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About the Activity Eligibility Requirements How To Apply Financial Support Graduations Requirements Travel
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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 offered for Summer 2026: 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 Advanced Administration Course (CAAC) is an advanced course for those interested in administrating enterprise resources. Cadets will learn advanced skills to secure and administrate Windows and Linux systems. You will learn about group policies and Linux Kernel parameters, policy scanning tools, and multi-factor authentication. You will have hands-on labs to build email servers, LAMP stacks, Windows domain controllers, database servers, DNS servers, and Linux authentication servers. You will learn about benchmark documents that describe security settings for systems being used and how to scan systems for compliance. 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. Not offered at this campus for 2026 Contact for Activity: cnca-va@cap.govActivity Facebook Group for Participants, Parents, and Alumni: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1Fxb3gZVYi/ |
How to Apply |
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Apply in Registration Zone using the links below. Cyberspace Advanced Administration Digital Forensics Examiner Course Cyber Academy-VA Staff Application - Cadet and Senior Member Staff Applicants should use this application link. All staff must apply via Registration Zone in eServices through the course link above, or they will not receive credit for the activity in their records. For staff applicants, you will be contacted to let you know whether or not you have not been selected. Applications will be accepted from 15 December through 15 January at 12pm Central In addition, accomplish the following: |
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Participants: NA |
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Staff: Cadets and Senior Members: Please send an email to cnca-va@cap.gov detailing which positions you are volunteering for in addition to uploading a detailed resume and cover letter through the staff-specific Registration Zone. |
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Important Information: Please apply for these activities in Registration Zone in eServices. |
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Financial Support: |
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Lift/Top is a needs-based financial assistance program. These programs are designed to offset costs associated with participating in NCSAs. If selected as a Lift/Top recipient, your activity tuition will be paid by NHQ and you have the option to receive up to a $400 travel reimbursement towards 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. Please see the Scholarship page to see the full list of available Activity Scholarships. How to apply:
Important:
The deadline to apply for all financial support programs is 15 January at 12pm Central. No late applications will be accepted. |
