Civil Air Patrol National Cyber Academy - TX

The Civil Air Patrol National Cyberspace Academy (CNCA) is a collection of cyber security career exploration and training courses. The goal is to increase cyber security knowledge and awareness and to forge a lifelong passion for cyber security. During our summer NCSAs, cadets receive daily briefings from various USAF Cyber Operations units as well as tours of operational facilities. They also receive advanced training in cyber security concepts to help hone their skills for CyberPatriot and other cyber defense competitions. Finally, cadets begin work towards cyber security certifications such as CompTIA's Security+ and Network+, and Cisco's Cisco Certified Network Administrator.

The following courses are available in Summer 2027:

The Cyberspace Foundations Course is an introductory course that covers the concepts required to move on to the next level of courses offered by CNCA. These include topics like cyber ethics, Windows OS security, Microsoft Powershell and Command Line usage, Linux OS usage and security, terminal usage, networking concepts, ports, protocols and services, and career opportunities. This course will also jump-start CyberPatriot team members as it increases overall cyber skills.

The Cyberspace Networking Course is an intensive week of training based on the CompTIA Network+ and Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) courses. In just five class days, it covers the same content that adult students typically learn over several weeks of classroom instruction. The CNC class provides practical knowledge normally tested by the CompTIA Network+ certification exam, and participants gain hands-on experience using Cisco networking equipment. The course culminates in a graduation exercise which simulates common industry scenarios. The exercise will test the students' newly learned skills in switching, routing, network design and network security in a team setting.

The Cyberspace Operations Fundamentals Course, taught by Air National Guard (ANG) instructors, provides a similar experience to what an Air Force member encounters during mission qualification training on the CY-39 Interceptor Platform. In addition to learning about how cyber protection teams hunt, clear, enable hardening, and assess systems, students gained practical experience with network and host analyst tools. The course concludes with a graduation exercise where students connect to the Deployable Interceptor Platform to perform defensive cyberspace operations on a training network facing a simulated attack.

The Digital Forensics Examiner Course (DFEC), new in 2025, provides a challenging experience where students deep dive into the world of digital forensics from the perspectives of federal agents, DoD analysts and network operators. This is a scenario-based training course developing students’ skills in conducting a full investigation involving data acquisition and analysis from target devices in the context of an incident response. Students conduct forensically sound examinations of subject and victim devices, analyze device artifacts, identify and defeat encryption, recover deleted/hidden files, and prepare narrative reports of their findings. These career broadening skills prepare students to perform a variety of forensically sound methods supporting both federal, local, and private entities, in both criminal and civil investigations. This course will help students explore career opportunities as a Digital Forensics Examiner, Cybercrime Investigator, Incident Response Analyst, Penetration Tester, Malware Analyst, Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst, Digital Risk Officer, or Fraud Investigator.

Contact for Activity: cnca-tx@cap.gov

Activity Facebook Group for Participants, Parents, and Alumni: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1KzqdL5P1z/ 

Registration Prerequisites

Eligibility requirements vary by course. The following are required at the time of application:

Cyberspace Foundations Course:

• Must be at least 14 years of age by the activity start date

• Must be under 21 years of age at the end of the activity

• Must be a United States citizen

• Must have Encampment credit

• Must have earned the Wright Brothers Award (C/SSgt) 

• Agree to complete all preparatory assignments after initial selection

Cyberspace Networking Course:

• Must be at least 14 years of age by the activity start date

• Must be under 21 years of age at the end of the activity

• Must be a United States citizen

• Must have Encampment credit

• Must have earned the Wright Brothers Award (C/SSgt) 

• Must have successfully completed ONE of the following:

  • Cyberspace Familiarization (discontinued), Cyberspace Advanced (discontinued) or Advanced Administration Course

  • Cyberspace Operations Fundamentals Course

  • Washington Wing Green Darnier Cyber Education Camp

  • Great Lakes Region Cybersecurity Advanced Course

  • CAP Cisco Networking Academy "Introduction to CyberSecurity" (Online)

• Agree to complete all preparatory assignments after initial selection - including CAP's Cisco Networking Academy:"Networking Basics" course by 1 June (online)

Cyberspace Operations Fundamentals Course

• Must be at least 15 years of age by the activity start date

• Must be under 21 years of age at the end of the activity

• Must be a United States citizen

• Must have Encampment credit

• Must have earned the Wright Brothers Award (C/SSgt) 

• Must upload a resume that shows Civil Air Patrol and school/work experience, as well as all cyber related activities and courses completed

• Must upload a cover letter that explains your desire to attend COFC, and what being selected would mean to you

• Must have successfully completed ONE of the following:

  • Cyberspace Advanced (discontinued) or Advanced Administration Course

  • Cyberspace Networking Course

  • Great Lakes Region Cybersecurity Advanced Course

  • Prove an equivalent education through school classes or certification preparation

• Must have the desire to explore both government and private sector cybersecurity career opportunities

• Upload a resume that shows Civil Air Patrol and school/work experience, as well as all cyber related activities and courses completed

• Upload a cover letter that explains your desire to attend COFC, and what being selected would mean to you

Digital Forensics Examiner Course

• Must be at least age 16 by activity start date

• Must be under 21 years of age at end of activity

• Must be a United States citizen

• Must have Encampment credit

• Must have earned the Wright Brothers Award (C/SSgt)

• Must have updated CAP Health in the prior 30 days

• Must have successfully completed Cyberspace Operations Fundamentals Course

• Must have the desire to explore both government and private sector cybersecurity career opportunities

Staff Application Information

Cadets: There are no cadet staff positions for this activity

Senior Members: 

• A technician rating in Cadet Programs is desired. Although this is a technical activity, cyber knowledge is not a requirement for all senior staff. Cyber instructors or professionals also are welcome to apply.

• Must be current in Cadet Protection training

• Must have updated CAP Health in prior 30 days

• Positions available:

• CFC Instructor

• CFC Class Leader

• CNC Instructor

• CNC Class Leader

• COFC Class Leader

• Safety Officer

• Finance Officer

• Admin Officer

Class Leaders will be expected to supervise and participate in their classes during the academic day, and work with the cadet Superintendents to develop targeted study sessions each night for the rest of the students. Additionally, Class Leaders will be responsible for driving their classes to and from the classroom.  Preference will be given to those that have at least the equivalent Cyber/IT experience as is requested of the cadet students.

Cyber Foundations Course Instructors should be well versed in Windows and Linux usage, command line and terminal usage, networking concepts, cyber ethics, and instructional methodology. Instructors will become familiar with the course material prior to attending CNCA.

Safety, Finance and Admin Officers do not require any technical background, but should at least have a CAP driver’s license and a technician rating or higher in their respective specialty track.

Apply in Registration Zone using the links below (coming soon)
Any required documents should be uploaded to the Registration Zone application for this activity.

Apply for Cyberspace Foundations

Apply for Cyberspace Networking

Apply for Cyberspace Operations Fundamentals

Apply for Cyberspace Academy Senior Staff (Senior Members only)

Applications will be accepted from 15 December through 15 January at 12pm Central.  

Parent, Unit and Wing Approval deadlines must be met in order for an application to be considered. 

All participant and staff applications must be submitted via Registration Zone in eServices. 

Lift/Top is a needs-based financial assistance program. If selected as a Lift/Top recipient, your activity tuition will be paid by NHQ and you may have the option to receive a partial travel reimbursement towards round trip transportation to and from the activity. Lift/Top recipients must accept their slot in writing in order to receive this financial support.

CAP Cadet Scholarships: Through the generosity of our supporting donors, some CAP scholarships focus on supporting cadet attendance at NCSAs through a merit-based application process. Please see the Scholarship page to see the full list of available Activity Scholarships.

How to apply:

• Applications for both Lift/Top and CAP Scholarships are located in Registration Zone.

• You must apply for each program for which you wish to be considered.

• Lift/Top and each CAP Cadet Scholarship have their own individual Registration Zone events, separate from activity applications.

Important:

• Applying for these financial support programs does not guarantee financial assistance will be offered.

• Being offered financial assistance is not a guarantee of acceptance into an activity.

• You must compete for and receive a slot at an activity.

• You will be notified if you are a recipient of financial aid/scholarship before you are required to accept or decline a slot at an activity.

The deadline to apply for these financial support programs is 15 January at 12pm Central. No late applications will be accepted. 

• Actively participate in 80% of the contact hours and not dismissed early for behavior

• Activity Director determines course objectives met

• Activity Staff will provide transportation to and from San Antonio International Airport (KSAT).

• Required Staff Training at TBD on campus.