Dakota State University is hosting a first-of-its-kind Cyber Espionage Camp this summer.
The camp is designed to introduce students to emerging tech fields and their relationship with modern life and promote the university and its Cyber Leadership and Intelligence major to future students.
Kurt Kemper is a professor at DSU and the director of the camp. He said the program is part of a bigger focus by state leaders and others to satisfy the increasing demand for tech-related jobs.
Despite the unpredictable and evolving nature of the field, he said this camp is useful for curious students.
“What we’re trying to do is make sure students have broad skills and be able to think within the existing framework of the historic social sciences, things like economics, criminal justice, criminology, international relations, history, and utilize those skills to bring to this cyber-enabled world,” Kemper said.
Kemper also said this camp helps students acclimate to an ever-changing career field.
“The idea that, you know, you’re going to go to college, pick a major at 18, graduate at 22, and then work in one field for 37 or 40 years before you retire with a pension, that world is gone, and it’s never coming back. What we want to do is equip students with these really broad skills so they are able to serve the transitions in the market that are inevitably going to be brought by technology,” he said.
Campers can engage in a variety of immersive simulations and activities throughout their time at the camp. These include a strategy game of international relations and a dinner party where individuals must safeguard national security data.
The camp runs from June 24-26 at DSU’s campus in Madison. Registration information is available at DSU's website.