Angel Grant

How did you first hear about Rize, and why did you decide to take a Rize course?

Angel is a junior at American International College, majoring in Criminal Justice with a minor in Cybersecurity. With a dream of becoming an FBI agent, Angel chose his minor specifically to strengthen his professional program.

"I've always found cybersecurity really interesting. I thought, if I do that, maybe I can boost up my resume... It really helped me, and I really enjoy it a lot. The courses I've taken have really shown me a lot. I'm really thankful that I picked a minor."

He balances a workload of multiple online courses and finds the Rize platform particularly effective because of the level of support provided.

"I have so much help if I need help. I also have my professors answer really rapidly, which I really like." He also values Rize’s MyCareers tool for tracking his college milestones.

How did you apply your Rize skills outside of the classroom?

For the past three summers, Angel has worked at Send in the Clowns Entertainment Company, a party rental business in Westbury, New York. The real-world “test” of his studies came when his boss, Gary, asked him to look at a computer that was acting up.

Trojan virus detection: Angel noticed sluggish performance, weird pop-ups, and erratic network traffic. "I remember reading something about that in my cybercrime and governance course. It was just so real looking at it, hearing about it in my course and seeing it in real life."

To identify the threat, he used a virus-detection app he learned about in his Cybercrime and Governance course. He typed in the symptoms and uploaded a suspicious email file that appeared in everyone's accounts at the company. The app gave him a description that correlated with what he was seeing, confirming it was a Trojan horse virus. He discovered that the boss's secretary had opened an email that corrupted all the other systems in the building.

Response and recommendations: Angel knew how to identify the threat even if he wasn’t the one to perform the deep technical repair. “I told my boss, ‘Reinforce your firewalls, perhaps get a new system, or call the authorities. I didn't really know how to fix it, but I knew how to identify it because of the course I took." He also recommended that the company educate everyone on “what to click on and not click on” to strengthen their overall security posture.

Post-mortem analysis: After Gary got a new system, Angel monitored it for two days to make sure everything was running smoothly with no bugs, viruses, or data breaches. He used a checklist he found online about how to provide analysis before and after a cybercrime attack. He identified the problem before it got out of hand, potentially preventing the breach of customer information including emails, credit card information, and home addresses.

How did this experience impact your career trajectory?

The experience gave Angel confidence in his abilities and a sense of fulfillment. "It made me feel really good. I was happy I was able to help my family friend out of a situation that could have been a bigger situation. I feel confident that these skills help me through that, so I can definitely incorporate it in my future FBI career."

The experience also broadened his career perspective. While he's still interested in the FBI, he realized: "If I do anything cybersecurity, I'd be pretty happy. Especially now, because now I'm more confident in my skills because I'm testing them out." He recognizes how important cybersecurity is across all sectors: "Cybercrime is just evolving, and we need people to combat it."

What's next for you?

Angel is graduating in May and is currently in the process of becoming a New York State Trooper with plans to join their cybersecurity department. He's already applied and passed both physical and written tests. During the interview process, he talked about his summer experience identifying the Trojan virus to demonstrate how he applies his skills in high-pressure, real-world scenarios.

His plan is to work as a state trooper in the cybersecurity department for a few years to gain experience before moving on to his next career step. He also wants to continue growing his cybersecurity knowledge after graduation, potentially pursuing a bachelor's and then a master's degree.