Careers in Cyber
What 11 Months in the RISE Mentorship Program Can Do for Your Cybersecurity Career
QUICK SUMMARY
Only 22% of the cybersecurity workforce is women. That number has barely moved in years. And while the industry talks endlessly about the talent gap, closing it requires more than conversation. It requires structured investment in the people already doing the work.
The RISE Inclusive Mentoring Program is The Cyber Guild’s answer to that challenge. Our 11-month structured mentorship program is designed specifically for women professionals in cybersecurity, whether they are looking to advance within the field or make a successful transition into it. RISE meets participants where they are and builds from there.
The program is built on a straightforward premise: that talented women in cybersecurity deserve structured support, real relationships, and a clear path forward.
What the Numbers Say About Women in Cybersecurity
The representation gap in cybersecurity is not a new problem, but the urgency around it is growing. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 14% growth in the Information and Technology sectors by 2032. As demand for skilled cybersecurity professionals rises sharply, the industry cannot afford to exclude half its potential talent pool before the conversation even starts.
The pipeline problem runs deeper than entry-level hiring. Many women who are already in cybersecurity hit a ceiling mid-career. They have the skills, the experience, and the institutional knowledge, but the mentorship and sponsorship structures that would help them advance are often absent or inaccessible. As The Cyber Guild has explored in its analysis of why traditional cyber talent models are broken, the issue is not a shortage of capable people. It is a structural failure to develop and retain them.
Skills-based approaches to hiring and career development are beginning to shift that equation, but structural support matters just as much as credential recognition. That is where a well-designed cybersecurity mentorship program makes a measurable difference.
What Is the RISE Mentorship Program?
RISE is an 11-month cohort-based mentorship program for women professionals in cybersecurity or those actively working to enter the field. It is structured around a central question: what would a program look like if it were designed specifically to meet women at career inflection points and give them the tools, relationships, and clarity to move forward?
How RISE Works
RISE is not a self-directed program or a loose collection of networking events. It is a purposefully structured experience. Participants move through a defined arc across 11 months, with each stage building on the last.
The program includes:
- A facilitated onboarding session where participants craft clear, work-based goals for the program
- Personalized mentor matching based on career stage, professional background, and aspirations
- Guided self-discovery focused on identifying strengths and transferable skills that may not be formally recognized
- Access to The Cyber Guild’s full events calendar and its growing RISE alumni network
- A two-day immersive experience in partnership with George Washington University and SANS, focused on self-advocacy in job selection and the workplace
- An optional second-day appearance at The Cyber Guild’s UWIC conference, which concludes with a formal RISE Graduation ceremony
The combination of goal-setting, mentorship, community access, and immersive skill-building is what separates RISE from more informal mentorship arrangements. It is designed to produce outcomes, not just conversations.
The Benefits Go Both Ways
One of the most compelling aspects of RISE is that the evidence for its value extends to both mentors and mentees. This is not a program where one side gives and one side takes. Both roles carry significant professional returns.
On the mentee side, research on structured mentorship programs consistently shows meaningful career gains. Participants who engage in formal mentorship report salary increases and faster advancement at significantly higher rates than those who navigate their careers without that support structure.
On the mentor side, the returns are equally compelling. Research consistently shows that professionals who serve as mentors develop stronger leadership skills, build broader networks, and advance their own careers in the process. Mentoring is not a one-way exchange, and RISE is designed around that reality.
For leaders evaluating whether to get involved in a structured mentorship program, the evidence for investing the time is strong on both sides of the relationship.
Why This Moment Matters
The cybersecurity sector is growing faster than the talent pipeline that feeds it. A 14% projected growth rate by 2032 means demand for skilled, experienced professionals will intensify significantly over the next several years. At the same time, if the workforce remains at 22% women, the field is effectively operating well below its potential.
RISE exists precisely to close that gap, not by lowering standards, but by ensuring talented women who are already in the field or actively working to enter it have the structured support to succeed. Building career readiness in an AI-enabled environment requires more than technical training. It requires confidence, mentorship, network access, and the ability to articulate your own value clearly. RISE is designed to deliver all of those things.
Mid-career stagnation is one of the most common reasons women leave cybersecurity or plateau well below their potential. Not because they are not capable, but because the visibility, advocacy, and strategic guidance that would help them move forward are not always available. RISE is specifically designed for that inflection point, the moment when someone has real experience but needs a different kind of support to break through to the next level.
Who Should Be Paying Attention
If you are a woman working in cybersecurity or actively pursuing a transition into the field, RISE is worth a serious look. It is structured for exactly the kind of professional who has skills and ambition but has not yet had access to the relationships and frameworks that accelerate careers at the senior level.
If you are a senior cybersecurity leader looking to give back and strengthen your own professional trajectory in the process, serving as a RISE mentor is one of the most strategically sound investments you can make in your leadership development.
And if you lead an organization that is serious about building a more diverse, capable, and resilient cybersecurity workforce, supporting employee participation in programs like RISE is not charity. It is a talent strategy.
Learn more about the RISE Mentorship Program and consider where it fits in your own professional path.
Are you ready to take the next step in your cybersecurity journey?
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