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Student Success

Cybersecurity student gets professional experience at Miami University SOC

Cameron Paul ’26 is a senior Cybersecurity major who works as a Security Operations Center (SOC) Analyst in Hoyt Hall.

by Jocelyn Gale, CEC Student Communications Associate • Published •
Student Success

Cybersecurity student gets professional experience at Miami University SOC

by Jocelyn Gale, CEC Student Communications Associate • Published •

Cameron Paul ’26 is a senior Cybersecurity major who works as a Security Operations Center (SOC) Analyst in Hoyt Hall. He's getting professional IT career experience while still in college at Miami University.

After graduating, Cameron sees himself working in a position similar to what he does currently in Hoyt Hall. He says his classes and his position as an SOC Analyst has given him “plenty of realistic hands-on experience” and “professional confidence” as he makes the transition from school to the working world.

 

Detailing The Position

As an SOC Analyst, Cameron monitors alerts regarding the various campus security tools, and deals with them accordingly. Sometimes these issues are within Cameron's range of work and if not, he sends them to those above him to sort out.
 
For Cameron, this has been a helpful opportunity to see the kind of people he’ll be working with in his future in the Cybersecurity field. It’s a position in which he can directly apply skills he learned in classes such as Network Security, Defensive Security, and Organizational Security. He even mentioned that some of his previous classwork was “exactly like” what he is doing in his position as SOC Analyst in Hoyt Hall. 

Launching a Career 

Cameron says that in many cases, “entry-level positions say they want one to three years of experience” in order to be hired. It is a position like this that allows him to “get his foot in the door” when it comes to a post-graduate career.
 
Thanks to his professor, James Walden, Ph.D., Cameron learned about this position and advocated for himself to be hired on. Cameron believes that connecting with professors by asking questions and e-mailing is extremely helpful when it comes to being involved in student opportunities on campus that can assist with moving forward in a post-grad career. 

More Opportunities Through CEC

In addition to positions like Cameron's, the College of Engineering and Computing (CEC) offers the Cybersecurity Clinic, which is another opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience while still in college.

The Cybersecurity Clinic performs security assessments, reviews security policies and procedures, and helps to both recommend and implement improvements to an organization's cybersecurity systems. Through both classroom engagement and real-world client interactions, students are given the opportunity to build a foundation in the professional field of cybersecurity through peer collaboration, skill-building tasks, and essential knowledge development. 

As Cameron said, having experience while in college is a great jumpstart to a career in cybersecurity and the rich opportunities Miami University offers are the perfect place to start.

 

Curious to hear another Cybersecurity student's perspective? Check out the feature video on Evan Ellsworth, below, to learn more about his experience in the major.

Meet Evan Ellsworth '26, a Miami University student majoring in Cybersecurity in the College of Engineering and Computing. Learn about Evan's experience in the major, including his hands-on experience through the Cybersecurity Clinic.
Tagged:
Center for Cybersecurity College of Engineering and Computing Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering