Britain has fretted about a skills gap or under-trained workers for decades. Prime Minister Gordon Brown raised the issue recently. In private security, there are academic and other ways to get qualified. We try to scout the landscape.
Portsmouth
Azeem Aleem is a lecturer on internet security at the University of Portsmouth, and Head of Secretariat of the NHS Security PAB (Professional Accreditation Board). He reports his university joined with the NHS Security Management Service to provide a risk and security degree qualification to their ASMS (Accredited Security Management Specialist). The university with this security arm of the NHS put together two units of study aimed at NHS security managers: on workplace violence; and issues in healthcare and security. The NHS as the employer has funded 15 staff on the course.
Tom Mulhall is the Director of the Postgraduate Programme in Security Management at Loughborough University.
It’s part of the Leicestershire uni’s Centre for Hazard and Risk Management (CHaRM). Tom has an investigations background before he became an academic: first in Royal Mail, then at British Telecom where for 10 years he managed the Network Fraud and Computer Crime teams. His interests, then, are in computer-related crime and telecoms. Below, he sums up the varied reasoning behind people embarking on an MSc in security management.
Many people have a great deal of professional security expertise, but tends to be one dimensional for example police or military. As a consequence when preparing for exits they wish to gain a recognised qualification that provides them with enhanced opportunities in the job market and in particular the corporate sector. Others embark upon the programmes simply to get the qualification to demonstrate their intellectual prowess and gain satisfaction for their achievement. For some it is all about recognition and esteem. Previous training courses are not accredited and not recognised by other agencies and hence the award becomes a form of recognition.
Others feel that they cannot compete for management jobs in the corporate environment as they are competing very often with graduates and feel a sense of inferiority complex. Many are sponsored or supported by their employer and the qualification is used as gateway to career progression. Others simply want to enhance their professional skills and are in pursuit of knowledge.
Trained to do more than kill
Frank Cannon, security operations supervisor, for an oil firm on the Caspian Sea, and Professional Security reader, is taking a risk and security MSc degree. We asked: why put yourself through it?! that is, the time and effort on top of working hours. What do you get out of it? And what would you advise someone thinking about taking such a course?
In 2003 while serving with the Royal Military Police (RMP) – the British Army’s police force responsible for ensuring compliance with Queen’s Regulations and military law – I was fortunate enough to receive a Queen’s commission and move from the Warrant Officer’s and Sergeant’s Mess into the Officer’s Mess. An important aspect of this transition was the compulsory attendance on a Sandhurst-based education course during which I was asked to write an essay as part of the defence studies syllabus. I enjoyed this task and was awarded top prize in the ‘best essay’ competition. I was also encouraged by one of the academy academics to consider enrolling on a adult education course.
At the time I was conscious that my 18 years in the army had given me an opportunity to develop a diverse experience base but not equip me with many commutable qualifications; who wants a 40-year-old who is trained to kill? A natural progression for a military man is to move into the private security industry, even more so in my case as I am a close protection practitioner and instructor with over 15 years front-line experience. I therefore decided to research the opportunities to underpin this knowledge with an academic qualification and decided to enroll on a distance learning degree in risk and security.
I knew a couple of military police guys who were studying at Loughborough and Leicester universities at MSc level but because I was unsure on the commitment and my attitude towards learning at a ripe old age, I decided to go with Portsmouth at BSc (Hons) level. An additional factor was that I was stationed in Wilshire and Portsmouth was on the doorstep, so to speak. I’m happy with my decision and will be extremely proud of my achievement once I graduate. If I can maintain my current grade standard I might just scrape a first; not bad for lad from the Fens.
My period of study has extended past that which I had originally planned because in the mean time I left the army, refurbished my first family home and commenced a second career in the industry living and working away from home in Kazakhstan. My days are extremely long and I have little time left for studies, all of which are now completed during my ‘off-shift’ time. This then eats into my extremely valuable family time. The positives however, are that the knowledge gained through the studies have benefited me every single working day; I have no doubt that my professional knowledge has increased and that through this I am beginning to develop a name for myself. Whilst life is a never-ending apprentiship, my newfound academic expertise is as good a foundation as one needs.
My recommendation to others is: have a go! But, understand the commitment required, don’t give in when time becomes the enemy and only embark on the academic journey if you want to develop your knowledge base. If all you want, is a degree to add to the CV then go on-line and buy one. Consider occupational alternatives like the Security Institute’s qualifications (www.security-institute.org) or the internationally recognised ASIS CPP (www.asisonline.org).
Professional Security reader Frank Cannon is a security operations supervisor for an oil firm in Kazakhstan, on the Caspian Sea.
He is taking a risk and security BSc (Hons) degree with the University of Portsmouth. For his dissertation, he has set up an online survey about close protection officer training. There’s a basic website and email address: www.frankcannonsecurity.co.uk/
Audrius Sapola is a reader of Professional Security and head of security at AB SEB bankas, a bank based in Vilnius, Lithuania. This year he hopes to complete a foundation degree in security and risk management at Leicester University.
I’m a distance learning student, so I don’t have to travel to the UK very often – usually a couple of times per year is enough. Why am I doing this degree? Well, the answer is pretty simple – a bit more than 10 years ago I ended up (rather accidentally, I’d say) doing a security function for an oil company, I’m still there today and I think I’ll stay in security in the nearest future. And since things in this field, just like everywhere else, keep changing very rapidly; therefore, if you want to stay in the saddle, you must constantly broaden your knowledge and expertise. In my opinion, doing a degree in security is interesting and beneficial, but it requires a lot of commitment at the same time; therefore my job and my family responsibilities (I’ve got three kids) force me to make constant trade offs.
