Category Archives: Virtual Events

Cloud Computing, Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Data Center Operations, Engineering Technology, IET Events, Job Fair, NOVA IET, Virtual Events

IET Events In October

October 13: IET Virtual Job and Internship Fair

NOVA IET and NOVA Workforce are hosting a virtual Information and Engineering Technologies Job and Internship Fair for NOVA students and alumni in Career Connection on Wednesday, October 13, 2021 at 12-3 PM EST. Companies from various IT industries will be represented including Cybersecurity, Data Center Operations, Cloud Computing, and more. Get connected with the companies in your field for networking and internship & job opportunities. Contact novacareerservices@nvcc.edu with questions

Register to attend at iet.novastem.us/JobFair

October 14: Women in IET Coffee Chat

Join us for the October Women in IET and Computer Science Coffee Chat where we will dive into how following your passions can lead to career opportunities. In this 1-hour panel discussion, panelists will discuss how they made the switch to a STEM career after starting out in a completely different field and how you can carve out the career you want by following your own unique journey.

Register at http://iet.novastem.us/TechWomen

October 18 – October 22: NOVA IET Cyber Week

As part of National Cybersecurity awareness month, the NOVA IET division will host a series of virtual events and workshops during Cyber week 2021 to educate, engage and inspire students interested in pursuing careers in cybersecurity. Each day we will host a different workshop that addresses a relevant topic including taking the CompTIA Security+ exam, navigating a career in Cyber security, and writing a cybersecurity resume. For an overview of the week’s events see the list below. You can register for all NOVA IET Cyber Week Events at iet.novastem.us/Register

Monday, Oct 18 6:00 PM- 7:00 PM – Acing the CompTIA Security+ Exam Part 1

Kick-off NOVA IET Cybersecurity Awareness Week with a deep dive into what it takes to ace the CompTIA Security+ Exam. This is a two-part workshop with Part 1 being led by NOVA IET Professor, Kwabena (KK) Konadu. In this one-hour virtual workshop, Professor KK will cover best practices and resources for preparing for the CompTIA Security+ Exam, exam topics, and walk attendees through a practice round of answering multiple-choice questions. iet.novastem.us/Register

Tuesday, Oct 19 6:30 PM-7:30 PM – Cybersercurity Resume Writing with Katia’s Cylife

You can’t land a job in Cybersecurity without a good Cybersecurity resume. Join professional Cybersecurity Resume writer and founder of Katia’s Cylife, Katia Dean as she walks you through actionable steps to build a dynamic resume tailored for cybersecurity roles. In this session you will discuss resume action verbs, design tips and tricks, and how to consider positioning yourself. Katia will also walk you through a live resume feedback session and a brief demo on the NIST 800-181 Cybersecurity Workforce Framework. iet.novastem.us/Register

Wednesday, Oct 20 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM – Landing a Job in Cybersecurity Recruiters Panel

On day 3 of NOVA IET Cyber Week a panel of cybersecurity recruiters will share their perspectives on what it takes to land a job in cybersecurity. If you are job searching, making a career switch into cyber, or just curious about what a career in cybersecurity looks like, join us for this virtual panel discussion to get your questions answered. iet.novastem.us/Register

Thursday, Oct 21 6:00 PM-7:30 PM- IET Speaker Series featuring Nick Espinosa

Cybersecurity is an exploding industry and with over five million vacant positions available around the world, the need for qualified professionals is immediate! In our second installment of the IET Speaker Series, Nick Espinosa, cybersecurity thought leader, TEDx Speaker, and regular columnist for Forbes, will talk about the state of the world today as it relates to cybersecurity for everyone and the issues we all face together. Join us virtually on Thursday, October 21, 2021, at 6 PM EST as Nick will help us understand what a career path in cybersecurity looks like so everyone who is interested can join the ranks of those who are defending our governments, businesses, educational institutions, healthcare, and more, around the world! iet.novastem.us/Register

Friday, Oct 22 10:00 AM- 11:30 AM – Acing the CompTIA Security+ Exam Part II

End NOVA IET Cyber Week by finishing up your CompTIA Security+ Exam Prep with Zach Lawrence, NOVA IET Cybersecurity Professor. In this 90-minute session Zach will walk you through how to approach answering performance-based questions on the CompTIA Security+ Exam. iet.novastem.us/Register

 IET and Computer Science Clubs

Cyber.OPS – Cybersecurity Club Manassas Campus

Cyber.OPS Club is held every Thursday in Trailside room 249 on the Manassas campus from 5:30PM – 7:00PM.  Fall semester meetings will focus on the following topics: Computer Hardware, Operating Systems and Services, Cloud Computing, Computer Networking and Advanced topics: Firewalls, UTM and IDS/IPS.  Spring semester meetings will focus primarily on offensive security.  Club members will be exposed to a broad range of topics Including but not limited to intro to Windows and Linux, Web servers and more.

For more info contact Zach Lawrence mlawrence@nvcc.edu or Santwana Das sdas@nvcc.edu

 

 

Business Engagement, NOVA IET, STEM Careers, Virtual Events

LCPS Career Camp Equips Students for Workforce

 

Northern Virginia Community College’s (NOVA) IET Division, NOVA SySTEMic and NOVA faculty members partnered with Loudoun County Public Schools to offer a virtual week-long Summer Career Camp for rising 9th graders through graduating seniors July 19-23, 2021.

During the career camp, students learned how to create effective resumes, developed their team building skills through interactive virtual activities, and participated in interview workshops.  Students also completed a mock interview and participated in virtual networking activities with industry partners and NOVA faculty and staff. Students who attended all camp sessions were sent a Certificate of Completion.

One participant shared the following: “My experience at the Career camp was phenomenal. I was taught a large spectrum of things, from the importance of networking to ways I could improve my resume. Additionally, I participated in a mock interview where I got the opportunity to polish my communication skills and socialize with possible employers. I am so glad I got the opportunity to participate in the camp, it was such an amazing experience.”

#WeDoSTEM

Community STEM Teams, Robotics, Virtual Events

Sign Up for Virtual Community Robotics Teams!

 

VEX Community Teams

We now have open registration for our virtual VEX Community Robotics Teams Fall session, which will run from October 5 until December 9. The Fall session is for continuing students as well as new students, who will learn teamwork, problem solving, and creative technical skills while using the VEX Robotics platform. Students will build a standard robot that could be used to compete during the 2020-21 VEX Robotics Season. They will learn more about the modifications and design of the robot. Discussion on this year’s game strategy and preparations for possible competitions will be presented as well.

This virtual session will be a hybrid session in which each student will check out and borrow a robotics kit to work with, but all the instruction will be offered virtually in 90 minute blocks twice a week. Kits will need to be picked up at our NOVA Manassas campus (Manassas Battleview Technology Center – MBV) using proper social distancing measurements. Kits will be returned at the end of the session.

Registration here: vexcommunityteam.novastem.us/register

VRC will run from Oct 5 to Dec 9
VEX IQ from Oct 6 to Dec 10. Cost is $249 per student.

IET Newsletter, STEM Camps, Virtual Events

Virtual STEM Camp Review 2020

STEM Camp Review 2020

Our virtual summer STEM Camps recently concluded with a total of 552 participants in 19 topics over 60 different sessions.

micro:bit, Scratch, VEX Robotics, Fabrication and Cybersecurity camps (with varying topics) were offered from June until August. Participants included K-12 students who were taught by NOVA Faculty and staff, High School Instructors and College Interns, eager to pass along their love and knowledge of STEM in a challenging and fledgling remote format. The show must go on, and indeed it did effectively to keep students engaged in STEM from the safety of home.

One major positive development with this year’s virtual camps was their reach. In our own commonwealth, virtual camps extended beyond the NOVA service area down to Newport News (in partnership with Brooks Crossing Innovation and Opportunity Center, or BCIOC) and caught the attention of Dr. Mia D. Joe of Old Dominion University, who helped BCIOC make a transition to remote learning by adapting our camp modules.

Beyond that, we were able to instruct students from 12 states (VA, DC, CA, CO, CT, FL, GA, IL, MD, NC, NY, PA, and SC)!

Camps were more affordable for many reasons, but mainly because they were offered per household instead of per student. We had 552 attendees with 297 unique registrations, 67% male and 33% female. When it came to earlier STEM engagement in Coding, the breakdown was 60% male and 40% female.

We even had a surgical-robot naming contest (in partnership with OrthoVirginia) for students in our robotics camps. The MAKO Robotic-Arm Assisted Robot assists on knee operations and after all submissions were in, the surgical staff at OrthoVirginia chose a name submitted by robotics camp student Nathan Tang (with assistance from his friend Micah): R2-Knee2 (read about that story here). Nathan, a future Biomedical Engineer, got to meet the robot and the surgical staff as well as winning prizes that included 4 tickets to a DC United game (when it’s safe, of course).

Parent Reviews:

At first, students and parents were a little concerned about how online learning would work out, but our staff worked hard to adjust the learning modules for an engaging remote format that proved effective. A few reviews from parents:

    • “Collette LOVED this camp and we will sign her up for one of the ones you list below, too. Thank you – I thought “virtual camp” would be a drag for her, but it was wonderful!” – Bridgette Farrell
    • “Thank you for the update and warning about managing my daughter Logan’s expectations.  She seems very interested and engaged in this class.  So much so that she has requested her own 3D printer 🙂  I am delighted that the class is going so well and that the program was able to pivot so effectively to virtual classes.” – Elizabeth Fry
    • “The boys have been enjoying camp this week! They were able to complete their cool emoji pins this afternoon and we have uploaded their files to Canvas. Thanks for having so much patience guiding the kids through unfamiliar software and tools. The boys have been playing around with the programs and hope to use it more!” – Laura G
    • “I don’t think we could have asked for a better teacher! The instructor was great and really attentive to her class. I was in the background listening to the lessons while I worked and most of the time everyone was following along with her. She explained things well and would stop periodically to make sure everyone understood/ everyone was on the same page. For my child this was a big deal and because she did this frequently he was able to catch up and eventually became more confident in asking questions or saying when he needed help. I think an individuals comfort with asking questions is huge predictor in whether or not virtual learning will be successful or not because it’s easy to get lost with coding and not always so easy for an instructor to help you. She (Ms. Lisbeth) did a great job.” – Parent of Virtual Coding Camp student (via SurveyMonkey)
    • “It was amazing. He was completely engaged every day for two straight weeks. And with two working parents – we did not have to supervise or run logistics for him. We were really lucky to have this!” – Parent of Virtual Camp student (via SurveyMonkey)

Student Reviews:

    • “Honestly it was really cool! I really enjoyed the brute force exercise. I know this is not the ideal way to teach but I’ve really been enjoying this week! Cryptography is definitely something I might consider looking into as a career!” – Valerie
    • “I learned how to use the John the Ripper program which i found very interesting. I also found the birthday paradox interesting and the fact that it could be used to find collisions. I enjoyed the lab and would like to do more.” – Kathleen
    • “I liked the lab it taught me a lot of information, I found how fast the john ripper attack was and how many different options it used before it got to the correct answer so quickly. I liked the lab and would like to do more.” – John
    • “I liked using EXIF data to find out where an image was posted, and learning how to do so. – Ethan W.
    • “Great lesson! I liked learning about exif data and learned that it can be used as factual evidence, if need be. Nothing to be improved, great experience.” – Kevin
    • “I liked the brute-force lab, I thought it was fun and interesting. I learned about the birthday paradox and thought it was very interesting that it was used when thinking about finding passwords and eventually resulted in security being improved. ” – Andrew
    • “My experience today was very nice! I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. (I mean no disrespect by that, by the way XD). I liked how concise the lecture was, not a lot of fluff * I learned what social engineering was” – Camp Student
    • “The teaching style was great, it included us all and helped me learn easier than just speeding through the information! I really liked this class, and i hope i encounter similar teachers in the future :). thank you for giving me something fun and interesting to do over this summer!” – Camp Student
    • “I really loved it and it helped me figure out a very possible career choice for me” – Camp Student
General Program Info, IET Events, Virtual Events

IET Student and Parent Zoom Session 7/30

We’re connecting this week with IET students about their interest in NOVA and the IET program in general.  

On Thursday, July 30 (11am-12pm), Dr. Chad Knights, Provost of Northern Virginia Community College’s (NOVA) Information and Engineering Technologies (IET) division and his leadership team will host an informative Zoom session with current IT, Cybersecurity and Engineering Technology students as well as any students that have shown interest in college-wide IET programs. Parents and guardians of students are also welcome to join the session.

Dr. Knights and his team will explore options and resources available for you at NOVA and answer your questions. This is a follow-up to successful chats with students, parents and guardians that our president, Dr. Anne Kress, held in May.

Among the topics they will discuss are:

  • Program Options at NOVA
  • NOVA’s Six Options for the Fall
  • Financial Aid and Payment Plans
  • Transfer from NOVA to the College of Your Choice
  • Employment Opportunities

>> Please click here to register in advance. You’ll receive the Zoom link for the chat once registered.

We look forward to seeing you on Thursday. Stay safe!

STEM Camps, STEM Resources Online, Virtual Events

Virtual STEM Camps at-a-glance

Our Virtual STEM Camps are underway! Virtual STEM Camps are the perfect pivot from traditional in-person STEM activities to safe-at-home STEM engagement. Our curriculum includes hands-on projects with micro:bit, scratch, VEX robotics, fabrication and cybersecurity tools for elementary to high school ages students. We’re bringing STEM to you and making it affordable as a single sign-up is good for the whole family!

Virtual STEM Camp General Info:
– Camps run June 1 through August 21
– Offerings for rising 3rd through 12th Grade
– Zoom will be used as the video conferencing platform.
– Camps usually run for 5 days/90 minutes a day.
– One-week camps start at $98 plus the cost of materials.
– Instructional cost is per household, per camp. Only need to pay extra for cost of materials. You can engage with multiple laptops in the same household.
– Select camps will provide technical support prior to camp for software downloads.
– For all VEX Robotics camps and Scratch 1 & 3 (Coding) camps, sign-up closes the Sunday before the camp starts, so you can sign up one day ahead at the latest.
– For all other camps sign-up closes on Sunday the week prior to allow time for materials to be shipped, so please sign-up at least 8 days before camp starts.

Virtual STEM Camp Tracks (4): Coding, VEX Robotics, Cybersecurity, Fabrication
For detailed camp descriptions go to https://www.nvcc.edu/systemic/camps.html

CODING (Grades 3-8)

Micro:bit Level 1 $98 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 1-5 | 1:30pm – 3pm
June 8-12 | 9:30am – 11am
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11am

Scratch Level 1 $98
June 1-5 | 9:30am – 11am
June 8-12 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 27-31 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Combined Scratch/Micro:bit Level 1 $186 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 22-26 | 10:30am – 2:30pm

Combined Scratch/Micro:bit Level 2 $98 (additional micro:bit $30 each)
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1pm – 3pm
July 6-10 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1pm – 3pm
July 27-31 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am

Micro:Maqueen Level 3 $98 (additional micro:bit and micro:maqueen cost $30 each)
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11:30am

Advanced Scratch Level 3 $98
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11:30am or 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 1:30pm – 3:30pm

VEX ROBOTICS (Grades 4-10)

VEX IQ Challenge Camp $196 (Grades 4-8)
June 8-12 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
June 15-19 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
June 29-July 3 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 13-17 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 27-31 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
Aug 10-14 | 10:30am – 2:30pm

VEX Robotics Competition Camp $196 (Grades 6-10)
June 29-July 3 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 6-10 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
July 20-24 | 10:30am – 2:30pm
Aug 3-7 | 10:30am – 2:30pm

CYBERSECURITY (Grades 9-12)

Foundations of Cybersecurity $98
June 15-19 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm

Ethical Hacking & Digital Forensics $98
June 22-26 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
July 27-31 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm

Network Security & Encryption $98
July 6-10 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11am or 1:30pm – 3pm

FABRICATION JUNIOR (Grades 4-7) – Materials and Shipping Included

Fab Junior Level 1 $148 (additional material packs $50)
June 22-26 | 9:30am – 11am
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 1:30pm – 3:30pm
July 6-10 | 9:30am – 11am
July 13-17 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 20-24 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Junior Level 2: 3D Printing $123 (additional material packs $25)
July 27-31 | 9:30pm – 11am

Fab Junior Level 2: Laser Cutting/Engraving $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 3-7 | 9:30am – 11am
Aug 10-14 | 1:30pm-3pm

Fab Junior Level 3: CNC Routing Made Easy $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 17-21 | 1:30pm – 3pm

FABRICATION SENIOR (Grades 8-12) – Materials and Shipping Included

Fab Senior Level 1 $163 (additional material packs $65)
June 22-26 | 1:30pm – 3pm
June 29-July 3 (4 days) | 9:30am – 11:30am
July 6-10 | 1:30pm – 3pm
July 13-17 | 9:30am – 11am
July 20-24 | 9:30am – 11am

Fab Senior Level 2: 3D Printing $123 (additional material packs $25)
July 27-31 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 2: Laser Cutting/Engraving $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 3-7 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 2: E-Textiles $123 (additional material packs $25)
Aug 10-14 | 9:30pm – 11am
Aug 17-21 | 1:30pm – 3pm

Fab Senior Level 3: Engineering Challenge $246 (additional material packs $50).
July 27-Aug 7 (10 days)  | 9:30am – 11am

IET Newsletter, STEM Camps, Virtual Events

STEM Camps Going Virtual!

STEM Camps are switching to Virtual STEM Camps this summer!

COVID-19 response restrictions, our commitment to safety, and guidance from local and state leadership has made it necessary to re-task our traditional in-person STEM camps, which are hosted at schools and NOVA campuses, to a virtual format this summer.

We are preparing a series of virtual STEM camps for students that will provide opportunities for them to explore STEM and the engineering design process from home. The curriculum includes some hands-on projects with micro:bit, scratch, VEX robotics, fabrication and cybersecurity tools for elementary to high school ages students in 1-2 hour online sessions throughout the summer. With fewer contact hours the cost to participants will be reduced and we will host camps per household instead of per student making them more affordable for the entire family.

Be on the lookout for our updated virtual camps information in the coming weeks. We will post on our website, Facebook and Twitter accounts, distribute in email, and in our newsletter as information becomes more solidified.

Looking forward to seeing you this summer online!

IET Newsletter, STEM Careers, STEM Events, Virtual Events

STEM Careers Upcoming Events

NOVA and several industry partners are collaborating to host a series of Free Career Exploration & Readiness Virtual Workshops for NOVA students.  The first series will be offered on select Wednesdays from 11AM-12PM and 3PM-4PM beginning May 6 and ending on June 10.

The series will include the following dates and topics:
– May 6: Navigating the Job/Internship Search (NOVA)
– May 13: Building a Stand Out Resume (NOVA)
– May 20: Security Clearance Information Session (Squadron Defense Group)
– June 3: Industry Certifications:  Identification-Cert Your Worth. (PRISM Inc.)
– June 10: Use Online Power Tools to Build Your Career.  (NOVA Workforce)

Registration is open at career.novastem.us/SpringWorkshops

IET Newsletter, STEM Careers, STEM Events, Virtual Events

STEM Careers Activities Recap

STEM Careers Virtual Activities Recap – March 2020

NOVA SySTEMic hosted a series of Career Explorations Activities during the month of March for potential Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) Students and current NOVA students.  These activities were previously scheduled to occur in person throughout our various campuses, but were changed to Virtual Events utilizing Zoom Online Meetings.

The Career Exploration Fair included presentations about several STEM, CTE Programs and Student Services at NOVA.  Current NOVA students and area high school students were able to participate virtually, ask questions and learn more about NOVA.

Six Interviewing Skills Workshops for Northern Virginia Community College students were facilitated by The Career Engineer which included; Interactive Participant Activities, Mock Interview Simulations and time for Questions & Answers.  One participant shared, “I’m happy the virus didn’t cancel the workshop. Thank you for adapting during hard times”. 

Thank You to the faculty and staff members who helped support these STEM Careers events.  One faculty member shared feedback from their students, “My students are saying they thought it was incredibly helpful and they learned a lot. Especially around confidence and anxiety…Thanks so much for organizing this really great event. It’s a wonderful resource for our students!”

Click here for info on upcoming STEM Careers Events