{"id":23021,"date":"2019-02-08T13:52:59","date_gmt":"2019-02-08T11:52:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/?p=23021"},"modified":"2023-08-08T15:22:07","modified_gmt":"2023-08-08T13:22:07","slug":"harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/","title":{"rendered":"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age<\/a> online short course from Harvard University\u2019s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning (VPAL), in association with HarvardX, offers business professionals the opportunity to reduce vulnerabilities, minimize damage, and implement strategies that mitigate cyber risk within an organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One such professional who embraced this opportunity in order to confidently respond to possible cyber attacks in the most effective way, was Tom Costello, past student and advocate of the Cybersecurity online short course from Harvard\u2019s VPAL.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read his testimonial below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"Tom<\/figure>
<\/div>\n
\"Tom<\/figure>
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

\u201cAs a correspondent for NBC NEWS who covers hacking and cybersecurity issues, I found the Harvard VPAL course in Cybersecurity Risk Management provided precisely the kind of extra depth and perspective I was looking for. I have spent years interviewing some of the world\u2019s cyber experts, reporting on some of the world\u2019s biggest cyber hacks. I decided on the Harvard VPAL course because I wanted to gain a better understanding of the current threat environment and how organizations can aggressively defend themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From the outset, I was impressed with the tremendous thought and planning that went into the HarvardX program. Every module was relevant, filled with important reading material and insightful video lectures. While a few of my classmates did have extensive cyber backgrounds, most of us did not. The course seemed designed for us \u2013 executives and managers who lacked a formal computer coding background. The truth is, we didn\u2019t need it. The course focuses on understanding the cyber threat environment and how to adequately manage the risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As with any program, you get out of it what you put into it. I put in an average of 12 hours per week \u2013 reading all of the material, watching video lectures, interacting with fellow students and submitting on-going case studies. I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge and the opportunity to deepen my understanding of such a critical area of study. I would highly recommend the course to anyone looking for the same.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n

\n \n \n \n \"\"\n <\/picture>\n <\/div>\n\n\n

Costello ended his cybersecurity online learning experience by meeting up with a few of his classmates to discuss what they learned in the course. He soon discovered, each brought with them unique experiences due to their individual backgrounds:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n

One of us works for the FBI. One works for the State Dept. One works for the White House\/Executive Branch. And then me \u2013 with NBC News\/Washington.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
Are you interested in transforming your organization\u2019s security systems?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Learn how to develop a cyber risk mitigation strategy with Harvard’s VPAL<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n \n \"School\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
\n \n HARVARD'S VPAL <\/a>
\n \n Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course <\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n \"Read\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course from Harvard University\u2019s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning (VPAL), in association with HarvardX, offers business professionals the opportunity to reduce vulnerabilities, minimize damage, and implement strategies that mitigate cyber risk within an organization. One such professional who embraced this opportunity […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":23025,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[120],"article-format":[],"class_list":["post-23021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career-advice","tag-systems-technology"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHarvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello - GetSmarter Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Read past student, Tom Costello's testimonial of the Harvard's VPAL Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Read past student, Tom Costello's testimonial of the Harvard's VPAL Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"GetSmarter Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-02-08T11:52:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-08T13:22:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Shameel Mohanlal\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"GetSmarter Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Shameel Mohanlal\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/527df7e5676f2bfa7c943e1653764bff\"},\"headline\":\"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-02-08T11:52:59+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-08T13:22:07+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":433,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Systems & technology\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Career Advice\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/02\\\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png\",\"width\":400,\"height\":400},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\\\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Blog\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.getsmarter.com\\\/blog\"}]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello - GetSmarter Blog","description":"Read past student, Tom Costello's testimonial of the Harvard's VPAL Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello","og_description":"Read past student, Tom Costello's testimonial of the Harvard's VPAL Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age online short course.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/","og_site_name":"GetSmarter Blog","article_published_time":"2019-02-08T11:52:59+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-08-08T13:22:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":400,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Shameel Mohanlal","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"GetSmarter Staff","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/"},"author":{"name":"Shameel Mohanlal","@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/527df7e5676f2bfa7c943e1653764bff"},"headline":"Harvard\u2019s VPAL Cybersecurity Student Testimonial: Tom Costello","datePublished":"2019-02-08T11:52:59+00:00","dateModified":"2023-08-08T13:22:07+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/"},"wordCount":433,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png","keywords":["Systems & technology"],"articleSection":["Career Advice"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/harvard-cybersecurity-tom-costello-banner-mobile.png","width":400,"height":400},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/harvards-vpal-cybersecurity-student-testimonial-tom-costello\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Blog","item":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog"}]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23021"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23021\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50376,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23021\/revisions\/50376"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23021"},{"taxonomy":"article-format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getsmarter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article-format?post=23021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}