Meet A Graduate

Gillian Harvey – Master of Networking and Systems Administration Gillian is a Regional Network Administrator in Adelaide where she provides second and third level support to all SA users of Transfield WAN in NT/Win2000/Server 2003 environment. She graduated from her Masters in 2005 and has since started CSU's Professional Doctorate of Information Technology. Click Here to find out more about Gillian

Jeffrey Wharton – Master of Systems Development Jeff is president of the Canberra .NET User Group and the Chief Solutions Architect for Australian Special Information Systems (ASIS). He received his Masters Qualification in April 2006 as well as a great surprise when his mother arrived from Perth unannounced to see her son graduate. Click Here to find out more about Jeff

Paul Nevin – Master of Information Systems Security Paul is a Principal Security Architect in Canberra where he investigates security incidents on the Australian Government Internet gateway.  He completed his Masters in 2 years and has now plunged into a 6 year part-time Doctorate researching the evolution of Internet based attacks against Government and commercial networks over time. Click here to find out more about Paul

Steven Woodhouse – Master of Networking and Systems Administration Steven is the Manager of Technical Services for the NSW Department of Lands, with 18 direct staff and a multi-million dollar budget. Steven strongly believes in the importance of Information Security Management Systems (ISMS), and the Professional Doctorate that he has started with CSU will see him investigate the ISMS employed by NSW public sector organisations. Click here to find out more about Steven

 

Gillian Harvey – Master of Networking and Systems Administration

Gillian at the 2005 IT Masters Graduation

Gillian is a Regional Network Administrator in Adelaide where she provides second and third level support to all SA users of Transfield WAN in NT/Win2000/Server 2003 environment.  Before starting at Transfield in 2001, Gillian worked in various IT support roles at SA Government and KPMG. She is also a currently studying a Professional Doctorate of Information Technology; the working title for Gillian’s Doctorial research is "Managing the Octopus: Managing Information Technology Network and Culture Transition"

Q:      What exactly are you covering in your project?

A:      “I am addressing the question “how do you provide a cost effective infrastructure, to meet business growth and demands?” This is a problem facing our company and all organisations that are aggressively growing.
         “This isn’t just an issue with deciding how many workstations to purchase or which software to use: decisions are also made about the required infrastructure based upon current needs, without always taking into account future growth.  Our company is currently in a process of huge growth which is taking place so quickly that the current infrastructure is no longer able to sustain it.
         “It will be of great benefit to my company and other organisations in a similar position to explore these issues in order to provide a flexible, scaleable, solution while maintaining profitability.”

Q:      Why did you originally choose to enroll in CSU’s Master of Networking?

A:       “I had just graduated from my undergraduate degree and was looking for new challenges.  The course profile contained subjects that seemed very relevant to the work I was doing as a Regional Network Administrator so I took the plunge and applied.”

Q:      What skills have you gained from studying at CSU?

A:      “The Microsoft certification subjects were extremely relevant to my work, as was the Cisco component and they have helped me to do my job better.  I've also developed better time management and self-motivation skills.”

 

 

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Jeffrey Wharton – Master of Systems Development

Jeff with IT Masters CEO Martin Hale at his Graduation in 2006

Jeff is president of the Canberra .NET User Group and the Chief Solutions Architect for Australian Special Information Systems (ASIS). After completing his Master of Systems Development, he launched straight into a Master of Database Design and Management.

Q:      How has your course affected your career path?

A:      “This course has provided me with a formal qualification in my area of expertise which in my opinion will greatly assist with future career prospects.  It has also enabled me to obtain a rate increase in my current position and assisted with selection as a Technical Learning Guide at Microsoft TechEd; Developer 2006 in Barcelona.”

Q:       What is your strongest memory of your experience of CSU?

A:      “The strongest memory of my experience of CSU was the assistance provided by Margret Bellairs in secretly arranging for my mum get from Perth to Wagga Wagga for my Graduation.  Seeing my mum at graduation was a real surprise and meant a lot to me as we don’t get to see each other very much.  Margret and CSU provided a service well above what was expected and I thank them for making my Graduation a day to remember.”

Q:       What would you say to someone who was considering postgraduate study at CSU?

A:       “CSU is very flexible with study arrangements and lecturers are more than willing to provided additional time to complete tasks. In my opinion, CSU’s distance learning option is a blessing and without it I would not have obtained a formal qualification.  “

Jeff has been in the IT industry for more than 14 years and has spent the past 12 years developing, enhancing and upgrading systems using Visual Basic 4/5/6/.NET 2002/2003/2005, C# 2005, Microsoft Access 95/97/2000/2002/2003 and SQL Server 7.0/2000/2005.  Jeff is also experienced in System Administration, Project Management, Configuration Management, Application Package and Deployment, Team Leadership and Training Course Development and Delivery.

 

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Paul Nevin – Master of Information Systems Security

 

Paul is a Principal Security Architect in Canberra where he investigates security incidents on the Australian Government Internet gateway. 
He is also completing his Doctor of Information Technology with CSU, researching the evolution of Internet based attacks against Government and commercial networks over time.

Q:      What are you hoping to achieve through your research?

A:      “Currently we are in an arms race with the attackers and countermeasure we put in place are quickly bypassed by smarter, more dangerous attacks.  As with any arms race there can never be a long term winner.  I hope to discover better mechanisms to either predict or mitigate emerging threats before they are seen in the wild.  “

Q:      Which factors were the most important when choosing to study at CSU?

A:      “One of the most important factors in choosing a CSU course was that it had to work around my schedule. I remember rushing to finish an assignment from a hotel room in San Diego. When I finally did send it to my lecturer, two days late, he was more than understanding and told me to take some time off and visit the zoo. If you ever get to San Diego, I highly recommend you go!”

Q:      How is your course affecting your career path?

A:      “Prior to the course I was in a position of having heaps of industry experience but few formal qualifications; I am now in a position that I have to hire staff and I will be targeting CSU graduates for their relevant and uncommon knowledge. “

Q:      What is your strongest memory of your experience of CSU?

A:      “Receiving my graduation certificate in the mail. Having spent two hard years studying, it often felt like there was no end in sight. I would often study in the middle of the night when my baby daughter would wake up and demand to be changed or fed. She would sit on my knee and stare up at me as I would discuss encryption protocols or risk management theories with her. Graduating from the CSU course required a great deal of effort and, as a result, was hugely rewarding.”

Paul’s final thought on the Masters? Quite simply, “best thing I ever did.”

 

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Steven Woodhouse – Master of Networking and Systems Administration

Steven after receiving his testamur at graduation

Steven finished his Masters in 2005 and is currently completing a Professional Doctorate with CSU, but in his spare time he is the Manager of Technical Services for the NSW Department of Lands with 18 direct staff and a multi-million dollar budget.

Q: Did completing the Masters course affect your career path?

A:      “The research skills I have developed during this course have allowed me to undertake critical projects within my current employment.  This exposes me to senior management and is allowing me to advance my career.”

Q: What is your strongest memory of your experience of CSU?

A:      “Delivering a presentation of my research proposal to lecturers and other postgraduate students.  Presenting my first published paper to the ICITA 2007 conference in Harbin China.”

Q: What would you say to someone who was considering postgraduate study at CSU?

A:     “Pursuing postgraduate study via distance education with CSU is a pleasure... the course has been structured to ensure success and the lecturers and supervisors are more than willing and able to help with any problems you may encounter.”

Steven strongly believes in the importance of Information Security Management Systems (ISMS), and the Professional Doctorate that he has started with CSU will see him investigate the ISMS employed by NSW public sector organisations. It will be titled “Protecting our critical assets: – a management approach to information security” and is scheduled for completion at the end of this year.