Zurich adds cybersecurity to apprenticeship programs
Threat defense, incident response and application security are some of the focus areas in Zurich's cybersecurity practice.
Zurich North America has added cybersecurity to its 2018 roster of professional apprenticeship programs as demand has grown. Launched on Aug. 8, the premiere class of four cybersecurity apprentices began the two-year program with the goal of becoming full performance-level cybersecurity professionals.
Like its other apprenticeships, Zurich’s cyber apprenticeship is a two-year program where apprentices work as full-time employees at Zurich while attending classes at Harper College. The difference between the apprenticeships, according to Paige Adams, group chief information security officer for Zurich Insurance Group, is that the cyber program “is concentrated within that discipline” to develop those specific skills.
“We have started with a cohort of four cybersecurity apprentices for academic year 2018/19,” says Adams, adding that Zurich is “committed to hiring 100 apprentices by 2020.”
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Building off past success
In 2016, Zurich connected with Harper College and the U.S. Department of Labor to launch the first-ever apprenticeship program for insurance professionals in the U.S., focused on advancing professionals in claims, underwriting and finance. Upon completion of the program, each apprentice will have a full-time cybersecurity position at Zurich and be free of college loan debt for their Associates Degree.
Threat defense, incident response and application security are some of the focus areas in Zurich’s cybersecurity practice. The curriculum at Harper following the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) cybersecurity career pathway, and apprentices are required to complete six CompTIA certificates.
“As a company with [a] commitment to and expertise in cyber-related risks, and the protections against those risks, Zurich is invested in creating solutions that help businesses understand and protect themselves from these risks,” Adams said in a statement. “Helping to develop cybersecurity talent is just another means of doing so.”
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