In this post we are to explain why we think that Penn State Security and Risk Analysis students are well fitted to address issues in the integration of technology in crisis response. I believe that this is a great question to answer because it very well could be a question that a future employer would like to know in the hiring process. It is important that we as Penn State Security and Risk Analysis students are understood in the things that we do. This reigns true because the fact of the matter is that Security and Risk Analysis is a relatively new Major that up and coming students are taking an interest in as well as employers. But, because it is new, most people do not even know what it really means. I know this on a first hand basis because whenever people ask me what my major is and I tell them, almost ninety percent of the time, the follow up question is, “oh, what is that.” Security and Risk Analysis is not like the norm of a business degree where everyone knows what it is and everyone pretty much knows the core curriculum of what they students are going to do. Security and Risk Analysis is different because we are changing up our curriculum almost every year (or at least for the two years that I have been in it.)
But to get to the point, Security and Risk Analysis and Information Science and Technology students are great for a job in Crisis Response. Ill tell you why. For one, a lot of the students in SRA have an interest in law enforcement and/or have a military history or future. Not only is this important, but we have at least a basic understand in technology and how to use it properly and sufficiently. And that is something that you do not get with a lot of the other more popular and older majors. The Penn State IST college really strives to challenge its students to the very best of their ability and this will pay off when we get out into the work environment. We also tend to do more hands on projects rather then just learn definitions and do paper work all semester. We get the skills that we need in order to succeed in the work force. I know that Penn State is not an Ivy League school, but I challenge that it will keep up if not surpass any other school in the country on this topic. Furthermore, Penn State has a wide variety of classes that help us. For example, we have a class that I am currently taking that is called Crisis Informatics. The cool part of this class is that it is only the second time that a class like this has been given in the whole world. Now can you say that about other majors or universities? All in all, Penn State gives us everything that we need in order to succeed and succeed we shall.
Hello Mike,
ReplyDeleteI have to say that my favorite remark of yours in this post was the part about how " Penn State is not an Ivy League school, but I challenge that it will keep up if not surpass any other school in the country on this topic." When I was looking at different universities for my college choices, I did check out a couple private colleges that had prestigious computer science programs and others that had comparable business programs, but I really wanted to focus on how I can utilize technology to make the world a safer place to live. Hence, the SRA major in the College of IST really fit my preferences, and since it exists as one of the few programs in the country focusing on an undergrad level of this material, it sure feels like I'm in an Ivy League program. Really, Penn State gives its students every possible means to gain a great education, while learning about how our education applies in the real world. I have to say, with all the group projects we've had to work on in SRA 111, 211, 221, 231, and 397A, it's a great topic to talk about with employers. And even when we had our guests join us to speak with us about their aid organizations, you can see that they were blown away by the capabilities of both our students and the program itself. IST gives you everything you need to be successful, and if a future job awaits me in the humanitarian aid community, I can always talk about the times I spoke to Andrew Alspach, or the times I listened to Edward Happ, or even that I attended the TEDxPSU event to listen to Ian Rosenberger, another person out there in the humanitarian assistance community, who created his own NGO to help build businesses and clean up Haiti. We have a lot in store for us upon graduation, and our futures are what we make of it from all that we've learned here.
Tony
I would have to agree with you that us explaining why Penn State Security and Risk Analysis students are well fitted to address issues in the integration of technology in crises response is a something a student’s future employer might ask during an interview. Much like you, about 90 percent of the time I tell someone my major is Security and Risk Analysis, their immediate response is “what is that?” I would have to say that this major is, in my opinion, probably a little bit more interesting than the average business major.
ReplyDeleteI think you are right that it is important for students in the Security and Risk Analysis major to have a specific interest in the field and hold an interest in the technology that we have discussed in class. I like the fact that the Penn State IST is a more hands-on program, not only do I think it challenges the students, but it’s a great way to learn as well. I agree with you that it is cool that this is only the second time a class like SRA 397A has been offered. I think it will be interesting to see how the class develops throughout the next few years.