Cyber Strategy Doctoral Fellowships

The new Center for Cyber Strategy and Policy (CCSP) at the University of Cincinnati is pleased to announce the opening of applications for its inaugural Pre- and Post-Doctoral Research Fellowships in Cyber Strategy and Policy. The 10-month appointments can begin July 1, 2020 or August 1, 2020.    

Fellows may focus on any aspect of cybersecurity, including (but not limited to) international security and international relations, critical infrastructure protection, privacy and civil liberties, state and local governance, or cyber operations and strategy. In particular, research related to questions of strategy or that can leverage directly the mission of the Ohio Cyber Range Institute (OCRI) or Ohio Civilian Cyber Reserve are priorities for the Center.

Fellows are expected to devote some portion of their time to collaborative endeavors, including research seminars and events, work with researchers and staff of the CCSP and the Ohio Cyber Range Institute to which the Center is affiliated. Fellows are expected to contribute to the CCSP's research activities, as well as work on—in the case of pre-dissertation fellows—their doctoral dissertation. Postdoctoral research fellows are expected to complete a significant publication during their period of residence. All fellows are expected to be in residence for the duration of their fellowship.

The Research Fellows in Cyber Strategy and Policy will be supported by the Center for Cyber Strategy and Policy, which draws on a multidisciplinary set of researchers from political science, information technology, computer engineering, and computer science affiliated with the Ohio Cyber Range Institute at the University of Cincinnati. The OCRI and CCSP are organized around the proposition that cyber security is not a technical problem, but rather is a political, economic, social, organizational, and educational challenge in a technically fluid environment. The CCSP Fellows will be expected to enhance the OCRI with a social science perspective grounded in the fields of strategic studies, international relations, national and foreign policy studies or related professional experience gained as employees of government, military, international, humanitarian, and private research institutions in related fields.

The Research Fellows in Cyber Strategy and Policy will have a unique opportunity to leverage the Ohio Cyber Range’s capacity directly to advance their research or contribute to the study of core cybersecurity challenges at the local, state, national and international levels that can contribute to the OCRI’s mission.

The Ohio Cyber Range Institute has been piloted for the past 18-months and as of January 1, 2020 will begin state-wide programming with regional programming centers established at universities across the state of Ohio. OCRI is housed at the University of Cincinnati on behalf of the state of Ohio and provides administration of the Ohio Cyber Range in advancement of an integrated mission as a cyber security education, workforce, and economic development platform. The OCRI oversees a state-wide capacity that supports cyber security research; full-spectrum training opportunities, including incident response teams; industry workforce and economic development; as well as government agency support, including programming focused on election security; and programming for K-20 courses and events. The OCRI will also facilitate support of the newly authorized Ohio Cyber Civilian Reserve (OhCR) under the Ohio National Guard, a nationally-distinct model for drawing technical talent into a civic duty context to support a stronger cyber security eco-system in Ohio.

The University of Cincinnati is one of only 18 universities in the country to hold both the National Security Agency’s Center of Excellence designations in both Cyber Defense and Cyber Operations. Cyber Defense is anchored in UC’s School of IT, Cyber Operations in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and the new Center for Cyber Strategy and Policy in the School of Public and International Affairs. These three Centers contribute through disciplinary and multidisciplinary research to the overall OCRI. The Research Fellows will be supported by the CCSP and work within the OCRI governing structure under the OCRI director.

Applications, due no later than February 1, 2020 (in English), should be submitted as a single PDF file with the following components to polscisw@ucmail.uc.edu:

• One-page Cover Letter
• Research statement (2000 words max)
• CV/ Resume
• Writing sample (15,000 words max)
  • Should be one published or unpublished piece written by the applicant (co-authored pieces not accepted) in English that will demonstrate his/her English-language writing ability
  • Can be a journal article, book chapter, dissertation chapter, white paper, etc. you have produced in your field
• Additionally, 2 letters of recommendation should be sent separately to Richard.harknett@uc.edu with subject line: Recommendation for (name) CCSP fellows

Applicants for pre­-doctoral fellowships must be in a doctoral program, have passed general examinations prior to appointment, and have made significant progress on their dissertations. Applications for postdoctoral research fellowships are welcome from recent recipients of the Ph.D. or equivalent degree, university faculty members, and employees of government, military, international, humanitarian, and private research institutions who have appropriate professional experience.

The Ohio Cyber Range Institute will be fully staffed and operational by the time the Research Fellowship period begins. Since we have been in pilot phase for the past year and a half, external information on an Institute website is still under development and will be launched in early 2020 with a public state-wide event. Questions about this research fellowship program can be directed to Prof. Richard Harknett, co-director and Chair of the OCRI via email at richard.harknett@uc.edu