In an economy hit hard by a global pandemic, it’s not easy to find growth fields. But the combination of a newly created branch for the U.S. military and ambitious plans by private enterprise has made space a fertile ground for career opportunity.

The U.S. Space Force was formed last year as a new military operation under the auspices of the Air Force and Department of Defense. Ultimately, Space Force will have 16,000 personnel, and the organization is continuing to recruit for new positions.

In addition, the rise of private firms dedicated to launching new constellations of satellites and promoting space travel has created hiring opportunities as well. A Space Talent database created last year currently lists nearly 8,000 jobs posted by over 500 companies.

“We will see a renaissance in space and, in some cases, it’s already begun,” said Steven D. Jacques (pictured, right), founder and executive director of the National Security Space Association, managing partner at Velos, and USAF (Ret). “Billionaires like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Sir Richard Branson are in the game, stimulating new ideas and business models. This is really cool stuff, and no matter what your education background is, it’s a great career to be part of.”

Jacques spoke with John Furrier, host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio, during the Space & Cybersecurity Symposium. He was joined by Arsenio “Bong” Gumahad II (center), director of the C4/ISR Division at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, Department of Defense, and Dr. Jeffrey D. Armstrong (left), president of California Polytechnic State University. They discussed the role of Cal Poly in supplying technically trained graduates, the growing need for cybersecurity expertise to protect space programs, and a wide range of public and private initiatives focused on increasing the pool of skilled professionals. (* Disclosure below.)

Interest in public/private opportunities

The rise in activity surrounding the space industry has been keenly felt at the academic level. Schools such as California Polytechnic State University have seen notable interest among students in public and private space-based programs.

“More than 4,500 Cal Poly graduates list aerospace or defense as their employment sector on LinkedIn,” Armstrong said. “Many of our engineers have jobs lined up a year before they graduate.”

Increased interest in space is also fueling a need to protect it as well. Cybersecurity has become more of a key focus as reliance on satellites and other space-centered infrastructure continues to rise.

“In 2007, China demonstrated its ASAT system by actually shooting down one of its own satellites and has been aggressively developing counter-space systems to disrupt ours,” Jacques said. “In a heavily congested space environment, our systems are being contested like never before and will continue to be.”

This ongoing concern is being addressed through a number of public/private partnerships. At Cal Poly, students can participate in the California Cybersecurity Institute, a multi-agency effort to improve capabilities for fighting cybercrime.

“This partnership is focused on preparing a cyber-ready workforce by providing faculty and students with a hands-on research and learning environment side-by-side with military, law enforcement professionals and cyber experts,” Armstrong said. “Partnerships are essential not only for getting research and development done, but also the students and the faculty can be involved with that work.”

Looking for exceptional personnel

The Department of Defense has also pursued a set of cyber programs designed to build bridges between government and the private sector. One such initiative is the Cyber Information Technology Exchange, a partnership between the DOD and industry to support sharing of IT workforce experience.

“A private sector employee can work for the Department of Defense in a cybersecurity position that spans across multiple mission-critical areas,” Gumahad explained. “Cybersecurity needs to be right there with the challenges and the changes, and this requires exceptional personnel.”

Other security agencies have been involved in offering training opportunities in cyber defense. The National Security Agency manages a program called National Centers of Academic Excellence, which is focused on promoting higher education and research in cyber operations to reduce vulnerability in the nation’s information infrastructure.

The NSA program works with over 270 colleges and universities across the U.S. to educate and certify cyber first responders, according to Gumahad. “That’s vibrant and healthy and something we ought to take advantage of,” he noted.

Raising the ‘trust factor’

One of the challenges with programs such as those of the NSA and DOD is that the process of adequately preparing college students in cyber defense may be limited by access to classified information. This means that unless program participants have a Sensitive Compartmented Information or SCI clearance, they may be unable to reap the full benefit of the training.

This can be solved by including clearances as part of the training itself, according to Jacques.

“Identify folks that are interested in doing something like this, get them scholarships, have a job waiting for them that they’re contracted for before they graduate. And when they graduate, they walk in with a SCI clearance,” Jacques said. “Work the trust factor between government, the industry and academia, because we are all in this together. We believe that can be done.”

This different approach represents an important evolution in the nature of the relationship between government and the private sector. There are signs that federal agencies, such as the DOD, are willing to change and adapt based on new ideas and practices that have been a hallmark of innovation for many firms in the private sector.

“What we can do within the Department of Defense, in government, is truly take advantage of the work they have done,” Gumahad said. “Since they’re paving the way to new approaches and new ways of doing things, I think we can certainly learn from that. We have prioritized and we have policies now to attract and retain the talent we need.”

If the nation’s investments in space are going to be protected, it will require collaboration between government, the private sector and academic institutions to supply the right level of talent. This is what schools such as Cal Poly have seen as programs are developed and the next generation of cyber defenders are trained for what lies ahead.

“Protecting efforts in space requires partnerships in the digital realm,” Armstrong said. “Folks are in jobs today that didn’t exist two to three years ago. Students can learn to hack, they can learn to penetrate defenses. A good public/private partnership has benefits to both entities.”

For the complete four-day Space & Cybersecurity Symposium event lineup, click here. (* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the Space & Cybersecurity Symposium. California Polytechnic State University, the sponsor for theCUBE’s event coverage, has no editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE