CISPA spotlights career opportunities for young people at Girls' Day and Boys' Day

At the Cysec Lab: Girls' Day at CISPA

For Girls' Day, CISPA invited girls to start exploring the world computer science and cybersecurity. 30 schoolgirls accepted the invitation and visited the CISPA Cysec Lab in St. Ingbert. During an interactive workshop, the participants acquired the basics of cybersecurity and programming in a playful fashion. Using SPIKE™ Prime, a part of the LEGO® Learning System, the participants paired up to build a safe, to which they then assigned commands using the Python programming language.

Maya, 13, and Johanna, 14, attached an arm to their safe and taught it to wave. At the push of abutton, the safe also emits a beep. Both have dabbled in robotics before, either at school or in their private lives. Mila and Lilli, both 11, also enjoyed the workshop. Lilli has already had some experience with programming and would like to be either a doctor or a computer scientist. Mila is still unsure: "I don't know what I want to be yet, but I could picture myself being an architect."

Marcus Pirron, workshop leader at the CISPA Cysec Lab, is happy with today's Girls' Day. "I think it's important that those participants who come to us with no previous experience have the opportunity to overcome their initial shyness about the technology," he says. "Sometimes they are reluctant or skeptical at the beginning. It is really lovely to then see them discover their enthusiasm for programming as the workshop progresses."

In the Legal Department: Boys' Day at CISPA

For Azad, 12, Cedric, 14, Julian, 15, and Simon, 15, Boys' Day started at the CISPA main building in Saarbrücken. The four boys had signed up for a day with the Legal Department, where they wanted to get an idea of the tasks and responsibilities of a paralegal.

Andreas Walcker-Mayer, Head of the Legal Department, showed the teenagers around the building and told them about the different departments and research areas at CISPA. CISPA Faculty Dr. Michael Schwarz, who had prepared a lecture especially for the guests, then introduced them to his research on the security of processors. Afterwards, the teenagers continued to the administration building at Halberg in Saarbrücken, where they joined in the working day of a paralegal at CISPA. They gained their first practical experience processing an internal request and, towards the end of the day, received further information about vocational training and the tasks and responsibilities of the profession.

Walcker-Mayer is very pleased about the visit of the four teenagers. "Very few people are choosing the paralegal profession these days and we want to get young people excited about it," he says. "The profession has become increasingly exciting and diverse in recent years. It is demanding and requires people to work independently. The income opportunities have also improved greatly." The enthusiasm for the profession seems to have rubbed off on Azad, who has already spent his second Boys' Day in the CISPA Legal Department. He enjoyed last year's visit so much that he wanted to take another look at the profession. "I can well imagine becoming a paralegal. But architecture also excites me," he says. Whatever career the girls and boys will decide on, CISPA offers career opportunities in a great variety of professions.

What is Girls' Day and Boys' Day?

Girls' Day and Boys' Day are orientations days held across Germany that give young people the opportunity to learn about career paths beyond gender stereotypes and traditional role models. On these days, both girls and boys gain insights into professions in which their own gender is underrepresented. Girls' Day focuses on professions in the fields of IT, technology and the natural sciences, while Boys' Day focuses on careers in nursing, education or the social professions. Both orientation days are sponsored by the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth. Girls' Day also receives funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research.