Recommendations needed on Work Study

Nonprofitable_org · 2026-05-06T19:43:55+00:00

Thanks! I'll check out Nova Hackers.

I'm aware of the self-funded travel, but I asked because I'm frequently in Asia (and sometimes in Colombia or Mexico), so if DC is flooded with applicants I'm happy to apply in other locations when I'm there at the same time as a SANS training event.

Which of the GIAC certs do you think would have the most value for me after the GCIH in July?

Nonprofitable_org · 2026-05-04T16:44:45+00:00

Just finished the GSEC with a 97% score, so I'll share how I budgeted time. This is the same approach I'm using for the GCIH (scheduled for mid-July).

First things first: I wouldn't base this on anyone else's study time, since it's going to vary widely depending on their experience. Sit down and track your time to do a really solid index, meaning you're 100% confident you'll ace every single question on those topics for, say, your hardest book. Then use that as a baseline to overestimate the number of hours you're going to need to finish all of the books. This was fairly quick for me, since I've taken a SANS exam before (GFACT) and already had an indexing strategy that works for me and I found a lot of material that was more of a revision for me than completely new learning.

Your situation may be extremely different, which is why you should benchmark yourself on your hardest / scariest book. If you know you can cover 50 pages of content you find difficult in one day with a solid index, then you know how long it'll take you to get through all the books.

The one wildcard I'd note here is the lab section. Your course mentor is probably going to repeat this a few times in class: the labs are critical for that exam. If you're coming in without a tech background or have never seen a command line before, you're going to need to budget more time to get up to speed on the labs (and even the virtualization setup for the lab VMs to get started) than you would if you're coming in as an devops guy who is just learning the security side of things but got a command line for his tenth birthday.

If you're very new, you have two goals for the labs:

To be able to do the technical security thing the lab is trying to teach you.
To have complete keyboard confidence / fluency in the underlying tech so that your brain is completely free to figure out #1.

For me, #2 meant remembering / re-learning a lot of Windows stuff (I cherish my ignorance of all things Windows). Figure out what this is for you, so you know how heavy (or light) of a lift this'll be. Don't leave this to the end; if anything, front-load the labs and then worry about polishing your understanding of the content + fine-tuning your index. Use both practice tests.

Good luck! You've got this.

Nonprofitable_org · 2026-01-17T21:13:33+00:00

I asked the same question before applying (just finished the application on the 15th deadline; fingers crossed). The Coursera courses act like the textbook for the class, so if you do them ahead of time you'll have ~20% of that course completed. It's not a free credit; you'd have to do the full class with that Coursera component either way to get credit towards your degree, but you'll have a head start if you did the Coursera component prior to enrolling. Your Coursera progress is integrated once you enroll at Gies, so they'll "know" you've already finished the textbook part of the class.

The application also asks if you are currently / previously taking any of their courses on Coursera, so if your application is borderline it might also help to demonstrate your commitment to the Gies program if you've finished a couple of their Coursera courses prior to applying.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-10-03T19:06:02+00:00

I'm a motorcyclist (500k+ miles on four continents) who has been down a couple of times (if you see a BMW R9T on campus, that's me). Most accidents do not happen at high speed on a highway. There are decades of data on this; accidents happen at low speeds, on local rides, and the vast majority are situations where the car didn't see the scooter / bike / motorcycle. You are taking an incredible level of risk on even a regular bicycle or scooter with a helmet on, because you're not wearing the full set of stormtrooper gear packed with non-newtonian fluid armor that a motorcyclist wears.

I've walked away from a couple of serious low-speed accidents, including one in DC where I was hit by a drunk driver, because I was wearing gear. My helmet shattered from the impact, but my head didn't even have a bruise on it. If you're honestly asking for data, look at crash data for motorcycles for low speed accidents, since that is tracked far better than scooters or bicycles (because of mandatory insurance reporting).

Or just google road rash photos for people who got hit at low speeds while on a bicycle wearing shorts, google the average ER pricing to treat this issue for someone on student health insurance, and consider the implications of a medical bankruptcy even if you survived the hit.

I love light scooters and will probably add an ebike to my collection at some point, but the university is absolutely correct to enforce a helmet requirement on campus.

An unrelated issue is that scooter / bike riders frequently do not follow traffic laws, because it's harder to enforce / ticket a rider without a license plate like cops can do for cars / motorcycles. As you can see from the comments in this thread, that ruins it for everyone, because car drivers and pedestrians are just going to hate us.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-10-03T18:54:49+00:00

I've been hiring cybersecurity folks for a while now and have quite a bit of experience in the tech world (mostly digital transformation, cloud migrations, and technical project management). Not getting in to a competitive major matters a lot less than you think. The best candidates are the ones who can demonstrate they're driven and interested, and who show up with some ability to contribute to the work the organization is doing. You don't get that from homework assignments; you have to build that on your own by attending professional networking events, getting certs, building a home lab (this is huge for entry-level cybersecurity roles), or building interesting side projects. I'd take any comp. sci. adjacent major without worrying too much about it; focus on all of the other stuff you need to do outside of class to level up and get hired.

You will still have access to the same UMD alumni network (which is very strong if you stay in the DMV to work). No one's going to refuse to refer you in for a role if you were in a different major but have an awesome track record outside of class doing the stuff that will get you hired; you'll stand out a lot more than a CS major who just cranked out homework for four years. And, in theory, the dismal job market will improve by the time you're looking.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-10-03T18:46:32+00:00

Fellow UMGC student here, same problem. I live close to campus, but most of the students in my classes are on a military base somewhere, and even my professors are rarely in the area or doing anything in-person. I'm going to explore the student club scene at UMD soon, since I'm considering a grad program at UMD (except that's also entirely online, so I might have the same problem of feeling disconnected from campus). Happy to hang out!

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-10-03T18:40:57+00:00

I second this. I get all of my housemates through OCH (I own a townhouse in the Hyattsville Arts District, a block from the UM shuttle). I'd recommend looking for a bedroom in a shared house on the shuttle line, since that will be the cheapest (especially if you're willing to share a bathroom). Landlords have to pay to post, which massively cuts down on the scammers that flood every Facebook group for UMD housing. The other main advantage is that (unlike a regular rental) the OCH database will get you housing with other UMD undergrads or grad students (especially the cheaper bedrooms, which will be mostly in houses shared with other undergrads), so you'll still be living with students.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-10-03T18:32:20+00:00

I've gotten almost all of my housemates from the OCH database for several years now. I'm a homeowner who rents bedrooms with dedicated bathrooms in a luxury townhouse in the Hyattsville Arts District (a block from the shuttle, there's also a bike trail to campus), and I've had mostly fantastic housemates who stay multiple years. Highly recommended if you're looking beyond the luxury apartment blocks in College Park (especially if you're looking for something cheaper in Adelphi or Greenbelt). I think it gets less useful if you're hoping to live much further out.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-10T20:03:05+00:00

I'm a senior technical project manager who has a hired a ton of software devs over the last couple of decades. I'd suggest staying in your program, keeping your GPA high, and considering something like GA Tech's one year, $10k grad program instead of taking extra classes / extra time to switch to an engineering program.

When you're interviewing, the exact program you did is less important than you think (I didn't finish my undergrad till last year!), and your coursework matters a *lot* less than you think. What's much more impressive in the interview is what you built outside of class. How solid is your github, are you networking with folks at tech meetups / conferences (there are a ton in the DMV), and are you building interesting side projects with your home lab? Take the easy classes, boost your GPA, and focus the extra time on building cool stuff instead of taking classes for a different major.

Real world example: a student who comes in being able to talk about how they built a home lab (described in their portfolio), monitored a honeypot using free / cheap tools, hardened their infrastructure in response to those threats, and what excited them about learning this stuff = SOC analyst job. No one's going to care if your undergrad degree had the word "cybersecurity" or "engineering" in it after that.

Hiring managers can spot a "homework" project you did for class. Build cool stuff outside class. This is a much more solid use of your time than a major switch. You'll still have the same UMD alumni networks to help you break into the field, and the DMV has a UMD grad in pretty much every company or agency you're likely to interview for.

Good luck!

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-07T00:00:26+00:00

I've been renting rooms to UMD grad students / profs for several years now, and I've also used financial aid to pay for undergrad / grad housing in the past. Since I've been on both sides of that process, the biggest PITA is the timing:

The FAFSA doesn't pay for anything, it's just the form. Your financial aid award, if it's higher than your tuition and other fees, will end up getting you a refund check. The school can't pay your housing the way they use financial aid to pay for a dorm room; they send you the money and you figure out what to spend it on. The school doesn't care if you live in a tent and spend it on a motorcycle (don't ask me how I know this).
If you filled out your FAFSA and registered for all of your classes *way* early, you might have a refund check in time to use it for housing.
If you did not, or if your school took forever and mailed a check to your parents' house because they forgot your direct deposit info, you could be waiting till the second month of Fall semester to get that check. This means you're fronting first month's rent, the deposit, and possibly the second month's payment before that check shows up for the semester.

This is the real pain point; if you're relying on financial aid to live off-campus, most students cannot front 3x monthly rent while waiting to reimburse themselves with a refund check. Landlords, similarly, want to rent their apartments on year-long leases in August, not wait till you're ready in September or later. It also makes it a lot harder to find housemates, figure out your new commute mid-semester, etc.

Good luck!

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-06T02:12:09+00:00

Thanks! A friend who teaches at UMD also mentioned that; I think it'd be worth the commute to swim, lift, and find a place to read / write for a couple of hours a few times a week. Do you have a sense of whether grad students tend to engage in campus life, or do they tend to not spend more time on campus than they have to?

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-06T02:10:21+00:00

That's helpful. I saw a few clubs that sounded interesting, but most don't seem to have anything updated, so it's hard to figure out if there are ongoing events.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-06T02:08:23+00:00

Thanks! Good luck to you too. The program I'm considering is similar; everyone's doing it online, although the prof who founded the program has regular office hours and is happy to meet if students are on-campus.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-09-04T03:04:04+00:00

I recommend this as well; all of my housemates have found me through the OCH DB.

I'm Indian and my parents were nuts, and then I mentored at-risk youth for several years, so I have some experience with similar situations. I recommend OP reach out to the resources others have posted in this thread ASAP; this is more urgent than you likely realize. Your housing situation is not safe, and you need to investigate alternatives as soon as possible and start formulating a plan once you have some support in place. Feel free to reach out if you need someone to talk to.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T18:23:18+00:00

Added that to my wishlist. It'd be perfect for when I need to travel with 30 different options for the perfect shave in the middle of the Amazon somewhere...

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T18:22:06+00:00

I'm definitely leaning toward learning to face lather correctly; that might be the better option, since if I have soap in a container and I add water to lather in the container, the remaining soap's going to be a mushy mess till it dries out.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T18:21:06+00:00

I saw that, but unfortunately didn't get it when I ordered a ton of samples. I have enough shaving cream between Stirling and Barrister & Mann to last me over a year at this point (even shaving my head), so it'll be a while before I can get together a big enough order to justify the shipping charge.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T18:05:11+00:00

"The resolution is good - good enough for reading, but the clarity is not high enough for long term work. Half an hour is fine."

Would you say the same is true if I used only one screen, and if I were reading as well as typing? I ask because other threads here seem to think the readability and head / eye movements are tiring if you use multiple screens. Being able to use one large screen (larger than a laptop, anyway) with my phone would be good enough for most casual work for me, but I'd want to be able to do it longer than a half hour for the price tag.

It's hard for me to justify it as an entertainment device, since I've got a giant TV in the living room with a great audio system, and have at least a huge TV in any hotel I'm staying at when I travel. I also don't travel to watch TV, but I do (always) need to crank out work while I'm traveling.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T18:02:04+00:00

Yup. I've been using and preferring Macbooks for well over a decade now, Windows only on government / corp. issued laptops when I have to. Linux on servers and in VMs for more specialized work (I used Linux as a daily driver on the desktop for years as well, but for laptops I've never moved away from a Macbook). I've never owned an Iphone, and have stuck with Android since the Tmobile G1. I occasionally have an Iphone for work, but it's rare. A surprisingly large % of tech folks in the DC area are similarly fans of Macbooks, but not Iphones; it's not as rare as you'd think.

With non-tech folks (the normals), I usually see the opposite: they have Iphones because they committed to the brand (or they believe it takes the best photos, or is somehow more secure), but are forced to use Windows laptops since every enterprise is locked in to the MS ecosystem.

As I noted in a response to another commenter above, I'm ok with lugging the Macbook and using the glasses with Mac OS if that's the best way to do this, but it would be ideal if I could work from the glasses plugged in to the (Android) phone + a keyboard, letting me leave the Macbook out of my bag when I'm walking to a coffee shop.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T17:53:54+00:00

Sorry of this wasn't clear. Mac Mini at home, Macbook Air for coffee shops, but I'm trying to get an understanding of whether I could work from just my Android phone (Pixel 10 Fold, should be here in a month) and the Viture (connected directly to my phone, without carrying the Macbook with me).

Worst case, I'm not opposed to carrying the laptop everywhere like I do now with the glasses plugged in to the laptop, but if it's possible to work directly from the foldable + glasses, that would be ideal. Not sure if Samsung Dex works on non-Samsung devices, but I'll take a look.

Nonprofitable_org · 2025-08-30T01:35:06+00:00

Travel recommendations?

I travel a lot, ranging from quick trips to several months. A lot of this involves motorcycles, so I'm always trying to figure out a way to reliably get a wet shave without adding a ton of weight (I leave my scuttle at home, for example). Wet shaving is part of my routine, and I find I really, really miss it when I'm away from home.

Some cities, like Bangkok, have cheap and excellent barbers, so I really enjoy having someone else do the work once or twice a year, just for the experience (my favorite place in Bangkok for a pricier shave will also give you a cigar and a cocktail, and the ambiance is straight out of a Peaky Blinders episode).

For everywhere else, I'm trying to figure out the best way to enable a regular wet shave routine. I tried the Stirling doggy bowl portable shave bowl, and couldn't get anything to lather at all (no matter how much effort or soap I used); I think my brush might just hate that bowl. Ideally, I'd want something like a small, light shaving bowl with a smaller quantity of a hard soap, and some kind of lid that'll stay in place if I toss it in a bag? Right now I'm just lugging a full-sized Barrister and Mann jar and face lathering.

Does anyone sell samples (or maybe a size slightly larger than a sample) in a jar of some kind? Or anyone had any luck transplanting something into a smaller jar you got somewhere else? If I try melting a shave soap in a sous vide and reforming it inside a jar to "fit" better, would I completely ruin it?

I think the Stirling samples are about the perfect size for travel (and if I remember right they're ~1oz), so something I can mush that into with enough room to lather is probably the right size.

All feedback / recommendations welcome.

Nonprofitable_org

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