Topic 1 Article by Mauro Alexander Rodriguez

How Does The Young Women Cybersecurity Scholarship Program By ABF Benefit Young Women In Cybersecurity?

An ABF scholarship for young women would benefit women entering cybersecurity in many different ways. This kind of scholarship would have the benefit of introducing more women into the cybersecurity field, would encourage more women to seek a career in cyber security, and would encourage recipients to give back to the foundation.

According to ISC2, women only represent about 24 percent of the global cybersecurity workforce. This percentage is very low, and more measures should be taken in order to make it easier for women to join the cybersecurity field. By creating scholarships specifically for women to enter the cybersecurity field, more attention will be put on the ABF organization for being supportive of young women and their higher education. With proper social media management and reaching out to different young women from different backgrounds, more women will be introduced into the field of cybersecurity. Providing a scholarship specifically for women will draw attention and will introduce more young women into the field. Introducing more women into this field will help increase the percentage of women in cybersecurity and will fix the inequality difference of cybersecurity being a male-dominated field. 

Furthermore, women are discouraged from taking the financial risk of choosing to study in the cybersecurity field. The lack of women in the field discourages new young women from taking the risk of entering a field unknown to them. Providing a scholarship for young women would provide a sense of security and trust which will lead to more women having the confidence to join the cybersecurity field. Many people have to deal with the financial risk of choosing to study at college, and for that reason, some may choose to go with a safe field that they are comfortable with and know will work out in the end because others have made it work for them. However, the lack of women in cybersecurity makes the field a risk to take. The ABF scholarship would help ease this risk by providing financial aid, encouraging women to enter this new field. As time goes on and more women join this field, even more, young women will see that a cybersecurity environment is a place where women can thrive, and it will seem more welcoming for young women. 

Lastly, introducing an ABF scholarship for young women to enter cybersecurity would be beneficial because it would encourage even more kindness and willingness to give back to the community. The women who receive the scholarship will be grateful for the opportunity and will want to give back to the foundation that helped them so that they can continue to help more people. This would be beneficial for the Aaron Barnett Foundation because more donations would mean that more students can be helped financially so that they can pursue their dream of entering the cybersecurity field. This act of giving back would help the foundation grow even larger, helping even more students from different backgrounds.

In conclusion, there are many benefits to introducing a scholarship for young women in cybersecurity. Providing this kind of scholarship will be a good indicator to show people that this foundation is one that cares about supporting women and overall cares about students who want to pursue their career in cybersecurity. Also, a scholarship like this would help young women feel more secure when pursuing a career that is male-dominated. Lastly, supporting young women coming into the cybersecurity field will lead to them supporting the foundation in return once they have settled into their careers. Overall, an ABF scholarship for young women would be beneficial in many ways in the short and long term for this foundation and the future of cybersecurity.