<aside> 🌟 Cori Faklaris is an assistant professor in the Department of Software and Information Systems at UNC Charlotte. In 2022, she received her PhD from CMU HCII. Her goals are to understand human behavior in computational systems and to empower people to act securely in ways that meet their individual and social needs!
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To finish school, I completed my thesis. My thesis focused on exploring people's attitudes as well as their behaviors that are relevant to cybersecurity. So thinking about things like using two factor authentication, whether voluntarily or because somebody made you, or using strong, unique passwords. And at the end of my thesis, I focused on password managers. These might be built in or they might be separately installed programs where it's a very secure encrypted online fault. You could put all your passwords there, and it can also generate really strong ones for you. An example would be your iOS keychain or how in Google Chrome the browser remembers those passwords. I'll also give a plug for LastPass which is one that I use and like. There's also Nordpass, so there are plenty of reputable companies in this space.
My research during my PhD led up to this thesis. One thing that I particularly looked at was social influences. I worked with my advisors, Laura Dabbish and Jason Hong, and they had a grant to look at how we can use social influences for good in the cybersecurity process. This could look like those tools and practices that I mentioned earlier. It could also be things like considering how we learn about staying secure, and what really nudges us to take action. A lot of times we have found that it’s your friends, your family, and people you respect. You'll hear a story from them or you'll observe their behavior, and that will inspire you to take the plunge.
đź’Ľ Masters
I actually have two Master’s degrees. I did the first at Indiana University in Indianapolis when I was still working full time. Once I had decided to go into academia, I quit my job to work towards the degree full time. That’s when I applied to the PhD programs I was looking at. On the way to my PhD, I got another Master’s degree, so that’s how I ended up with two. When applying to my first Master’s program, I had to write a statement of purpose that justified why the program should pick me. I also took the GRE as my undergrad wasn’t in a computing field—it was in journalism. Finally, I had to submit letters of recommendation. That’s one reason why people tell you to go to office hours, get involved with research projects, or even become a TA so you get to know people who can write those letters for you.
🔬 PhD
Applying to PhD programs was similar in terms of the requirements, but I’d say the bar was much higher because there are fewer slots relative to the slots for a Master’s degree. It’s really important to have people recommend you who an admissions committee knows or trusts. During my first Master’s program, I ended up with a research advisor and a research assistantship at Indiana University. Working with my advisor, I was able to get a poster accepted to CSCW, one of the top conferences in HCI. I was able to put in my applications to demonstrate that I can do the work.
💼 Master’s
For a Master’s, it’ll be hands-on and experiential learning. You’ll be put into activities and small research groups where you can experience what life is like as a professional.
🔬 PhD
The PhD content was much more theoretical. You’ll read quite a few formal research papers that can be about 10 very dense pages. In a Master’s program, especially for a professional Master’s, they won’t dump all that on you.