Question abt bronze cyber

Are there certain tasks you have to complete or do you only need to get the right/more amount of points

For the Bronze cyber award you have to get the bronze IDEA which required 250 points. You also need to complete certain badges and you can find the list of them here. https://www.centraleast-rafac.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Cadet-How-To-Guide-6-iDEA-V3-724x1024.jpg

Hope this is what your looking and helps out. If you need help on any modules either search online or ask on Squadron and hopefully someone will be able to help you.

The best approach for the Bronze iDEA is to complete the required modules on the list and then see how many points you still require afterwards and then picking additional units meet the 250 points requirement. Note: the Data Visualisation module (which is on the list of mandatory units) no longer available - so you can obviously skip that one!

Please remember that the Bronze IDEA is only half of the Bronze Cyber Award. You will also need to complete either the ‘RAFAC Bronze Course’ which can be delivered by a Bronze Cyber trainer at Sqn level or ‘CyberFirst Adventurers’ which is run by an external company.

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These are being run by the Cadet Forces (they are advertised via Regions) and also charities such as Smallpeice Trust.

For CF Adventurers/Defenders/Advanced it’s all done through QA, so annoyingly only QA trainers can actually deliver it afaik. I think it’s to do with the contract NCSC have with QA for the whole CyberFirst scheme.

But yes, cadets can attend it through cadets on the (very few and far between) cadet-only courses, or they can apply like anyone else through Smallpeice for the summer courses that are open to all and aren’t done through cadets. Doesn’t matter how they do it, we recognise it either way.

But yeah I don’t know why there aren’t any train-the-trained courses for the CyberFirst pathway, especially as MOD seem to be pushing it as the ideal Cyber training for MOD-sponsored cadet forces, hence the lack of focus on the now fairly aged Bronze Cyber slides and the lack of any decent RAFAC Silver Cyber beyond the OU course and IDEA.

Although the course content looks great, the ‘add-ons’ aren’t. Heard the Wing/Region has to pay the accom for their staff, and it’s not Nissan hut accom, plus it’s a weekend and they arrive on Friday, so at least three nights accom per instructor in a hotel :roll_eyes:

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Yep, sounds about right from my experience with QA. The other bit that worries me is the over reliance on the CF scheme, when it appears NCSC are already decommissioning the degree apprenticeship. They’ve said it’s “paused” for two years now, but given you only need GCSEs to actually join NCSC I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s been de-facto cut for budgets etc. If NCSC decide to stop funding the rest or don’t renew the contract, it’s gonna be a bit of a culture shock when RAFAC actually need to start doing it all itself and taking Cyber seriously again.

Yeah I’m aware of the Advanced content at least, and it’s pretty good. But nothing that anyone with a cyber security degree or similar qualification couldn’t teach. I’d be happy to help deliver it with others at a Wing/Region level, but would appear that isn’t even an option at present unless I become a part time QA trainer!

CFAV can deliver Adventurers (Bronze) if they have done the QA train the trainer course. There have been a couple of Train the Trainer courses last year.

Wing Radio & Cyber Officers will be the first point of contact.

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I don’t disagree with anything you’ve said.

I’m sure Cyber will be looked at under ASTRA
:grinning:

The NCSC has paused the Degree Apprentice Scheme but there is still the Cyberfirst Bursary. Aimed at University students it helps to support them and offer them job opportunities and extra skills as I understand it. From what I heard the Apprenticeship was very out of date as well and maybe that they pulled it to completely revamp it and it just wasn’t ready for this year.
But if they do pull the whole Cyberfirst system at least the bronze level of RAFAC cyber will suffer alot.