As part of the partnership and when it comes to protecting organizations against hackers and providing the organization with a secure IT infrastructure, Check Point's Austrian branch will give JKU students a unique real-world opportunity to acquire the technological and hands-on skills needed. The program is expected to begin in 2023 and include approximately 20 students studying at the Institute of Networks and Security. The lab environment will be extended with Check Point accordingly.

As part of the Master's degree program in computer science, students will have special insight into security automation and orchestration, acquiring, among other things, the basic fundamentals and concepts needed to effectively manage IT infrastructures. Students also learn about how to address and respond to a wide range of tasks when it comes to setting up and operating IT infrastructures, such as networks, servers, and applications, both on-prem and in the cloud.

Jan Horacek (Institute of Networks and Security, JKU) added: "The JKU has always been at the forefront of computer sciences. The JKU was Austria’s first university to offer a degree program in computer sciences and in 2019, the JKU introduced Europe’s first academic degree program in Artificial Intelligence. Computer networks have been a permanent element in the curriculum for computer science for over 20 years and since 2007, the JKU has actively practiced and continuously advanced the graduate programs in networks and security."