A cybersecurity coaching programme designed to widen entry to the career for girls and non-technical entrants is increasing with out EU funding, after being voluntarily adopted by organisations in Poland and North Macedonia following the formal shut of its Erasmus+ venture interval.
SHE@CYBER, which was formed and co-developed by ISACA, ended its funded part in November 2025. Since then, greater than 70 ladies in Poland have accomplished the coaching independently, and greater than 40 educators in North Macedonia have been licensed to ship it. That adoption – after the grant cash stopped – is the clearest signal but that the mannequin works by itself phrases.
Through the funded interval, which started in 2024, the programme upskilled 45 trainers throughout Cyprus, Spain, Italy, Greece and Eire, and reached 193 registered customers by means of its open-access platform. An impartial evaluation by the Cyprus Nationwide Company underneath the European Fee’s Erasmus+ programme scored it 90 out of 100, incomes it a designation of “Glorious High quality” and recognition as a “European Good Follow.” It was additionally named a finalist within the 2025 European Digital Abilities Awards.
The programme was constructed on a research-backed understanding of why ladies stay underrepresented in cybersecurity and the way conventional expertise frameworks can contribute to that hole. ISACA’s contribution was to translate its globally recognised frameworks right into a format accessible to folks with no technical background, mapping the curriculum in opposition to the European Cybersecurity Abilities Framework (ECSF) in order that learners construct industry-recognised capabilities from the beginning.
“Girls are underrepresented in cybersecurity not resulting from an absence of means, however usually due to how the career defines itself and communicates its entry pathway,” mentioned Professor Vladlena Benson, Educational and Analysis Liaison at ISACA and Director of the Aston Centre for Cyber Safety Innovation at Aston College, whose work the programme attracts on. “By combining technical foundations with confidence-building, skilled expertise and accessible studying, SHE@CYBER creates a extra lifelike and inclusive route into the sphere.”
The programme’s train-the-trainer mannequin is central to the way it scales. Reasonably than counting on a central supply group, it certifies educators to ship the methodology independently – making a multiplier impact that extends attain to future cohorts with out extra central useful resource. The North Macedonia adoption is the clearest instance of this to this point.
Chris Dimitriadis, Chief International Technique Officer at ISACA, mentioned: “SHE@CYBER exhibits that when coaching is grounded in real-world wants and supported by recognised requirements, it turns into each credible and inclusive. That mixture is what constructing a stronger cybersecurity workforce truly requires.”
The SHE@CYBER platform and studying supplies will stay freely accessible till at the very least November 2028.
This program accelerates the mission of ISACA’s SheLeadsTech program, which goals to extend illustration within the tech workforce and elevate extra ladies into management positions.
