Curtis Monaghan

Curtis Monaghan (30) completed his HND: Technical Support qualification at Forth Valley College in 2019, and it led him to pursue a career in cyber defence in Brisbane, Australia.

Curtis said: “I'm a Cyber Defence Analyst for Australia's largest freight operator, where I help protect critical systems and infrastructure from cyber threats. I've worked in the cybersecurity industry for the past three years, building on the skills and knowledge I first developed during my time at Forth Valley College.

“I chose Forth Valley College because the course content aligned perfectly with my interests in networking, systems administration and cybersecurity. The HND provided a strong technical foundation and opened up opportunities that ultimately led me to university and my career in cyber defence.

“I really enjoyed the dedicated network environment within the College’s IT department. It gave us valuable hands-on experience configuring servers, troubleshooting systems and working with hardware in a practical setting. The lecturers were incredibly supportive, approachable and highly knowledgeable, always willing to share their industry experience.

“Studying at the College was extremely beneficial because it allowed me to learn alongside like-minded people who shared a passion for technology. Working with classmates helped develop my troubleshooting and problem-solving skills, while the practical nature of the course gave me confidence applying technical knowledge in real-world scenarios.

“Forth Valley College gave me the confidence and technical foundation to progress to university, where I completed a BSc (Hons) in Cyber Security and Networking at Glasgow Caledonian University. Many of the concepts I first learned during my HND gave me a significant advantage and helped me develop my skills further throughout my degree and professional career.

“Forth Valley College was the ideal place to begin my career in technology. The facilities, practical learning environment and industry-relevant course content provided skills that I still use today. The Cyber Security curriculum covers many of the areas I work with daily, including data security, networking and scripting within a Security Operations Centre (SOC) environment.

“The highlight for me was learning about Kali Linux and understanding how cybersecurity tools are used in real-world environments. We didn't just learn how attackers might use these techniques—we also learned how to defend organisations against them. The practical knowledge has been invaluable throughout my career.”

Summing up his time at Forth Valley College, Cutis said: “Challenging, Engaging and Rewarding.”