Where Graduates Go
HPU cybersecurity graduates work at Apple, Verizon and Fidelity Investments, and some have started their own companies.
Positions held by recent graduates include Director of AI Research and iOS Advanced Development Senior Engineer at Apple, Senior Performance and Kernel Engineer at Verizon Digital Media Services, Associate Software Engineer/Developer at Fidelity Investments, Associate Software Analyst at The MathWorks and Software Engineer at Gilbarco Veeder-Root. Graduates founded their own company, Cirtual LLC, and others have continued to graduate programs in computer science at Clemson University and Wake Forest University.
Student Achievement
Spencer Day is a Senior Cyber Security Researcher at GE Aerospace. Day’s career started with a cybersecurity internship at La-Z-Boy. “My HPU courses provided me with important industry knowledge that allowed me to walk into my internship with La-Z-Boy well-educated in cybersecurity,” Day says.
Cybersecurity Internships
Students have interned at FireEye, Microsoft and IBM. Jonathan Raz, a computer science major with a cybersecurity minor, joined Exlibris as a risk management analyst intern, and Caitlin Black, a computer science major with a cybersecurity concentration, interned at Old Dominion Freight Line.
What the Degree Prepares You For
The degree prepares students for information security analysis, penetration testing, malware analysis and reverse engineering, network and systems security, and secure software engineering. Graduates also pursue roles such as cyber security specialist, cyber crime analyst, incident responder and IT auditor.
Student Organizations
Cybersecurity students lead HPU’s Cyber Club and work alongside the Computer Science Society, the Robotics Club and other computing and engineering organizations.
Cyber Competitions
Much of the extracurricular work in this major happens through cyber competitions, including the National Cyber League and Hacktober, an international cybersecurity competition.
HPU students have finished in the top 15% of the individual National Cyber League competition and the top 25% of the team Hacktober competition. Computing students also took first place in the ACM MidSoutheast 2020 research poster competition and second place in 2019.
In fall 2024, HPU’s team placed 43rd in the National Cyber League, HPU’s highest NCL team ranking, in a national field that included more than 9,260 students from more than 550 colleges. Cybersecurity major Giovanni Centofanti was part of the U.S. Cyber Challenge team that won the Western regional and placed second at the U.S. Cyber Bowl.
Cybersecurity Salary and Job Outlook
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a $129,180 median annual wage for information security analysts in May 2025 and projects employment to grow 21% from 2025 to 2035, with about 14,100 openings a year.
U.S. News & World Report ranks High Point University #1 among Regional Universities in the South for Earnings by Major in Best Colleges 2027, a factor that measures what graduates earn four years after leaving campus.
Across all majors, 99% of High Point University’s Class of 2025 was employed or continuing their education within 180 days of graduation, 13 points above the national average, measured by National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) standards. The Princeton Review ranks HPU #14 for Best Career Services in its 2027 guide.
Cybersecurity Graduate and Internship Stories
Cybersecurity students credit their coursework and HPU career fairs with preparing them for internships in the field.
Spencer Day
Cybersecurity Intern, La-Z-Boy. Now Senior Cyber Security Researcher, GE Aerospace
“My HPU courses have provided me with important industry knowledge that allowed me to walk into the internship well-educated in cybersecurity so that I could hit the ground running from day one.”
Caitlin Black
Computer Science major, Cybersecurity concentration
Project Management Office Intern, Old Dominion Freight Line
“I have attended the career fairs hosted by the Office of Career and Professional Development, finding it a blessing to be able to talk to various companies, employers and recruiters.”
Cybersecurity Students on Campus and Beyond
Rafik Tarbari, a computer science major with a concentration in cybersecurity, received HPU’s University Citizenship Award for leadership roles that included communications chair of the Global Student Association.
Caitlin Black, a computer science major with a concentration in cybersecurity, received the inaugural Brigadier General Norman C. Gaddis Leadership Award, given to an upperclassman who shows the leadership and character of the U.S. military.
Natalie Croop, a cybersecurity major with minors in Spanish and strategic communication, studied in Sevilla, Spain, through HPU’s Maymester program.
Mark Metcalf, a computer science and game design major with a cybersecurity concentration, connected with Coca-Cola Consolidated and the North Carolina Department of Information Technology at HPU’s Life Skills Career Summit.
“You’ve just got to put yourself out there with possible employers.”
Metcalf, computer science and game design major
Explore Cybersecurity at High Point University
See the courses behind these careers and how HPU cybersecurity is accredited.
Curriculum & Research Accreditation & Awards
Questions about the program? Email Dr. Michael Oudshoorn at [email protected].