Balancing Education and Real-World Cybersecurity with a SOC Analyst Student
From Simply Defensive by Simply Cyber Media Group
November 3, 2025 · 32 min · Season 5
About this episode
The episode discusses the balance between education and real-world experience in cybersecurity with insights from a SOC analyst student.
In this episode of Simply Defensive, host Josh Mason and co-host discuss their experiences and challenges in cybersecurity, along with guest Victoria, a student and SOC analyst at UNLV. The conversation covers the complexities of building a Security Operations Center (SOC) and compares academic learning with real-world applications. Victoria shares insights from her studies and practical work, including developing a SOC program at UNLV and addressing common cybersecurity misconceptions. The episode highlights the importance of communication, real-world projects, continuous learning, and the balance between technical and business aspects of cybersecurity. 00:00 Introduction and Host Banter 00:20 Guest Introduction: Victoria 01:03 Building a SOC: Challenges and Experiences 01:29 Education vs. Real-World Experience 02:29 SOC Class and Practical Training 03:49 Group Projects and Communication 07:14 Real-Life Incident Stories 10:33 Getting into Cybersecurity: Victoria's Journey 12:54 Business Side of Cybersecurity 16:17 The Cost of MFA and Free Alternatives 16:31 Lock Picking and Security Value 17:30 Teaching Cybersecurity Concepts 18:44 Consulting Experience for Students 19:15 Client…
People in this episode
Host: Josh Mason
Guest: Victoria
Topics covered
- cybersecurity
- education
- real-world experience
- SOC
- communication
- continuous learning
Keywords
- cybersecurity
- SOC analyst
- education
- real-world applications
- UNLV
- communication
- continuous learning
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: UNLV
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