Inside a Cyber Security Challenge: How DeVry Student Matthew McCloskey Reached the Top 12 in NCL

Matthew graduated from DeVry University in February 2026 with a Bachelor's in Engineering Technology. While computers had been part of his life for as long as he can remember, cyber security wasn't always the plan.

Growing up around computers, Matthew learned how systems worked, how to troubleshoot problems, and how small technical details could have a big impact. The National Cyber League gave him a way to apply those interests in a practical environment where investigation, critical thinking, and problem-solving come together.

“What really pulled me toward cyber security specifically was NCL,” he says. “Cyber security is interesting because it's not just one narrow area of IT. It touches every domain, and NCL exposed me to the full range in practical ways.”

Now, after 7 NCL seasons and a bachelor's degree, he's looking ahead to graduate school, potentially pursuing a master's degree with a business or entrepreneurship focus that combines his technical expertise with broader leadership ambitions.

A cyber security competition is an event where participants complete challenges that test their technical knowledge and problem-solving skills in simulated cyber security scenarios. It offers competitors an opportunity to move beyond textbooks and apply what they’ve learned in realistic situations.

The National Cyber League is an online cyber security competition held twice each year that challenges students to solve hands-on problems using the same types of skills professionals use in the field. Structured in a capture-the-flag format, NCL participants work through challenges across 9 core cyber security domains, including scanning, log analysis, and forensics. There are 2 seasons per year, each of which lasts 12 weeks and includes a season-long Gymnasium, a Practice Game, an Individual Game, and a Team Game.

For DeVry students, the competition offers much more than just a challenge. It also provides an opportunity to apply classroom learning, gain hands-on experience, and collaborate with peers while developing the critical thinking and problem-solving skills that are essential for thriving in cyber security careers.

“A comprehensive school Power Ranking of 12 is meaningful,” says DeVry University NCL faculty coach Dr. Jingdi Zeng, “because it shows that our students are performing well both individually and as teams.”

For Matthew, competing in NCL is about much more than solving cyber security challenges. It's an immersive experience that combines technical skill, strategy, collaboration, and endurance.

A large part of that experience happens in digital spaces where teammates stay connected throughout the competition. Conversations move between Microsoft Teams and Discord, with each platform serving a different purpose. Teams is typically used for live strategy discussions, and Discord is the ongoing space where questions, observations, and ideas are shared throughout the competition.

Matthew says it can feel intimidating, especially for those who are new. “It can be difficult to ask questions or even provide input,” he says. That feeling can be compounded by the technical difficulty of the competition itself, although the collaboration becomes a valuable part of the experience.

“Someone might ask a question late at night, and then another teammate might pick it up later and suggest something,” he explains. “And then later on, another teammate is going to come by and see something at a different angle.”

In general, Matthew finds the community and its members to be supportive and helpful: “Especially when you come across different domains that you think you're familiar with, but it ends up being completely different than what you expect.” He also notes that some challenges feel like puzzles, while others feel like investigative work.

In the months leading up to the competition, Matthew reviews concepts and gets used to how NCL questions are structured. “That helps me build endurance because the competition is not just knowing about the material. It's more about staying sharp for hours and moving quickly, and then avoiding the mental drain.”

Even small details matter when competing at the national level. Matthew says he learned to optimize his desk space, down to where his keyboard and mouse are positioned, to avoid friction or distractions in his workflow.

Over time, those systems, conversations, and habits come together in a way that reshapes how the competition feels. “It's really a great experience,” he says, “because it puts you in this position where you’re kind of feeling as if you’re already in a career.”

For all the complexity of the National Cyber League competition, Matthew says the most difficult challenges aren’t always technical.

“The harder part was dealing with the imposter feeling inside,” he says. “Confidence is there…but it could be tested really quickly when you come across different domains that you think you’re familiar with.”

Even with preparation and experience, moments of doubt would surface, especially when moving between unfamiliar areas or encountering problems that didn’t immediately align with what he expected to see. Over time, Matthew learned that performance in the competition wasn’t just about technical ability; it was also about mindset.

Once he stopped trying to prove himself in every moment and began trusting the process, he found he could work through each cyber security challenge step-by-step instead of reacting to uncertainty. “At NCL, you have to stay focused on the process and not let frustration or doubt make your decisions,” he says.

Over 7 seasons of National Cyber League competition, Matthew’s approach changed from trying to solve every challenge in front of him to building processes. In the beginning, his focus was on solving each challenge as it came and working through as many problems as possible.

But as he gained experience, he began noticing patterns, such as that certain concepts repeated, that file signatures and indicators could be recognized, and that top competitors weren't just technically strong, they were also efficient.

That realization led him to build his own workflows and tools. “I went from reacting to the challenge,” he says, “to controlling my process.”

And it paid off. During the Individual Game last season, Matthew completed all of the questions in under 24 hours, an outcome that reflected not just speed but the refinement of years of practice and adaptation.

Reaching a top team ranking in the NCL doesn’t happen during competition week alone. It’s the result of consistent preparation, ongoing practice, and a learning environment that supports continual student growth across every stage.

For each NCL season, our faculty coaches guide students through structured preparation that includes training sessions covering all 9 competition areas and helps them build a solid foundation as they practice in the Gymnasium each week leading up to the actual games. Between seasons, the training continues as students keep sharpening their skills through our cyber range and other cyber competitions.

Our cyber range is an immersive, cloud-based learning environment designed to simulate real-world cyber attacks. It gives students a safe space to build technical skills while also strengthening their critical thinking, helping them learn how to analyze and respond effectively to complex cyber security challenges.

“The cyber range gives students a place to practice individual skills within a realistic workflow,” says Dr. Zeng. “It helps them connect the dots, see the bigger picture, and develop stronger critical thinking skills.”

For Matthew, preparation in the cyber range was especially impactful. “These experiences help me move beyond just reading about the tools and actually using them in context,” he says.

At DeVry, this hands-on approach is at the heart of our cyber security education. We encourage students to link their technical knowledge with practical, real-world applications and the latest emerging technologies. Our programs are further strengthened by our designation as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense by the National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity by the National Security Agency.¹

Matthew’s experience shows that preparation becomes most powerful when classroom learning, faculty guidance, and hands-on practice come together.

For Matthew, one of the most lasting parts of the National Cyber League experience has been the people behind it.

Early in his NCL journey, he remembers relying heavily on peers during practice games by asking questions, learning from their approaches, and trying to understand not just the right answers, but the reasoning behind them. Over time, that support system shifted. The same student who once looked for guidance became someone others turned to for help.

“Cyber security is not only technical. It’s collaborative, investigative, and constantly evolving,” he says.

That sense of collaboration extends beyond the competition itself. At DeVry, students engaging in cyber security are part of a broader ecosystem that includes initiatives like our Future Cyber Defenders Scholars Program, the Women in Cybersecurity (WiCyS) community, and opportunities to participate in competitions such as the NCL and NCAE Cyber Games.

That support system becomes especially meaningful when students connect with peers from DeVry and other schools who are working through similar challenges, building both technical skills and professional relationships along the way. Many also find mentors and faculty coaches who help guide their growth as they progress through the program.

As Dr. Zeng explains, “They become part of a broader support system that helps them build confidence, feel empowered, and see a future for themselves in cyber security.”

For Matthew, the value of NCL ultimately comes down to application and turning knowledge into experience through repeated problem-solving, trial, and reflection.

“The NCL is more about the hands-on application that brings the theory of what you're reading into a practical, real-world application,” Matthew says. “Where you are confidently understanding what's happening because you have seen the process and you went through the experience of failing and trying again.”

The progression from learning concepts, to applying them, to refining how you approach complex problems is at the center of how Matthew describes his growth across 7 seasons of competition. It also reflects a broader goal within our cyber security programs of helping students move beyond understanding theory to building the ability to apply it under real-world conditions.

With the cyber security workforce gap continuing to grow, that kind of preparation has become increasingly important, especially as employers are looking for graduates who can think critically, adapt quickly, and work through unfamiliar problems with confidence.

For Matthew, the Top 12 finish is one outcome of that journey — and the result of 7 seasons of persistence, collaboration, and growth that led to it.

And for students just beginning their cyber security path, it’s a reminder that progress is built one challenge at a time.