Bridging Theory and Practice: The Educational Impact of Cybersecurity Competitions

Yassine Mouhssine (), Hicham Boutrachech () and Aniss Moumen ()
Additional contact information
Yassine Mouhssine: Ibn Tofaïl University, Laboratory of Engineering Sciences National School of Applied Sciences
Hicham Boutrachech: Ibn Tofaïl University, Laboratory of Engineering Sciences National School of Applied Sciences
Aniss Moumen: Ibn Tofaïl University, Laboratory of Engineering Sciences National School of Applied Sciences

A chapter in Technological Innovations for Sustainable Development, 2025, pp 3-16 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract Cybersecurity competitions play a crucial role in bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application in cybersecurity education. After reviewing 239 articles, 88 of them focus specifically on their educational impact, analyzed using a mixed-methods approach that employs word clouds and advanced analytics to uncover key themes. Competitions like Hack the Box, TryHackMe, and Capture the Flag (CTF) provide hands-on engagement with real-world challenges, enabling students to develop expertise in areas such as cryptography, web exploitation, and reverse engineering. Teachers emphasize how well these platforms link classroom instruction with practical application. The National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (NCCDC) and CyberPatriot are two competitions that emphasize the value of cooperation and teamwork in solving challenging cybersecurity issues. Additionally, they give students the chance to network with professionals in the business. Even though there are still issues like time investment and the emphasis on offensive security rather than defensive, including these contests into academic programs is a crucial first step in matching learning objectives with business demands. In the end, these experiences give students professional recognition, real-world skills, and capacity to meet the changing demands of the cybersecurity industry, preparing them for prosperous careers in the sector.

Keywords: cybersecurity; Competitions; Students; Teaching; Interactive Games (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:lnichp:978-3-032-06725-8_1

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/9783032067258

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-06725-8_1

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Lecture Notes in Information Systems and Organization from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().