Deadline for cyber Army soldiers nears

The deadline for Army soldiers interested in becoming a part of the cyber branch is quickly approaching.

Soldiers have until Aug. 31 to submit their packet for the first school date. Those who miss it will have to wait until the next course announcement.

An Army military personnel message published in June notified soldiers of the opportunity to reclassify into the 17C military occupational specialty, which is called cyber operations specialist.

"It's on the individual," Master Sgt. Mike Perry, cyber protection brigade career counselor on Fort Gordon, Georgia, said. "I always believed that if you want to get something, you'll motivate yourself to get it."

Highly-motivated individuals are precisely what the cyber branch is seeking, Perry said.

The primary duty of a cyber-operations specialist is to "provide offensive and defensive cyberspace operations in support of the full range of military operations by enabling actions and generating effects across all domains."

Newly minted 17C MOS Soldiers will be assigned to one of its seven functional areas. Though individuals are designated one functional area, there will be ample opportunities to cross-train in the other associated skill areas.

"With a lot of other MOSs, you learn your specific job, and that's it," Sgt. Maj. Michael Redmon, Fort Gordon command career counselor, said. "These soldiers get an opportunity to sit next to one another and learn from each other constantly."