Two new experiential learning courses in USF鈥檚 Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing are launching this spring.
The courses, COP 4931 - Cybersecurity Tools for Workforce Readiness and CIS 4930 - Computing Tools for Workforce Readiness were developed through extensive feedback from industry partners, advisory board members and faculty members, coupled with analysis of job market trends and skills most valued by employers.
鈥淭hese new classes are meant to be practical and hands on to give the students experience and applied skills translate directly into today鈥檚 industry environments,鈥� said Kurt Friday, an assistant professor with the college who will teach the classes. 鈥淥ur aim is to help students secure internships and employment by building their expertise with the same tools and technologies they will use in the outside world. Upon entering the workforce, want them to hit the ground running.鈥�
Registration for the spring semester begins Nov. 3.
COP 4931 - Cybersecurity Tools for Workforce Readiness, Prerequisite: COP 3515 Advanced Program Design
In this course, students will experience hands-on learning with modern cybersecurity tools that will help them develop real-world expertise.
Through partnerships with companies such as ReliaQuest, ConnectSecure, Rapid7, Timus Networks and Idaho National Laboratory, the course will expose students to cutting-edge tools for cloud security, network security and access control, security information and event management (SIEM), security orchestration, automation and response (SOAR), vulnerability and compliance management, and network traffic analysis. Students will also delve into AI-powered methods that enable intelligent automation, anomaly detection, threat hunting, and security posture assessment.
Students will use tools such as GreyMatter, TimusSASE, Malcolm and Splunk throughout the course. This will help prepare them to investigate incidents, strengthen defenses and clearly communicate their findings.
CIS 4930 - Computing Tools for Workforce Readiness, Prerequisite: COP 4530 Data Structures
The computing tools course will focus on strengthening technical fluency in software development tools, operations, and environments.
Students will gain applied experience in industry tools for version control, cloud services, infrastructure as code, containerization, continuous integration and delivery workflows, and applied AI using machine learning operations (MLOps).
Students will learn how to collaborate effectively and deliver advanced, next-generation solutions within major cloud platforms that include Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform.