ITC 660/664/770 Phase 3 Research Paper Template
paper title:
Shortage of skilled cybersecurity personnel in the workforce
Problem statement:
Today we have an overwhelming demand for cybersecurity personnel that outweighs the supply that are available in the workforce, and it is predicted to increase in the next few years
Research question:
What are the major reasons why the Cybersecurity field is experience shortage of personnel in the workforce?
Thesis statement:
The main reasons for the shortage are the growing numbers of complex cyber-attacks and the inability of educational institutions and employers to keep up with the pace.
Paper outline (follow this specific outline format while also using some guidance here ):
I. Introduction (5 pts.) (Note: The Introduction will contain 5%-15% of your paper’s total word count*)
A. Hook—Complete single sentence of an especially interesting fact, question, quote, or something else to capture the reader’s attention (15-40 words). If your hook doesn’t hook me, it’s not a hook.
B. Problem statement (PS)—Complete single sentence, a STATEMENT of the problem directly addressed by the paper (15-40 words).
C. Research question (RQ)—Complete single sentence, the main QUESTION you are going to answer in the paper (15-40 words).
D. Thesis statement (TS)—Complete single sentence that states the ANSWER to your research question (15-40 words).
E. Other—Clarifying statements the reader should understand before proceeding (15-40 words each).
II. Background (5 pts.) (Note: The Background will contain 10%-20% of your paper’s total word count*)
A. Complete single sentence stating part of the background needed to understand your paper (15-40 words).
B. Complete single sentence stating part of the background needed to understand your paper (15-40 words).
C. Complete single sentence stating part of the background needed to understand your paper (15-40 words).
D. … and so on (you might need 3-5 background statements, 15-40 words each).
III. Discussion (5 pts.) (Note: The Discussion will contain 60%-70% of your paper’s total word count*)
A. Major Point 1: Complete single sentence that makes the first major point proving your thesis (15-40 words).
B. Major Point 2: Complete single sentence that makes the second major point proving your thesis (15-40 words).
C. Major Point 3: Complete single sentence that makes the third major point proving your thesis (15-40 words).
D. … and so on (you probably need 3-5 major points in the Discussion, 15-40 words each).
IV. Conclusion (5 pts.) (Note: The Conclusion will contain 5%-15% of your paper’s total word count*)
A. Three complete single sentences that restate the PS, the RQ, and the TS (15-40 words per sentence).
B. Complete single sentence that reflects on what your paper has accomplished (15-40 words).
C. Complete single sentence that discusses where researchers go from here (15-40 words).
Also include your reference page in STRICT APA format including ONLY those references that will be DIRECTLY and MEANINGFULLY cited in the paper (at least 10–at least half of your total number of references MUST be peer-reviewed). (10 pts.)
*Total word count in the paper excludes title page, abstract, keywords, and references.
Numbered list of peer-reviewed articles in strict APA format:
Oltsik, J., Alexander, C., & CISM, C. (2017). The life and times of cybersecurity professionals. ESG and ISSA: Research Report. https://www.issa.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/2017-ESG-ISSA-full-report.pdf
Cobb, S. (2016). Mind this gap: criminal hacking and the global cybersecurity skills shortage, a critical analysis. In Virus Bulletin Conference (pp. 1-8). https://web.archive.org/web/20180515104057id_/https://www.virusbulletin.com/uploads/pdf/magazine/2016/VB2016-Cobb.pdf
Vogel, R. (2016). Closing the cybersecurity skills gap. Salus Journal, 4(2), 32-46. https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/informit.093144667545339
Blažič, B. J. (2021). The cybersecurity labour shortage in Europe: Moving to a new concept for education and training. Technology in Society, 67, 101769. https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S0160791X2100244X?token=A410E1E82532E28C5DD4C3C42B3EC073BB2315B40BD3153685C12836BC4C136E1C4A3F88A3EDAAEF8417A0B957DC9314&originRegion=us-east-1&originCreation=20220212151511
Furnell, S. (2021). The cybersecurity workforce and skills. Computers & Security, 100, 102080. https://reader.elsevier.com/reader/sd/pii/S0167404820303539?token=75E54615F7284A0C6CA32FF44EC32D4621E70E475DFE393C3794E35E30644A86159D372DCEFE5290B91D34F7D0C05FF2&originRegion=us-east-1&originCreation=20220212153413
Cheung, R. S., Cohen, J. P., Lo, H. Z., Elia, F., & Carrillo-Marquez, V. (2012). Effectiveness of cybersecurity competitions. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Security and Management (SAM) (p. 1). The Steering Committee of The World Congress in Computer Science, Computer Engineering and Applied Computing (WorldComp). https://josephpcohen.com/papers/seccomp.pdf
Liu, X., & Murphy, D. (2016, September). Engaging females in cybersecurity: K through Gray. In 2016 IEEE Conference on Intelligence and Security Informatics (ISI) (pp. 255-260). IEEE. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7745485
Numbered list of non-peer-reviewed articles in strict APA format:
Givens, E. W. (2019). Perception versus Reality: The Perceived Cybersecurity Workforce Shortage in the United States (Doctoral dissertation, Capitol Technology University). https://www.proquest.com/openview/07099654f05e62063592d8f56ffeabf8/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
DeCrosta, J. (2021). Bridging the Gap: An Exploration of the Quantitative and Qualitative Factors Influencing the Cybersecurity Workforce Shortage (Doctoral dissertation, Utica College). https://www.proquest.com/openview/b08d412275c53f095c3f145e30717ab6/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
Lingelbach, K. K. (2018). Perceptions of female cybersecurity professionals toward factors that encourage females to the cybersecurity field (Doctoral dissertation, Nova Southeastern University). https://www.proquest.com/openview/c824c4480be9f306d320f738102b3984/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y