Cybersecurity Internship
This course allows students to volunteer to work in an agency related to cybersecurity. Students must volunteer for 50 hours per course credit and complete course assignments.
Course Material
- Internship Journal
Reflective Journal 4 (200 hours completed)
During this Week 4 we have been practice the network diagrams for the different types of networks that are available in the stores. We have been practicing drawing the network out with all of the connections in the network, the process it goes through setting it up, and the different ways the network can go down. Learning about networks and cabling I felt was one of my weakest areas. However, with the practice and asking questions I feel like I have a better understanding of networks especially the ethernet connections, wan connections, lan connections, and so forth. I have learned a great deal during this week and the practice that we have done has helped me in more ways to better understand the dynamics of systems and how they work. The teacher has been great in guiding us through the process and teaching us about the cabling, networks, routers, modems, switches, POE, and many more. Learning this has increased my ability to troubleshoot and find the areas where a network can go down. Diagnosing a network is not easy as there can be a multitude of problems hat can happen and all can have the same symptoms. So, understanding the process and the flow of the power and internet can help diagnose those symptoms and find the main issue. We have learned that in class and learned how to ask those questions to figure out where the problem can lie as everything is interconnected and understanding where everything is connected and how it flows can help figure out the main problem that needs troubleshooting so it can fix everything. This week was a practice week and it has been very helpful for me as I have definitely accomplished a learning objective in understanding the network side and cabling and being able to feel confident in that area of the IT field and confidently be able to troubleshoot the issues that arise in the networks.
Internship Final Paper
Otis Owens
CYSE 368
Spring 2022
My name is Otis Owens, and I am a Junior majoring in Cybersecurity. I decided to pursue an opportunity at Dollar Tree Corporation and use it for this class due to the vast variety of learning objectives the role covered, as well as an opportunity to see firsthand the way IT is used in a real-world working environment. Technology is forever growing and has always been incorporated in many different jobs and fields. Being able to learn about the basics of equipment and how everything operates can help boost not only my resume but also my knowledge in the field. In this paper I will cover the ins and outs, along with the pros and cons of my internship. I will then discuss my viewpoints on the opportunity and what I experienced. I will then conclude with my most important takeaways and the things I believe will be the most beneficial to my future in cybersecurity.
Learning about several types of equipment/software and how they come together to work was one of the first learning objectives acquired. This can help further the experience and knowledge I have in different fields. To start with, the software being used for the duration of my internship is used by many organizations. With this being said, learning the functionality of the store’s software and systems is something I hoped to achieve for later progression in the field of IT. This is due to the fact that it serves as the basis and starting point for many other businesses that I could potentially work with in the future. Another learning objective I hoped to achieve was basic troubleshooting skills. Learning actual troubleshooting skills in a business environment is different from at home troubleshooting. It is a different environment and is a skill I feel is necessary in order to progress in the realm of technology. The final learning objective is about the store’s functionality, and I had hoped to achieve this because it is completely different from how the corporate side operates. Learning about the software the stores do and do not have is important to know because there is not always an easy fix due to the handicap that stores have when it comes to programs and the permissions they are allowed.
As briefly stated in the introduction, the business that I am working for is called Dollar Tree Corporation. A brief fact about Dollar Tree consists of its three names, as three different stores came together. This includes the well-known Dollar Tree, Dollar Tree Canada, and Family Dollar. All three of the banners came together under Dollar Tree and are currently located in the corporate headquarters office in Chesapeake, Virginia. The overall goal of the company is to offer a variety of products at an affordable price. As to this reason they are called Dollar Tree because everything is $1.25. With this being said, their target audience includes people of all social classes. The initial orientation into the company was a welcoming one in which the trainer and human resources introduced us to the company. My initial impressions of the company was a good one with everyone being welcoming and understanding. Everyone seemed willing to help and wanted to see us succeed in whatever path we take.
The management at Dollar Tree was very open-minded and accommodating. They have an amiable attitude and they have been willing to answer any questions we have had during the job. We have been under the management of the training instructor, and he has been a very erudite mentor and instructor. He has supervised us throughout the entire process and has been there for any questions or concerns that we have had. The management structure of the department from top to bottom are the associate, analysts, Support Services Project Manager, Team Leader, Manager, and Director. I feel as though the management system has been effective during the experience in regard to the manager and team leaders answering questions and giving advice to help the process and our time be easier. The patience and teachings from them have been helpful and needed with the abundance of teachings and information we were given. For the purposes of the internship our first level supervisor was the training instructor with the managers above him. Overall, the interaction with management and their structure works out and accomplishes all the goals they set out to accomplish with training new hires.
During my time with this organization, we have completed many different assignments and objectives for the program. At this time, I was in a training period, so we were only learning the basics of the software and hardware of the Support Services positions to help troubleshoot problems for stores regarding the equipment they had. The duties that we have, revolve around troubleshooting malfunctions for stores as well as documenting said malfunctions and placing service, if necessary, to have a technician fix those issues. Some assignments we had during this time involved setting up a store’s network infrastructure, configuring said infrastructure, setting up registers, and planning for a store’s layout. In other words, we laid out a network that the stores have and recreated it ourselves drawing the diagrams and putting the cabling together to simulate how we would have to walk the manager through troubleshooting the system. These assignments were used as training aids to assist in learning the material while also assisting in troubleshooting for stores when they call in with network malfunctions or problems.
The skills that I have gained from this opportunity have been extremely rewarding and have progressed my knowledge and skill sets. Some skills I had prior to the internship were technical basic troubleshooting skills, patience, and work ethic. All of these helped me gain an extended knowledge of the technical aspects of troubleshooting and helped me develop new skills from the experience. Some of which include knowledge of cabling, system networks, command prompts, remote systems, and more. The job experience for me has been rewarding with so many different areas that we have covered. Gaining these skill sets, and knowledge has helped me dive into the IT world and how the basics work in a real-world environment. With the help areas and subjects, I learned, they have helped me apply those skills and knowledge to many other areas and jobs. Being able to understand the cabling along with the network can help with creating one’s own network at home or even troubleshooting a system that you have no prior knowledge on.
ODUs curriculum has helped in many ways during my time with Dollar Tree. For example, in this job a class I took about cabling and setting up a network came in handy when learning about the layouts of stores in the job. This class helped me learn the terms and basic functions of the materials which helped when it came down to the job and me actually learning the material and setting up a store’s cabling layout. Other classes that have helped were the classes concerning cybersecurity, command prompts, and Linux. The knowledge from those classes have helped me during the internship in tremendous ways. Knowing how to operate a command prompt and commands that can be used help me on a daily basis with the work I do troubleshooting. For example, learning how to find an IP address for a network helps everyday especially when I have to ping said device. Every experience I have had at Dollar Tree has reinforced in some way the knowledge I gained from my classwork at ODU in a more actual workplace scenario. There have also been areas that we have covered in the job that I have yet learned about in the curriculum at ODU and that is learning how to take a network down and how to reboot an entire system as well as learning where error or issue can come from, so it is possible to troubleshoot. This experience has been a fantastic way to use the knowledge from the cybersecurity major curriculum to expand on that knowledge and gain deeper understanding and meaning in those areas.
The first objective I hoped to achieve in the internship was to learn the functionality of the store’s software and systems. In this area I have had tremendous growth in learning about the stores and how they function on a day to day basis. How the stores are able to operate is a key component to know and learn about because without it there is no way to understand and know what they go through and deal with. The second objective I set out to achieve was gaining a deeper background and foothold in troubleshooting. In life technology is everywhere and anybody can troubleshoot a device in a basic way. However, with this opportunity I gained a deeper understanding of the troubleshooting process and different ways to go about the task no matter the device or what needs to be fixed. It has helped me understand technology more and how some devices operate on a basic level. The final goal I set to accomplish was learning new software. Software can be used in a variety of ways; it all depends on the intended function of the program. In this opportunity I have learned an abundance of software and the distinct functions of all of them. While learning them I gained a new set of skills when it comes to commands and networks because of the software used. Everything in this opportunity has helped me achieve my basic goal of knowing more than when I came in and the result was that it did in a terrific way and has been a great opportunity.
The most motivating aspect of the experience was when I saw that my knowledge was growing. When I was able to give the answers to questions with no help or review material and understand what was going on was motivating and exciting. Knowing that I can grow and learn in fields I first looked at as confusing was in itself a rewarding experience and a wonderful way to know that my knowledge base has grown since when I first started. It was a rewarding and exciting time.
The discouraging aspects of the internship I would have to say are when you make mistakes during live calls with actual stores. When you are trying to troubleshoot an issue for a store it can be a very anxious time during the beginning. All the information is going through your mind, and you are trying to figure out the issue and problem so you can help the store. When you actually do come to an answer or multiple answers and try them out, but they do not work it can be discouraging. This is because you put all the thoughts and processes in your head and try to solve it and when you concluded to help, and it doesn’t work it can bring your morale down during the beginning of taking calls. There are not many discouraging aspects when it comes to the opportunity, this one is just one in which it comes from a perspective of wanting to be good at it and knowing that you can do it.
Some challenging aspects of the experience can stem from the multitude of information that comes at you all at once. The program was for 6 weeks of in class learning and two weeks of live calls. Cramming all the information into a 6-week period is extremely hard to do and retaining that new information and procedures sometimes poses a difficult task. This poses a challenge for many people to remember all the pertinent information when it comes to the two weeks of live calls and trying to troubleshoot issues during that time. Many people see this as a challenge because learning something completely new in a brief period of time can be difficult to remember and perform when the situation is put in front of them, and they have to recall every bit of information.
For future interns or job seekers looking at this opportunity I only have a few words to give them as advice. For starters, for the future interns make sure you are open to learning new information. The information is going to seem like a lot, and it is, however, take it piece by piece. Make sure you take the information and processes in strides and focus on what is being taught. If you have no background knowledge about cabling and how equipment works for a network to deploy in a setting, then it is okay just focus on the information at hand and take the process at your speed. It is okay to ask questions and wonder about the process and what that can mean in future proceedings down the line. Those questions will help you better understand the material and the process so when it comes down to it you have a grasp on what it is or does.
This opportunity has been an amazing time and I am grateful to have been a part of it. I have gained so much from the opportunity in learning about networks, cabling, registers, operations, and more. I not only acquired hard skills but also soft skills as well to help me later on down the line. This opportunity has taught me to be more patient while also gaining the necessary knowledge and skill sets to be able to work in a corporate IT environment and understand how the system works and what they can go through on a daily basis. I believe this opportunity will influence me in diverse ways throughout my college career because I believe I will be more open to new knowledge. I will be able to acquire new skills and knowledge easier by breaking it up into sections when studying and learning it in a new and unique way. I do not believe this will influence my future career path as I am currently working to become a cybersecurity analyst / web programmer. This opportunity can only help me learn the value of things when it comes to working for a corporate job and also learn the basic layout of systems to better be involved and adapt to changing occurrences.