Need to leave this site fast? Press Esc twice, or tap Quick exit. It opens a weather page in place of this one. It does not erase your history; here is how. Quick exit
HACKING THE WORKFORCE Get started

Security · Careers

ACCESS Granted

A U.S. Department of Labor-registered cybersecurity apprenticeship, designed by the community, for the community. Next cohort starts January 2027, exact date announced soon.

Apply How it works
Two trainees listening in a working session

Who it is for

Career changers, students, and early-career technologists from underinvested communities who want a structured path into cybersecurity and a network that looks like them.

What you get

Customized asynchronous training, learning checks, virtual labs, a career coach, real casework hours with community organizations, and Learning platform access.

How it works

  1. Step 1Assessment and eligibilityBaseline skills, the ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity exam, 12 hours with a career coach.
  2. Step 2Customized learning pathBuilt around an employer's stack and frameworks (NIST, ITIL, DISA as needed).
  3. Step 3Clearance processBegins while you train, so you are ready the day it clears.
  4. Step 4Technical trainingIT and security foundations, cloud where the role calls for it, hands-on labs.
  5. Step 5Soft skillsCritical thinking, communication, teamwork, workplace culture.
  6. Step 6Certification prepSecurity+, Cloud+, or what the employer asks for, with practice exams.
  7. Step 7Employer onboardingThe employer's tools and workflows, rehearsed in mock scenarios.
  8. Step 8Final evaluationA live, proctored, no-AI assessment of how you think, not what you can look up. Reported to the employer.

Step 8, up close

The final test: no AI allowed

Employers want people who can think for themselves when the AI is wrong, down, or off limits. So our final test is live, in person, and done with no AI tools. We score how you think, not just your answer. You will use AI on the job. This test proves you are good without it.

Where new hires slip up

At work, everything you type is watched

In a security job, your computer is monitored. Never paste private data into Claude, ChatGPT, or any tool your employer has not approved. That means no customer info, no patient info, no passwords, no names. Doing it can get you written up, fired, or in legal trouble. We practice this from day one, so it becomes habit.

What the evaluation checks

  • There is a shortcut in the test that would mean pasting private data into an unapproved tool. Take it and you fail that part, even with the right answer.
  • We show you a screen and ask: what here is private? Who do you ask for help with it?
  • You explain, in your own words, what your employer would see if they looked at your last 30 minutes of work.
  • "I don't know, but here is who I would ask" can pass. A confident shortcut with customer data cannot.
Part 1 · 45 minLive incident triageA scenario you have never seen, with logs and alerts on screen. Talk the evaluator through what you would check first and why, as new information arrives.
Part 2 · 30 minFind the flawAn AI-written analysis with planted errors. Mark what is wrong, what is unverified, and what you would never act on without checking.
Part 3 · 30 minWhiteboard the systemDraw how a control works and where it fails, from memory, then answer follow-ups that change the constraints.
Part 4 · 30 minDefend your capstoneOral defense of the project you built: every choice questioned, no notes, no screen. If you built it, you can explain it.

How it is scored. Rubric on four skills: problem framing, evidence use, judgment under uncertainty, and clear communication. Correct answers earn less than correct reasoning; a wrong answer with sound reasoning can pass, a right answer you cannot explain cannot.

How it is run. Proctored on camera or in person, screen shared, no second device, no AI assistants, no browser except the evaluation environment. The employer receives the scored rubric and the recording summary with your consent.

An advisory roundtable in progress

For employers

A steady pipeline of pre-trained, clearance-pending talent aligned to your stack. Reduced onboarding time and cost. The ability to fill critical cleared roles the day a clearance lands.

Talk to us about a cohort

Cohort

Start date announced soon

Cost

Pricing published here when the next cohort opens

Eligibility

Eligibility published with the next cohort

Ready to start?

Apply via Welcome

How you can help

Help the next person sit in this seat.

ACCESS Granted costs trainees nothing because someone paid it forward.

Hire a graduateOr bring us in to help your organization. Mentor a studentOne hour a month. We train you. Give100% reaches us. Zeffy covers the fees.