UNSW Canberra has partnered with Telstra to co-develop two cyber security micro-credentials covering security fundamentals and secure coding.
Although the initial intake of students will comprise 100 Telstra employees, the online courses will eventually be open to people in all types of roles, Telstra’s Asia Pacific chief information security officer Narelle Devine said.
One of the micro-credentials, ‘Security Fundamentals’, is a five-week introductory course on a range of computer security topics aimed at learners with a technical background or an existing security skillset.
The other course, ‘Secure Coding’, runs for eight weeks and is designed to cater to people with experience in the basics of software development.
It seeks to further build a consistent security knowledge, capability and accountability among DevOps professionals.
UNSW Canberra cyber director Nigel Phair said it is increasingly important for businesses “to ensure they are not only up to date with the latest training, but that their people are equipped with the skills required to adapt to the changing landscape”.
“We are proud to develop with Telstra a suite of highly specialised training based on our leading expertise in international security affairs, complex systems security and artificial intelligence,” Phair said.
“With a focus on delivering a balance of the technical, practical and human aspects of cyber
security throughout its educational programs, Telstra’s employees will gain skills in security
that can help build expertise and talent in this space.”
Devine said that by collaborating with UNSW Canberra Cyber on the design and delivery of this curriculum, “Telstra can support the continuous learning of those in software development and IT roles and build talent in the cyber security space”.
“While addressing cybercrime requires a coordinated response between government, law
enforcement, education institutions, industry and the community, we will continue to upskill
more of our people so they can contribute to increasing the overall security of our products
and networks,” she said.
The launch of the new courses comes a year after the telco partnered with five local universities to jointly develop skills and capabilities its workforce will need in the future.
Telstra also flagged its new Workday HR integrations would further support talent development and placement by recording staff members' micro-credentials.
The two micro-credentials will be open to the public in 2021.
