When it comes to the cybersecurity industry, the CISSP – Certified Information Systems Security Professional – is one of the most sought after certifications individuals can receive. In fact, in Britain, the CISSP certification counts as a masters degree. That is how prestigious it is. 

Within the last two years at Chambers College, we have had three students take this exam and pass it. While it is a valued certificate to have, it is not an easy one to pass. Chris Ramezan, a teaching assistant professor of Management Information Systems and Cybersecurity, said it is not only a personal achievement for those students, but it is also one for our faculty who have helped prep and coach our students through coursework and additional study groups. “It is a very tough exam with very high stakes,” said Ramezan. “Students typically take two years to prepare for it. We wanted to make sure our students had the tools they needed, so we hosted a study group for those who were planning on taking it.” Andy Pritt, a 2020 masters of science in Business Cybersecurity Management graduate said he was grateful that the College helped him prepare for the exam. “Before I took the exam, everything that I had read about it online said that I would feel like I was failing it while I was taking it, and that was definitely true. It was the hardest exam I have ever taken, by a long shot. I honestly couldn’t believe it when the first word on the paper read “Congratulations”, said Pritt. Having students enrolled in our cybersecurity program, and graduating with the knowledge and skills needed to pass the CISSP exam (and others such as, Network+, Security+, Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst+ (CySA+), AWS Cloud certifications and more) is just one of the ways our College is raising the bar for future cybersecurity professionals.