{"id":138,"date":"2024-01-14T20:14:37","date_gmt":"2024-01-14T20:14:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/cyberimpact1\/?page_id=138"},"modified":"2025-08-05T02:59:39","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T02:59:39","slug":"cyse-368","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.wp.odu.edu\/zwood003\/cyse-368\/","title":{"rendered":"CYSE 368"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Reflection #1<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zion Woods<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6\/6\/2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ODU IT Help Desk<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflection #1<\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The first 50 hours of my internship consisted of training to work at the IT Help Desk. The first hour involved our supervisor bringing us in to get our faculty\/staff accounts and services setup. Since I have already worked 3 different jobs on campus, I already had a faculty\/staff account setup for ODU. All he had to do for me was get my budget code switched over and request a few more services for my account. We also went over how teams worked for the other student worker that was hired with me and how some of the other apps used at the IT Help Desk worked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the first day, we came in for 3 hours a day, 4 days a week to complete our training. The first few days of training involved us going over the canvas training modules and taking the related quizzes for the modules. The first module went over what to expect during training, the job responsibilities, the different groups we work with, the Help Desk staff members, the schedule, submitting timesheets, the dress code, and the personal device waiver for handling customer devices. We make customers that come in with a personal device to sign a waiver before we touch their device. This is to make sure that thewy do not hold us liable if something were to happen to their computer or the data on it while we attempt to resolve their issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next module went over the application we used the handle phone calls and the hotline calls we get from professors in classrooms. The app we use is call 8×8. It gives all of the student workers a phone number and filters all of the calls to the help desk out to the workers that are available in the order of who went the longest without being in a call. We have to radio hotline calls from professors into the classroom central team that goes out to the classrooms and solve the issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Troubleshooting and customer service was the focus of the next module. We went over troubleshooting methodology and steps used at the help desk. We also talked about what kind of issues we do and do not support. We have a knowledge base full of articles going over the many issues we deal with and how to handle them. This knowledge base if update frequently by the help desk staff as updates arise. We also had to watch a few videos regarding customer service that were followed by more quizzes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next 2 modules went over what we can see and do in MIDAS and how we handle tickets in ServiceNow. We are able to view someone\u2019s services and roles, their two factor authentication settings, and reset their password if needed. ServiceNow is the system we use to receive and respond to tickets. We can receive tickets from emails, voicemails, and the ServiceNow webpage. We use ServiceNow to respond to tickets or send them to the appropriate teams so that they can assist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After we finished going over all of the modules, one of the other help desk staff members took over out training and showed us how to handle calls and tickets for a few days. The remainder of training after that involved the other trainee and I taking turns handling calls and tickets. This part of the training really helped me get a better grasp on everything we had talked about. Our supervisor told me I was done with training a week before the other trainee and was able to create my new schedule and start working at the help desk. In conclusion, my first 50 hours at my internship were completely training. I learned lots of things about the help desk that I did not even think they handled. I also learned that the recent merger with EVMS had a lot more impact behind the scenes then I thought. We are still working on merging everything successfully. The help desk staff and other student workers have been great to work with so far and I can\u2019t wait to gain more experience at the IT Help Desk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflection #2<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zion Woods
7\/7\/2025
ODU IT Help Desk
Reflection #2
The next 50 hours of my internship consisted of me working at the front desk and
getting used to the operations and the other Help Desk student workers and staff. Since I had
already handled a few incidents while I was in training, I was already fairly used to using the
phone and ticketing systems. One of the situations that I was not able to practice during
training was handling the call received from professor in their classrooms. We have a slightly
different procedure for those calls that I only experienced once I was actually working at the
desk. The procedure is pretty simple, and I handled it just fine, but I was nervous because it was
my first time dealing with that kind of call.
The biggest issue I faces during these 50 hours was dealing with EVMS users and all the
issues that came with the ODU and EVMS merge. EVMS had a lot of procedures and services
that were different from what we do and use at ODU> This meant that I had to do a lot of
looking through our knowledge base articles to make sure that was following the correct
procedures for the EVMS users. I felt like how I felt as a freshman having to learn everything
that I needed to know to properly navigates ODU and its services. This also meant that we had
to deal with a lot of people who also did not fully understand what changes came with the
merger. There were plenty of EVMS users that did not fully understand some of the new
procedures, which made it difficult for us to properly do our job. A lot of the issues involved a lot of explaining to the users about the new procedures. After about a week or two, it became
easier to deal with most of the issues because they began to get repetitive. There were still
some issues that would arise now and then that were new, but thanks to the knowledge base
and the Help Desk Staff, I was able to handle them pretty well.
When it came to the student workers and Help Desk Staff, things were not too bad. I
was already familiar with a few of them because they were the ones that handled my training.
Getting to know the rest of the student workers and Help Desk Staff was not that bad either.
Thankfully, many of them are into games, which tends to be the focal point of most of our
conversations. I began working at the desk when there were lots of new games coming out as
well as many game announcements. This gave us lots to talk about. They also mentioned that
many of them go play airsoft together. I might join them one day if my free time and money
permit it.
In conclusion, the last 50 hours of working at the IT Help Desk were all about getting
used to actually being at the desk. I definitely feel a lot more confident about the job now that I
have had the chance to actually work at the Help Desk. It also helped that I have had a few
other on campus jobs including being a Monarch Orientation Manager and the Lead Student
Worker for the Student Engagement & Traditions office. Those positions provided me with a lot
of useful information that helped me with a lot of the issues that I came across. The friendliness
of the Help Desk Staff also made it easier for me to ask questions if I had any. I look forward to
working with them more and gaining more experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflection #3<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zion Woods<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8\/1\/2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ODU IT Help Desk<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflection #3<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last 50 hours of my internship were very similar to the previous 50 hours. While I was more comfortable with the staff and procedures, there were still some things that I had to work on. For the entire duration of my internship, the main issue was adjusting to the changes made due to ODU merging with EVMS. Just about every other week we were sent an announcement or talk to by a staff member about a change to our procedures regarding EVMS users. The biggest issue that we had to deal with was the removal of the EVMS account management site. All EVMS users had to switch from using their account management site to MIDAS. While most user were already somewhat familiar with MIDAS due to them having to set up their MIDAS account when the merger occurred, there were still many users that either did not finish setting up their MIDAs accounts or just set the account up but never really took the time to learn anything about MIDAS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the users that were already somewhat familiar with MIDAS, the most we had to do for them was inform them that they would need to use MIDAS to change their password and sync it with their EVMS logins. There were sometimes when we had to reactivate their EVMS DUO account because they are still separate. The other user that either had not been to MIDAS or were unfamiliar with it presented us with a few more issues. Not only did we have to make sure they had the MIDAS accounts set up, but we also had to make sure that they were using the correct services and logins. Many of these users did not know that they were supposed to have a MIDAS account in the first place. This leads to the other major issue that we had to deal with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The communication, or the lack of, over at EVMS regarding the merger lead to many problems. As mentioned, there were many users who did not know that they had MIDAS accounts and that they needed to set them up. This meant that there were many users who had to contact us to reset their password. This also meant that there were many users who were unaware that they needed to start using their Odu email and not the EVMS email. The lack of communication over at EVMS also lead to the delay of the removal of their profile managing site. This was because there were some departments and groups that did not have the proper procedures implemented to successfully get rid of the system by the originally scheduled date. A week or so after the originally scheduled date, we were eventually able to successfully implement the removal of the system. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 In conclusion, there were a lot of adjustments that had to be made due to the merger. While we were able to work through all of the issues presented, it was definitely a tough process. Overall, I have really enjoyed my time at the IT Help Desk. I have met a lot of great people, and I have gained lots of experience in cybersecurity and related fields. I enjoyed finding solutions to the challenges that I faced. I have also seen personal growth in areas like troubleshooting and problem solving. I look forward to further growth and experience gain as I work at the IT Help Desk during my last semester at ODU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Paper<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zion Woods<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8\/1\/2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ODU IT Help Desk<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Old Dominion University<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CYSE 368<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Table of Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.3<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Training\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u20264<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Management\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u20267<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duties\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026..7<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skill Use\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.8<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curriculum\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u20268<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Objectives\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.9<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Motivation, Discouragement, and Challenges\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.10<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recommendations\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.10<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026\u2026.11<\/strong>
<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This summer, I worked at the ODU IT Help Desk. Initially, I did not plan to do my internship at the IT Help Desk. This is because I already had another on-campus job that I enjoyed where I was the student lead. I knew that if I were to get another on-campus job, I would lose pay and I would not have as much control over my work. I was unaware that the IT Help Desk was even hiring until one of my friends who is also a cybersecurity major who works at the IT Help Desk told me that he was putting in recommendations for new hires. Since I had been unsuccessful in finding other internships that I qualified for at the time, I took this opportunity and gave him my resume. Surprisingly, I was given an interview date a few days later. At the end of my interview, I was offered the job with a start date only a week after. Of course, I was not going to pass on the job opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a cybersecurity major, my main goals for this internship were to learn more about cybersecurity issues dealt with on a college campus, learn more about how cybersecurity issues are handled, learn more about how IT and cybersecurity are connected, and learn more about IT and IT security in general. I wanted to learn more about cybersecurity issues on a college campus to not only better protect myself for the remainder of my time here, but to also help better protect my siblings, one who is currently in college and another who still has quite a few years to go. My next goal of learning more about how cybersecurity issues are handled was for the same reasons. Knowing about the cybersecurity issues is just the first step. Knowing how to handle the issues is the next step in better protecting yourself and others. I wanted to learn more about how cybersecurity and IT are connected since I am a cybersecurity major and I will probably be working at the IT Help Desk until I graduate. Learning more about their connection is also a good step towards better protection. It will also make me a better candidate for a future position if I have more experience in cybersecurity and related fields. This is also why I had the goal of learning more about IT and IT security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I mentioned, I completed my internship at the Old Dominion University IT Help Desk. The IT Help Desk was created when Old Dominion University was founded in 1930. It used to be called the ITS Help Desk until its recent name change. The IT Help Desk is the main point of contact for most technology related issues at Old Dominion University. These consist of both hardware and software issues. If the technology that is causing the issue does not have its own designated contact for support listed on their or the ODU website, then the IT Help Desk is listed. We first attempt to troubleshoot and solve the issues ourselves. If we are unable to solve them, we then delegate the issues to their respective departments within Old Dominion University or direct them to outside contacts if needed. Our main target demographic is, of course, Old Dominion University students, alumni, faculty, and staff. Students, alumni, faculty, and staff of Eastern Virginia Medical School have also been added to our main target demographic thanks to the merger that took place between ODU and EVMS. While they may not be the main target demographic, we do still do our best to help those outside of these organizations. We also frequently work with prospective students and visitors to the University. Although it is rare, we also do our best to assist people with zero affiliation with ODU if they happen to contact us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Training<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My orientation for the IT Help Desk was fairly simple due to me already having a job on-campus prior to my hiring. We only had to request a few new services that I was not granted through my previous job and get my budget code switched over to the one for the Help Desk. My previous job also used Microsoft teams for communications and scheduling. For most of the orientation, I just sat there while our supervisor worked with the other new hire to get all their services requested and gave him the rundown of Teams. Towards the end is when we began going over the applications that we would be using at the IT Help Desk that I was unfamiliar with. We did not talk about them in depth; we just went over what the applications were used for so that we could get a good idea of what to expect during training. At the end, we decided on a training schedule that allowed both me and the other new hire to be trained at the same time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For our training, we would come in for 3 hours a day, 4 days a week. Our training began with us going over some modules in canvas and taking quizzes at the end of them. The first module went over what to expect during training as well as the general run down of the IT Help Desk and its operations. After going over what to expect, it talked about our job responsibilities. This section included work behavior, incident priority, professionalism, work policies, work related accidents\/injuries, inclement weather protocols, and time sheets. Following job responsibilities was the section that went over the different ITS groups within ODU. These are the groups that we delegate incidents to if we are unable to solve them at the Help Desk. We then went over who the staff members were at the Help Desk. The last bit of the module was about our schedule, time sheets, and the dress code. Ou schedule is very flexible and can usually be adjusted if needed as long as the change is not too last minute. The dress code for student workers at the IT Help Desk is casual. We also talked about the personal device waiver that we have people sign if we are going to physically touch their device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next module that we went over was about call management. It began with talking about 8×8, the phone system that we use at the IT Help Desk. Instead of using the normal Cisco phones, we use an app\/web application that allows us to make and receive phone calls. 8×8 has 2 parts. 8×8 Work is the first part. It provides us with a virtual phone number. 8×8 Virtual Contact Center Agent is the other part. This part is the actual queue management system. The way we handle calls is by putting everyone who is on the clock at the IT Help Desk (and the EVMS IT Help Desk) in a collective queue. This queue is for calls that are made to both the ODU and EVMS IT Help Desk. This is to help better delegate the issue from both institutions while we work on the best implementation of 2 separate queues. The system chooses who to send the call to based on their last activity. It will send the call to whoever has gone the longest without a call. 8×8 also has a break system that we can use to temporarily remove ourselves from the queue if we have to help a walk-in or step away from the desk. Our supervisor uses 8×8 as our clock in and clock out service also. This is because he can see when we log in and log out of the system. After going over 8×8, the module went over hotline calls. These are calls that come from the hotline phones withing the technical classrooms at ODU. Calls from these phones go to the physical Cisco phones at the help desk and take top priority. After taking the information about the issue from whoever calls, we must create an incident in or ticket system and contact Classroom Central so that they can send someone to the classroom to fix the issue. This module ended by explaining how the doorbell on the door to the Help Desk works. When the door is locked, anyone without access to the Help Desk door must ring the doorbell and wait for someone at the Help Desk to unlock it from one of the physical phones. When rung, the doorbell sends a camera feed to the physical Help Desk phones so that whoever is working can see who is ringing the doorbell.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Troubleshooting and customer service were the focuses of the next module. The first section had us watch a video about troubleshooting steps. The troubleshooting steps used at the IT Help Desk are to listen to the user to understand the problem, ask questions to find the cause of the problem, come up with a solution and  implement it, confirm that the problem has been solved after implementing a solution, and then document the solution to the issue so that it can be used in the future if needed. The next section of the module went over what we do and do not support at the IT Help Desk. At the IT Help Desk, we support all ODU related technologies. This includes ODU managed computers, ODU websites, and MIDAS. We do not support any personal devices, hardware repair, or virus removal. The best we can do for these sorts of issues is troubleshoot to our best ability and provide possible solutions. While we do have departments that handle these sorts of issues, the only do this for ODU managed devices, as mentioned above. This module ended by talking about customer etiquette and customer service. For customer etiquette, it went over greeting users on the phone, placing users on hold, closing out phone calls, and helping walk-ins at the Help Desk. Our phone greeting is the typical “Thank you for calling the IT Help Desk, my name is _______, how can I help you?” When placing a user on hold, we must first ask them if they are ok with being put on hold while we check our resources to better assist them and then we must thank them for holding once we return to the call. Before we end a call, we ask the user if there is anything else that we can help them with. Once everything is done, we end with \u201chave a nice day.\u201d The process for walk-ins is fairly similar. The main difference is the greeting. We greet walk-ins by saying \u201cWelcome to the IT Help Desk.\u201d We then either ask them how we can help or inform them that someone will be with them shortly depending on the status of the workers at the time. The customer service section had us watch a video on customer service tips & tricks and then go through a customer service course through LinkedIn Learning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The last 2 modules that we went through were about MIDAS and Service Now. Midas is the account management site for anyone with a MIDAS account. Midas has a standard user side and an admin side. At the help desk, we have access to the admin side of MIDAS. The module then went over the different sections of MIDAS. These sections are your account at a glance, password reset, two-factor authentication, account services, and account roles. All of the sections are self-explanatory as the names are exactly what the section is about. Your account at a glance page shows you all of the other sections and shows you any requirements you might have to complete. The password reset section is where you would go to reset your MIDAS password. The two-factor authentication section is where you would go to manage anything two-factor authentication related. This includes adding and\/or removing two-factor authentication methods. The Accounts services section displays all the services that you account currently has and had in the past. The account roles section displays all of your current roles within the university. Some common roles are student, faculty, and staff. In MIDAS, users can also request new services for their account or services for others if they have the permissions to do so. Service Now is the system that we use to handle all of the incidents that we get at the Help Desk. We use this system to either respond to users regarding their issue or to send the incidents to the department that would handle them. The users can respond to us by email or by the Service Now portal. Service Now also houses the knowledge base that we use at the Help Desk. This knowledge base has articles for most of the issues that we come across. The Help Desk staff constantly updates the articles in the knowledge base so that the information in them is always up to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The remainder of my training involved working through scenarios and then eventually working through tickets with assistance from Help Desk Staff or a student lead. We worked through scenarios made up by our supervisor for about 2 days. He had me and the other new hire take turns typing of a response in Service Now for the scenarios. He also wanted us to keep any tabs up that we used to find the solution to the scenarios so that he could see out troubleshooting process. After he felt we had done good enough with the scenarios, he had a Help Desk Staff member and\/or student lead sit in with us while we worked on real Service Now incidents. At first we were only told to handle password resets. Password resets are some of the most common incidents that we receive at the Help Desk. After a few days of that, we were then told to begin working on any incidents that we could. They did not have me answering any calls until my last day of training. On my last day of training, our supervisor started adding me to the regular Help Desk schedule. It made me feel good that I was done with training a week before the other new hire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first impressions of the IT Help Desk and the staff were great. From the interview to the training, I never felt uneasy or nervous when interacting with anyone. Everyone was very friendly and easy to talk to. They were also great when it came to answering any questions that I had. Throughout training I got to know my supervisor and some of the Help Desk Staff more. We all have a lot more in common than I thought, which also made the experience more enjoyable. We were able to talk about all sorts of things when we had down time during training. Once my training was complete, I had a good feeling about working at the IT Help Desk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Management<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The management structure of the IT Help Desk is made up of the Deputy Chief Information Officer, the Help Desk Manager, the Help Desk Technical Lead\/Student Supervisor, the Help Desk Technicians, the Part-time Technicians, and the Student Technicians. The Deputy CIO is the highest position at the Help Desk. She oversees all of the daily operation at the Help Desk. The Help Desk Manager also helps with the overseeing of the daily operations at the Help Desk. He has also been working with EVMS to plan and implement strategies to best merge the IT operations of ODU and EVMS. He checks in with the Help Desk Technical Lead\/Student Supervisor, Help Desk Technicians, and Part-time Technicians to make sure that everything is going ok. The Help Desk Technical Lead\/Student Supervisor is the lead of the technicians and directly oversees the Student Technicians. He handles the hiring and most of the training of the student workers. He also handles the work schedule. The Help Desk Technicians, aka Help Desk Staff, handle all possible tickets we receive at the help desk. They have access to all the services that we need at the Help Desk. The also help with the training of new workers. Help Desk technicians look over all the tickets that have been completed by the student workers and \u201cgrade\u201d the by looking at each section of the ticket and then giving it an overall grade. The student leads help with training the new student workers. They are also able to resolve some incidents that the regular student workers cannot. This is because they are granted access to additional services that regular student workers cannot access. The management structure of the IT Help Desk is very effective. It is setup so that there are stages of who student workers should ask about issues if they are unable to solve them. This makes it so that the student workers are not bothering the Help Desk Staff with tons of questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Duties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                <\/strong>At the help desk, the student workers main duties are to answer phone calls, help walk-ins, and create\/respond to incidents. Answering phone calls and helping walk-ins is pretty straight forward. We are to listen to the issues and try to solve them without the need to send them to another department. We refer to this as a first contact resolution. We want to be able to solve a user\u2019s issue as quickly as we can. Not only does it save us time, but it also saves the user time instead of them having to wait on a response from another department. This duty is important because it takes some of the work load off of the Help Desk Technician and the Help Desk Technical Lead\/Student Supervisor. The Student Technicians and the Part-time technicians are the only ones who are typically in the call queue. This is because the Help Desk Technician and the Help Desk Technical Lead\/Student Supervisor are usually working on other incidents that require their full attention. The Help Desk Technician will sometimes help walk-ins if absolutely no one else is able to at the time. Creating\/responding to incidents is self-explanatory. At the Help Desk, we create and respond to incidents in Service Now. We create the incidents ourselves if we receive a phone call or have a walk-in. All other incidents come in through Service Now via email or the Service Now portal. This duty is not only important to the Help Desk, but to all the departments that we work with. We are the first line of resolution. If we are able to provide first contact resolution, that is one less incident that another department must spend time on. This also keeps incidents from going to incorrect departments by having us delegate them correctly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Skill Use<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                <\/strong>There were not many cybersecurity skills that I learned or knowledge that I gained on the job that I did not already have. Most of the things that I learned While working at the IT Help Desk were how to solve certain incidents that we received. The main skill that I used during the internship was troubleshooting. We constantly have to troubleshoot to try and figure out the cause of the incidents we receive and how to best solve them. This ties back into the first contact resolutions. We troubleshoot to the best of our abilities to solve t incidents as quickly as possible. Another skill commonly used at the help desk is the clearing of cache and cookies. Most of the issues that we see at the help desk are either password resets or cache and cookie issues. This is our go to solution any time there is an issue accessing anything online. My knowledge of cybersecurity threats as well as how to spot them is another skill that I use frequently at the Help Desk. We get at least one phishing attempt every 1-2 weeks. We have to constantly tell users not to reply to these emails or fill out any forms in them. We make sure to explain to the users how the attack works and the best ways to deal with them. Recently we have been seeing more and more creating phishing attempts. Luckily, we are well aware of what to look for in phishing attempts and we quickly inform our IT Security department so that they can deal with them. I have also heavily relied on my ability to simplify terms or procedures so that they are easier to understand for others. There have been many times where I had to explain why we follow certain processes or how the phishing attacks work to others. While working at the IT Help Desk has not changed my understanding of any subject matter, it has definitely honed many of my skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curriculum<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The ODU curriculum did a good job of preparing for my internship at the IT Help Desk. There were plenty of skill and knowledge that I was able to put to use while working at the Help Desk. As I mentioned earlier, I have heavily used my troubleshooting skills, technology skills, and cybersecurity threat knowledge. Having gone through the curriculum has made it easier for me to teach and explain things to others. This being said, there are plenty of skills that I have been unable to put to use at the Help Desk. This is because they are not relevant to the work that we do. I do not do any work in Linux at the Help Desk. Working at the Help Desk has allowed me to use many of the concepts that I have learned, but many of the skills that I learned cannot be used.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Objectives<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                <\/strong>As I mentioned in the beginning of my paper, I hade the goals of learning more about cybersecurity issues dealt with on a college campus, learning more about how cybersecurity issues are handled, learning more about how IT and cybersecurity are connected, and learning more about IT and IT security in general while working at the IT Help Desk. Working at the IT Help Desk, I was able to fulfill all of my goals. First was learning more about cybersecurity issues on a college campus. As I mentioned earlier, we deal with a lot of phishing incidents at the IT Help Desk. These are the main types of cybersecurity issues seen on a college campus. Another issue to look out for is the potential loss of personal information like your MIDASS ID or UIN. While this ties into phishing incidents, there are other ways for someone\u2019s information to be stolen. One good example is the loss of their ODU ID. This ID has your name and UIN on it. At the Help Desk, we have many procedures to help stop or counteract these issues. This leads to my next goal of learning more about how cybersecurity issues are handled. To deal with phishing incidents, we send the first report of a phishing attempt to our IT Security department. They then look into the incident to determine whether or not it is a phishing attempt. If they find it to be a phishing attempt, they lock whoever\u2019s account was used to send the email and then make it so that nobody else is able to see the email. They then go and lock the accounts of anyone who may have received or opened the email. This is to make sure that, if someone did fill out the form asking for their login information, the attackers would no longer be able to access the accounts. To make sure nobody tries to contact the Help Desk and gain someone else\u2019s information, we have procedures in place to verify the identity of the user. We do this by asking for their name, UIN\/MIDAS ID, picture of any photo id, and their phone number. We then ask them to confirm their date of birth over the phone. This is how we confirm that we are talking to the person whose account we are dealing with. My last two goals of learning more about how IT and cybersecurity are connected and learning more about IT and IT security in general are interconnected. While working at the IT Help Desk, I have definitely learned a lot about IT and IT security and how they are connected to cybersecurity. I am still learning new things while I work at the Help Desk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Motivation, Discouragement, and Challenges<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                <\/strong>The most motivating aspect of the internship for me was when I was told that I had completed training a week before the other new student worker. There were times during training where that had given me more leeway than him when it came to supervision. I had also noticed that they did not correct my incident tickets as much. When I was told that I was done with training, I felt a sense of accomplishment. This gave me a lot more confidence in myself when it came time to actually work at the Help Desk. One of the other most motivating aspects was when the Help Desk Manager called me into his office and asked me to help with something. After I finished helping, he told me that I was doing a good job at the Help Desk. This also gave me more confidence in my abilities at the Help Desk. There were not any really discouraging aspects of working at the Help Desk. The only aspect that was a little discouraging was the number of articles that there were in the knowledge base. When I first began to look at them, I feared that I would miss one or misread one and give someone the wrong response. I have only done that once, but it was because the article had to be updated and not because I misread or looked at the wrong one. I would say that the number of articles is probably one of the more challenging aspects of working at the Help Desk. I have to always make sure that I am reading the correct article and not mixing it up with a different one. The number of different issues goes along with it as well. I would give the most challenging aspect of working at the Help Desk to all of the changes that we have to deal with due to ODU merging with EVMS. The merger not only added a whole new list of issues for us to handle, but it also came with a lot of changes later down the line. I began working at the Help Desk right before a lot of changes were being made to phase out systems at EVMS so that they could transfer over to ours. This meant that I had to learn many of the processes for EVMS issues and then instantly learn the new processes after phasing them out. Luckily, the new processes really were just them following our existing processes. The issue was making sure that I remembered when they finally did switch. The lack of good communication at EVMS did not help to make these issues any less challenging. We would get numerous calls and tickets from people who either had no idea that they were supposed to be switched over to our systems or did not know enough about our systems and procedures. I am now at the point where I have little to no issues working on EVMS issues, but it was definitely a big hurdle for me to get over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recommendations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                The only real recommendation I would give to future interns\/student workers at the IT Help Desk would be to be prepared to learn a lot of processes. There are numerous different issues that we come across while working at the Help Desk. We have even seen a few new issues since I began working here. The knowledge base does help, but being able to remember the procedures as time goes on has helped me be able to handle more incidents in a timelier manner. It felt good to be able to quickly answer tickets without having to look at an article every time. The main preparation that they should make it to work on their troubleshoot. While we do have numerous articles in the knowledge base, there are still plenty of issues that we have to troubleshoot for. Having good troubleshooting skills can really change how long it takes to resolve an issue. Brushing up on customer service skills is another big one. We deal with a variety of personalities at the Help Desk. It is also a good idea to look into the technologies and services used and provided by the university. These are what a majority of our incidents are about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                <\/strong>My time working at the IT Help Desk has taught me a lot. The main things that I learned were not really skills, but information on how to deal with certain issues. Reading though the knowledge base articles and helping users has taught me plenty of new ways to resolve issues that I did not know before. I also never knew what exactly the Help Desk did before working there. Before being hired, I thought that they were the ones who handled all of the issues. I did not know that they delegate certain issues to other departments. After seeing how many tickets and calls we get at the help desk, I also have a deeper respect for those in IT and related positions. I only have a semester left here at ODU, but my time at the help desk will definitely influence that remaining time. I have already begun learning more about the technologies and services used and provided by the university. I have done this not just for myself, but to better inform those around me. This way, I can also lighten the load for the Help Desk and possibly lower the number of incidents they have to deal with, even if only by a little. My time at the IT Help Desk will also greatly influence my future professional path. I will take the things that I have learned at the Help Desk and apply them to wherever I go. I will make sure to look into what is used and provided by wherever I work so that I can better help myself and those around me. I also plan to learn more about IT and related fields so that I can be a better candidate in whatever role I pursue. I greatly enjoyed my time at the IT Help Desk and am excited for my last semester.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reflection #1 Zion Woods 6\/6\/2025 ODU IT Help Desk Reflection #1                 The first 50 hours of my internship consisted of training to work at the IT Help Desk. The first hour involved our supervisor bringing us in to get our faculty\/staff accounts and services setup. Since I have already worked 3 different jobs on… <\/p>\n

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