Jira Board, where they could view their assigned projects or tasks, details about completion requirements, and expectations regarding deadlines. At the beginning of each week, assignments were posted to the Jira Board dashboard, and interns were expected to begin working on them and make meaningful progress by Wednesday. Most of the assignments were designed to be completed by the end of the week and before our weekly Friday meeting. This created a weekly schedule that made it easier to manage time and track the progress of our tasks. 

In addition to the weekly assignments, the team held meetings every Wednesday to review progress and discuss any challenges or problems that had arisen while working on the tasks. These meetings had multiple purposes that were extremely important for the interns. Firstly, they allowed interns to ask questions if they were unsure about part of the assignment they were given. If they were stuck, guidance would be provided during these meetings or later during the day when needed. Secondly, they provided an opportunity for the teacher to cooperatively discuss multiple methods or approaches to solving technical problems. Lastly, they served as a way for the supervisor to keep an eye on and monitor the progress of each intern, and make adjustments to any tasks or instructions. 

Another important part of the management environment took place during those end-of-week meetings mentioned before. Each Friday, Steven would go over each completed assignment. After finishing an assignment, the results were discussed with Steven to determine whether the solution an intern provided met the requirements of their assignment. If improvements were needed, then helpful feedback was provided, explaining what changes should be made and why those necessary changes were important. This review process was helpful to us as interns because it allowed us to learn more from their work environment. Overall, the work environment and management structure during the course of the internship were effective through the combination of clear expectations, communication, and constructive, structured feedback.

3: Work Duties, Assignments, Projects

During the internship, interns were assigned a variety of projects related to cloud infrastructure management and cybersecurity practices. Most of these tasks were completed using Microsoft Azure and were designed to provide hands-on experience with creating and managing cloud-based systems. The assignments were gradually made harder and harder over the course of the internship, allowing interns to reflect and use the skills they learned on earlier projects, while gaining experience with additional technologies and system configurations.

One of the initial assignments involved setting up a virtual desktop environment within Microsoft Azure. This task required us to set up several components, such as a host pool, session hosts, resource groups, and system configurations. Interns were responsible for utilizing the Remote Desktop Protocol to allow remote connection to the created Virtual Desktops. In addition, workspaces were created so that users could easily access the available desktops through a centralized interface, such as the Windows App on Microsoft. The previously mentioned resource groups were also set up to organize the cloud resources being used by the virtual desktop environment. These components are essential for managing large cloud environments because they help administrators organize and control the systems that are being deployed.

Another important part of the virtual desktop project involved managing user access and permissions. Interns created user groups and assigned them to specific virtual desktops so that authorized users could access the environment while unauthorized users were restricted. This was most often done using the built-in Microsoft Entra ID.  In some cases, specific users were granted local administrator privileges on a specific device or group of devices, so that they could manage the virtual desktop environment if needed. This part of the project demonstrated how access control policies can be implemented to maintain security while still allowing users to perform their given tasks.

In addition to building the virtual desktop infrastructure, interns also worked on developing an automated IT support ticket system. This project involved creating a ticket submission process through Microsoft Forms and linking it to a SharePoint list so that the tickets, once submitted, would be automatically sent and organized to the list. To do this, we used Microsoft Power Automate to create an automation workflow that processed the ticket information and stored it within SharePoint. The workflow also needed to show the attachments submitted in the form, which proved to be a difficult part of this project. In order to properly store these attachments, we had to set up the workflow, so the automation process converted the files into JSON format so that they could be transferred and associated with the correct ticket entry in the SharePoint system. This involved a lot of trial and error, and a little bit of hard-coding commands for different variables involved in the process. 

Another assignment involved configuring system monitoring and logging for the virtual desktop environment. This was accomplished by setting up a Log Analytics Workspace and configuring the virtual desktop resources so that their logs would be collected and stored in a specific workspace for analysis. In both IT and Cybersecurity, monitoring logs is an important part of maintaining a secure environment because it allows administrators to observe system activity and detect unusual behavior. By reviewing log data, administrators can identify potential security issues, track system performance, and investigate incidents if they occur. To do this, though, analysts need to analyze and collect enough logs long enough to establish what normal logs look like to detect any potential threats. Through these assignments, interns gained valuable experience working with cloud infrastructure while also learning how to apply different security principles within a real-world environment.

4: Cybersecurity Skills Used and Learned

Over the course of the internship with FedWriters, several cybersecurity concepts that have been learned previously throughout college were applied to the work we have done during the internship. One of the most fundamental cybersecurity concepts we used was the CIA Triad. The CIA Triad represents the three primary goals of cybersecurity: Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability. These goals ensure that data remains private, unchanged during transit, and available when needed. These principles helped to guide the decisions when configuring systems, managing administrator accounts and user privileges, and monitoring the system activity through logs. 

Prior knowledge of several technical topics also made it easier ot understand the tasks assigned to me during the internship. Virtual Machines, remote desktops, Virtual Private Networks, and log analytics are all examples of concepts I have worked with in the past. The understanding of these concepts, even if at a basic level, allowed for useful context on how the cloud-based systems. Considering that virtual desktops rely on remote access, having an understanding of how these remote desktop protocols work and how network connectivity is required made it significantly easier to configure the AVDs inside of Azure. Having some basic understanding of cybersecurity compliance, such as CMMC, also helped to provide context and explain the reasoning behind the strong security practices required when managing cloud infrastructure.

The internship also provided an opportunity to develop new technical skills that were not previously established or examined in depth. One of the most important skills learned was the ability to configure and deploy Azure Virtual Desktop environments in Microsoft Azure. This included the creation of pooled host pools for multiple sessions, setting up separate session hosts in each host pool, as well as assigning user groups, dynamic device groups, and configuring system settings to ensure that the environment would start up and function in the intended manner. Learning how to build these systems allowed me to gain valuable real-world experience with cloud infrastructure, while demonstrating how organizations can have secure access to their resources remotely, with minimal on-site infrastructure. 

Another skill I developed during the internship was basic log analysis. While I have set up and used a SIEM to monitor logs on a homelab before, they were all logs that I created myself. I was tasked with configuring a Log Analytics Workspace on Azure, as well as setting up data collection rules and endpoint rules. These allowed me to view system activity to monitor the behavior of users in the environment, as well as allowed administrators to track system usage, identify potential threats, and detect unusual events. 

Finally, the internship required learning how to use Power Automate to create automated workflows to simplify and streamline repetitive tasks such as IT support tickets. We were tasked with creating a SharePoint List and a Microsoft Form for an IT support ticket. We utilized Power Automate to link the list and the form together, allowing the organized collection of data from several instances of the IT Support Ticket form onto one SharePoint list. This made seeing the criteria chosen on the form significantly easier. This experience helped to demonstrate how automation tools and cybersecurity best practices can work together to support and simplify potentially tedious IT tasks and operations.  

5: Preparation from Old Dominion University

I’ve been pursuing a bachelor’s degree in cybersecurity at Old Dominion University. I’ve learned a lot of fundamental cybersecurity principles through my training, which has given me a basic understanding of how information systems and security procedures work. Network security, system vulnerabilities, cybersecurity policy, and risk management are a few of the concepts that were covered over several semesters at ODU. While these subjects helped me to create a framework that allowed me to understand the purpose of the tasks assigned to me, ODU was ineffective at teaching the technical, real-world aspect of cybersecurity. It was heavily lacking in the hands-on experience that is necessary to fully prepare students for the technical work in the field.

During the internship, I was, however, able to make a few meaningful connections between the mostly theoretical information covered in my courses and the work required of the internship. Concepts such as the importance of the confidentiality of systems, the integrity of data, and the availability of infrastructure were directly relevant when configuring cloud infrastructure and managing user access and permissions. For example, limiting administrator privileges within an Azure Virtual Desktop environment reflects the importance of protecting system integrity, while monitoring logs supports the ability to maintain system availability and identify potential issues before they are exploited. 

Despite these connections, many of the tasks I was required to complete needed technical processes that were not strongly covered or even touched on over the course of my Bachelor’s Program at ODU. A large portion of the work involved the configuration of cloud infrastructure, setting up Azure Virtual Desktops, creating automation workflows with Power Automate, and setting up specific rules, settings, and apps for different session hosts. These tasks required hands-on interaction with real systems and platforms that are widely used in the industry, many of which have not been covered in the curriculum. While the program does provide a strong introduction to cybersecurity and other related topics, it often focuses on explaining concepts and theory, rather than allowing the students the opportunity to develop long-term practical skills needed to perform actual cybersecurity tasks. 

The internship also introduced several technologies and workflows that I had not previously encountered. Working with cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure, configuring virtual desktop infrastructure, setting up log monitoring through Log Analytics, and building automation workflows using Power Automate were all new experiences that required a significant amount of research and practice. In most cases, I had to research tutorials, documentation, and other resources to understand the systems or programs I was required to work with. This emphasized the reality that most cybersecurity skills and experience are gained through hands-on work and homelabs, rather than learning theory in a classroom.

Overall, my education at Old Dominion University has provided an important theoretical foundation for understanding cybersecurity concepts and theory, though it lacked in technical skill and experience. My internship with FedWriters made it clear that the skills needed for a career in cybersecurity go far beyond what is covered in the classroom and that it takes a lot of time and effort to make it in this field. Real-world work, at least in the case of my cybersecurity internship, requires knowledge of cloud platforms, security policies, the ability to learn new tools independently, and a strong technical ability. While ODU introduced me to many ideas that are crucial to an overall understanding of cybersecurity, getting the hands-on professional experience of an internship will allow students to build up the experiences needed, helping to potentially land a job that a degree alone will not prepare them for.

6: Defined Goals And Results

At the beginning of the internship, the team established several primary goals that we hoped to accomplish through the projects we completed. These goals focused primarily on improving the cloud infrastructure and overall cybersecurity posture of FedWriters. The four main objectives of the internship included working toward compliance with the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), supporting the practices associated with Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI), strengthening the security of FedWriters’ systems, and expanding the organization’s cloud infrastructure. These goals were extremely important because a significant amount of FedWriters’ operational environment relies on cloud-based systems rather than traditional on-premises devices and hardware.

One of the most significant goals involved working toward compliance with the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification. CMMC is a structured framework that is used primarily by organizations that work with government contracts or other sensitive information.  The framework contains several certification levels, each one more complex, with significantly more security controls and practices. Level One of CMMC focuses on basic cybersecurity hygiene, and it contains fifteen to seventeen steps, depending on how the organization chooses to group them or break them up. To meet Level One compliance, organizations must implement all of the controls listed. These practices focus on essential security concepts such as controlling system access, protecting sensitive information, and maintaining basic security procedures.

Level 2 of the CMMC framework is significantly more complex and requires a much larger number of controls and security processes to be implemented. In comparison to Level 1, Level 2 contains over one hundred more individual practices that organizations must follow in order to be considered compliant. Because of the scale and complexity of these requirements, achieving Level 2 compliance requires a much more developed security program and causes a high cost for organizational resources.

While the infrastructure created during the internship was not able to meet the requirements for Level 2 CMMC compliance, the work we completed throughout the internship focused heavily on ensuring that systems being developed would meet, or come close to, CMMC level one requirements. To do this, we had to conduct research on CMMC security practices. To aid in making our created systems compliant, we created a checklist and other documentation that covered the necessary controls, each with its own rationale for how these configurations helped to meet the standards required. Through these efforts, the infrastructure we created was designed with cybersecurity and compliance in mind. 

The work done towards CMMC Compliance also supported broader organizational goals regarding CMMI practices. Many of the security controls and documentation for CMMC overlap with structured management frameworks. In turn, working towards CMMC Compliance helped to reinforce the organizational practices that align with the principles associated with CMMI. This connection helped ensure that the work we completed supported both operational expansion and security compliance, allowing us to expand FedWriters’ cloud infrastructure securely. 

Overall, the projects completed throughout the internship served both as learning opportunities and as meaningful improvements to the organization’s cloud infrastructure. Many of the earlier assignments were designed to introduce interns to the tools and systems that would be used later in the program, such as Power Automate and the CMMC research project. As the internship continued, the tools learned earlier were applied in ways that strengthened the cloud environment and security posture, and lightened the workload on redundant tasks. These assignments with the tools provided the intern valuable experience working with real-world cybersecurity tools and dealing with cloud infrastructure challenges. 

7: Most Exciting or Encouraging Internship Aspects

The most motivating aspect of the internship was the opportunity to gain real-world experience in the fields of information technology and cybersecurity. Up until my acceptance into the internship, most of my cybersecurity knowledge and exposure came only from coursework and self-study of certifications, such as the CompTIA Network+ Certification. While the knowledge gained from these is extremely valuable, hands-on experience will prove to be significantly more valuable in the long run, after I graduate and begin to look for a job. This is primarily thanks to the fact that the internship directly reflects what knowledge is needed to work in an IT or Cybersecurity Environment with a focus on cloud infrastructure, in an organization. 

I was able to work directly with tools and platforms that are commonly used to perform cybersecurity and information technology tasks in various professional environments. Most of the tools I worked with were related to cloud infrastructure and security monitoring. The exposure and assignments in which these tools were used allowed me to grasp a better understanding of how practical skills, tools, and cybersecurity principles are applied to real-world situations in an organizational or professional setting. 

 Another motivating factor was the feeling of accomplishment that came from successfully completing tasks and learning new technical skills. A lot of the tasks and tools were new to me, and even though many of the assignments required additional research, critical thinking and a lot of trial and error, completing them helped to build my confidence in my ability to learn and work in this ever-evolving and stressful environment. Knowing that my work contributed to FedWriters’ infrastructure, whether directly or indirectly, allowed me to feel that I was finally gaining a foothold in the field of cybersecurity.   

This internship with FedWriters helped reinforce the idea that gaining experience is the most important step towards entering the field of cybersecurity. The current job market for cybersecurity is extremely competitive and difficult to break into, even for experienced professionals with decades of experience under their belt. However, having the opportunity to gain even a small amount of professional experience has given me hope and makes getting into cybersecurity feel a lot less impossible. It gave me the added motivation to continue to improve my technical skills, continuing my path of self-study towards certifications, and to continue to face the challenges ahead in a more positive light, despite the industry’s challenges. Breaking into cybersecurity is going to be extremely hard, but it is entirely possible.

8: Most Discouraging Internship Aspects

One of the most discouraging aspects of the internship was realizing how little practical knowledge I had when I first started. While I understood that I would not know everything going into my first-ever internship, I still expected and hoped to have a stronger foundation of technical skills than I actually did. When the internship began, I quickly realized, during the first day, that many of the tools, platforms, and processes that were being used were things I had never worked with before. I may have had a basic idea of what the tools were used for, but I wasn’t sure how to use any of them to the level required of us. This felt extremely frustrating at first, because I felt like I was falling behind or not as smart as the other interns. This introduction to new tools was an extremely steep learning curve to me, though through self-study and research, I was able to meet the expectations of what was needed. I was able to get at least a basic understanding of the tools relatively quickly, which also helped to restore my confidence. 

Another factor that contributed to this feeling was recognizing how differently organizations operate in the real world. Every company has its own policies, procedures, management styles, and technology stacks. Due to this, adapting to a new environment requires learning how to use different platforms or polishing your technical skills, but it also requires an understanding of how the organization you are working for operates as a whole. The tools used, how projects were structured, and the assignment expectations were significantly different from anything I had previously completed in my time at Old Dominion University. Having to adjust to these new expectations made the first few weeks of the internship pretty difficult, as I had to spend a lot of time studying and learning how to use the tools for the assignment I needed to complete, and how I should manage my time. 

Over the course of the internship, I reflected back on what I have learned at ODU, and it came to my attention that I felt that ODU’s Cybersecurity Bachelor’s Degree program did not fully prepare me for the reality of beginning an internship. While the classes and coursework were great at providing me with theoretical knowledge regarding cybersecurity concepts, practices, and ideas, very little of what I learned was enough to translate into the tasks I was expected to complete with FedWriters. The tools, the platforms, and the configurations used were never taught in my coursework, so I had to rely on a lot of independent research as well as trial and error with some tools, in order to understand how to utilize specific tools to complete the given assignments. 

 Looking back, the most discouraging aspect of the internship was that I felt that only a small portion of what I learned at Old Dominion was immediately applicable to the work I was doing. This was extremely frustrating, considering how much money is being spent on coursework that isn’t preparing me for the real world. Although this realization was discouraging, it ultimately helped me to realize an important lesson about the reality of cybersecurity. Classroom education can help to provide a foundation of learning, but it will not teach you everything you need to know, especially in a field that is constantly changing and growing. This reinforced the importance of hands-on experience through internships, projects, and homelabs to help fill in the gaps between theoretical knowledge and professional cybersecurity experience. 

9:Most Challenging Internship Aspects

One of the most challenging aspects of the internship was learning how to use several technical tools that I had never worked with before in order to complete the assigned projects and tasks. Many of the assignments required working with platforms that I had little or no previous experience with, which meant I had to spend extra time researching how they worked before I could actually complete the project. This research usually required me to read documentation or examples, as well as watch tutorial videos. 

Not only this, but I was also required to experiment with different settings in some cases, to understand what each tool was capable of doing. For example, when setting up a Log Analytics Workspace or creating automated workflows like the previously mentioned IT Support ticket using Power Automate, I had to experiment with the systems and see how they were structured before I could complete my given assignment.

Another challenge was figuring out how different services worked together in a cloud environment or across different parts of Microsoft. Some projects required me to connect to or access multiple different sections of Microsoft, such as Azure, Intune, and Entra, in order to create different policies and configurations that would work properly with one another to complete a task. If I made some small configuration mistake or change, it was entirely possible that that change could have messed up all of the progress I’ve made. This seemed to be the case when trying to set up a Kiosk mode on a virtual machine, effectively restricting users to one application or browser page. I had to spend a significant amount of time troubleshooting in order to try to figure out what went wrong, or if it was potentially just a server issue on Microsoft Azure. 

Even though learning these tools was difficult at times, it was also one of the most valuable parts of the internship. In the IT and Cybersecurity field, new technologies are constantly being created or introduced, so being able to research and learn new and unfamiliar tools, in order to figure out how they operate, is an extremely important skill to have. Solving problems as best I could on my own allowed me to improve upon my troubleshooting skills and made me more comfortable working with technical systems like Azure, Intune, and Entra ID. 

Despite the challenges, the process was also very rewarding. After spending time learning and experimenting with the various new tools, I was able to complete the assignments and meet, and sometimes exceed, expectations. Finishing projects such as automation workflows, device setups, and baseline configurations gave me a strong sense of accomplishment. The learning curve was, of course, very steep in the beginning, but overcoming the learning curve presented by these challenges was extremely rewarding, and allowed the internship to be both educational and fun, while continuing to help grow and develop practical skills that will be useful further down my career path in cybersecurity or information technology/

10: Recommendations for Future Interns

For students who may be interested in completing an internship with FedWriters in the future, my first recommendation would be not to feel intimidated when starting the position. Beginning any new internship can feel overwhelming, especially when working with unfamiliar tools or systems, but the environment, as well as Steven, the IT Manager, are both very supportive and willing to ensure you learn as much as you can. The internship is led by Steven, who is extremely approachable and helpful when it comes to guiding the other interns and me in the right direction, allowing us to complete our work effectively.  While he may not always provide direct answers to every question, he does a very good job of pointing interns in the right direction and encouraging them to think through problems on their own. This approach helps to build problem-solving skills while allowing interns to develop a deeper understanding of the tasks they are completing. 

Another important recommendation for future interns is not to be afraid to ask questions. Asking questions demonstrates interest, curiosity, and a willingness to learn, which are all valuable qualities in an internship environment. If something is unclear or difficult to understand, asking for clarification can be the best thing you can do. Asking questions can prevent future mistakes and allow you to learn the systems being used. Internships are meant to be learning experiences, where you learn through doing real-world work, so taking advantage of the opportunity to ask questions can significantly improve your overall experience as an intern. 

Before beginning the internship, it would also be helpful to familiarize yourself with some of the tools that are commonly used during the program. I recommend asking Steven ahead of time for any resources that you can use to help prepare you for the internship.  In particular, having a basic understanding of Microsoft Azure can make the early stages of the internship much easier. Learning the fundamentals of how Azure works, what it is capable of, and how FedWriters will use it for their cloud infrastructure will provide a useful foundation for many of the projects assigned during the internship. I was provided with helpful resources to gain a basic understanding of Microsoft Azure and Power Automate before the internship started, because I wanted to get an idea of what I would be doing. This opportunity made using these new tools much easier, despite them still being tough to learn. 

I would highly recommend getting an early look at Power Automate. It is an extremely powerful platform that allows users to build automated workflows between different services and applications. At FedWriters, we used it to link a Microsoft Form to a SharePoint list, but it is capable of much more complex tasks. Thanks to its flexibility, it is extremely useful when it comes to automating repetitive or time-consuming tasks. Having even a basic understanding of how Power Automate works can make completing related tasks significantly easier, while also providing valuable knowledge that could be beneficial in future jobs, projects, or opportunities. 

11: Final Take Away

After completing my internship with FedWriters, I can happily say that it was a very valuable experience. The internship provided me with the opportunity to gain real-world experience and apply cybersecurity concepts that I learned through Old Dominion University in a practical environment. Being able to work with tools and platforms that organizations use in their daily operations made the experience both practical and educational. Rather than only learning about cybersecurity concepts in theory, I was able to see how they are applied in real infrastructure and security-related tasks.

Throughout the internship, I gained a stronger understanding of the skills required to work in the information technology and cybersecurity fields. Many of the projects required learning new tools, researching solutions, and solving technical problems on my own. While this proved to be challenging at times, it helped to develop confidence in my learning ability when working with new and unfamiliar systems or platforms. Experiences like these help to reinforce that hands-on IT or cybersecurity experience is crucial to success in this field, and that without it, getting a job in cybersecurity would be extremely difficult. Continuous learning on how to protect different systems is what cybersecurity is all about. 

Another important outcome of completing the internship is that it allowed me to fulfill the 150-hour internship requirement necessary for graduation from Old Dominion University. Meeting this requirement has been a significant relief and represents an important step towards graduating with my Bachelor’s Degree in Cybersecurity. 

Looking forward, the internship also helped to shape my professional interests in the field. Originally, I wanted to start as a SOC Analyst;  though my internship with FedWriters helped me to enjoy working on projects related to cloud infrastructure and the systems involved. I really enjoyed working with cloud environments and setting up security configurations. Because of this rewarding experience, I could see myself pursuing a more cloud-focused cybersecurity career path, such as a Cloud Security Analyst or a Cloud Security Engineer. As I continue my education, I will continue to apply to more cybersecurity internships and entry-level IT positions. I hope to gain additional experience that will help to develop my skills further and establish a long-term career in cybersecurity.