TAFE NSW will begin offering cyber security courses for students the first time in the New Year after signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Box Hill Institute of TAFE in Victoria.
The Certificate IV and Advanced Diploma courses, which were developed in Victoria, come on the back of increasing market demand for quality training for students in this field, the minister responsible for TAFE NSW, Adam Marshall, said.
To help develop and support Box Hill’s cyber security qualifications, the Labor Government invested $4.7 million from the $50 million TAFE Back to Work Fund.
Led by Victorian TAFEs in partnership with TAFEs from every state and the ACT, the program will deliver common qualifications across the country based on courses developed at Box Hill.
State TAFEs will also lobby the Federal Government to fund a national cyber security internship program and participating TAFEs will form local industry reference groups to ensure delivery is meeting industry needs.
“Cybercrime is a growing threat that has created unprecedented demand for professionals who can secure and monitor IT systems and protect personal and organisational privacy,” Marshall said.
“TAFE NSW offers practical, industry-led and accredited training with the NSW Government offering a range of financial assistance to those who want to gain in-demand qualifications.”
Marshall said the course has had great success in Victoria and is accredited by the Australian Skills Quality Authority.
Cyber security skills are in constant demand across many sectors in the market and in October, Deakin University struck up a partnership with Dimension Data, creating its first Bachelor of Cyber Security.
The three-year undergraduate degree counts on the support of the Victorian Government and two big banks, NAB and ANZ, and will offer up to 50 students the opportunity to work at Dimension Data, Deakin, NAB or ANZ.
In recognising Australia's cyber security skills shortage, the Federal Government launched its Cyber Security Sector Competitiveness Plan, in April as part of an initiative, which was drawn up by the Australian Cyber Security Growth Network (ACSGN).
It is expected to help triple the size of the country’s cyber security revenue from about $2 billion to $6 billion in the next decade and highlighted three core factors standing in the way of growth in the sector: inefficient research and commercialisation; a constraining market environment; and a local skills shortage.
