Meet Our Instructor - Logan Hillard
"We're hoping that the information that learners glean from the classes can be directly written into their resumes. If we run a vulnerability assessment on a Tuesday, the ideal outcome is that by Thursday or Friday, that experience should be able to go on your resume. Direct experience to resume is what I focus on." -- Logan Hillard
Logan Hillard is a Network Engineer and Administrator with a specialization in Security. He currently teaches at Divergence Academy.
How did you get into cybersecurity?
In a nutshell, I went the college route and discovered that it wasn't for me. Then someone told me that I could make money with computers. As a gamer, I've been on computers my entire life so that remark hit home. From there, I got certifications and started a job as a Tier 3 Network Engineer at Microsoft before getting promoted as a tech lead.
After that, I went to Divergence, and while I was in the program, I got a remote gig working at a pen testing company out of New York.
Describe your teaching style
One of the things that I emphasize in class is that memorization is not necessary. In this field, we have a lot of acronyms and it can be easy to get caught up in memorizing the words without understanding what they really mean.
In class, I prefer taking an approach that gets students to act on concepts. If we're discussing hacking, we just hack, because there's no better way to learn than to do.
How does experiential learning impact learner outcomes?
We're hoping that the information that learners glean from the classes can be directly written into their resumes. If we run a vulnerability assessment on a Tuesday, the ideal outcome is that by Thursday or Friday, that experience should be able to go on your resume.
I want to be able to tell learners that at the end of this week, you will be able to say that you can do X. That should go on your resume, as long as you can explain it.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
The enjoyment factor is definitely the helping part. Being able to help students understand their pathway is rewarding. I've had some students who struggled with getting through the course content and who later on passed their exams. Hearing about things like that is a good feeling.
What is your best advice for someone interested in pursuing cybersecurity?
First of all: sign up for Divergence, obviously. But in all seriousness, my biggest takeaway is to just get started. If there is anything I would tell my younger self, it's that I should get started earlier.
Cybersecurity is not for everybody. But if you really want to get into it, remember that it's a process. If you can spend enough time to understand the process, you can do cybersecurity just about as good as everyone else.