Center for Advanced Study of Language
Cybersecurity is a growing field in the United States, but finding candidates who are capable of excelling in it can be tricky.
In response, the U.S. Air Force contracted the University of Maryland Center for Advanced Study of Language for two years to develop the Air Force Cyber Aptitude and Talent Assessment. The test is intended to improve the initial pass rate for cybertraining in the Air Force by determining early on who would be most suited for cyber jobs, CASL research associate Susan Campbell said.
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“We’re figuring out what things in people’s cognitive abilities will predict how they do in training,” Campbell said. “What we want know is, in the future, how they’ll do in the job, and which traits could help predict that.”
The test prototype includes critical thinking, problem-solving and short-term memory as some of the testable foundational skills, said Michael Bunting, CASL’s acting research director and senior research scientist. There will also be components to test more specific skills — decision-making, real-time performance, creativity and reactive thinking — to see which kinds of jobs each candidate is best suited for, he said.
Some prototype measures have already been developed, Campbell said, and researchers will continue developing the test throughout the year, with the first version of the test slated for completion in the summer. The center likely will have to add, take out or refine elements based on initial testing, but within the next two years, CASL hopes to have a working version of the assessment, she said.
“The goal is to find where your strengths are and kind of put you on the right path for learning the way that you learn,” Bunting said.
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The U.S. government wants about 6,000 “cyberwarriors” by 2016, said Mariah Bauer, CASL research strategies and management director, noting there has been a real push to develop this pipeline. This kind of aptitude test has the potential to really “level the playing field” in the cyber domain, she said, and help fill these in-demand jobs with the right candidates.
One of the problems the Air Force and other organizations are facing, Campbell said, is that people coming into cybersecurity jobs don’t always have the skills they’re going to need in the jobs later on.
“We want to help fix that, to assess people before they start training, to predict their grades and training outcomes and whether they can complete the course and whether they can pass,” she said.
CASL has done research related to determining language-learning aptitude, Bunting said. A few years ago, the center started working in the cybersecurity realm, applying the same kinds of test measures to predict cyber aptitude, he said.
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“We started building this prototype and said, ‘We think we can help solve some of these problems that exist in the military or in government,’” Campbell said. “We went around to different services and asked if they were interested in our approach. … The Air Force stepped up.”
Bauer said she hopes this Air Force partnership could signal the start of a long relationship.
“We are very excited to work with the Air Force,” Campbell said. “We are really just hoping to help … to get the right people into these cyber roles and help them fill these necessary jobs.”
