Middlesex Community College hosted the 2026 Northeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (NECCDC), from Friday, March 20 through Sunday, March 22 on the Lowell Campus. During the competition, participants used their skills to defend infrastructure and navigate modern cyber threats, including a team of MCC students.
“A competition like this one exposes students to situations resembling real-world scenarios,” said Mira Cassie, an MCC Information Technology (IT) networking and user support student, of Westford. “This allows for a rapid trial-and-error type of learning that can greatly assist in showing a student where they need to improve. In the MCC Cybersecurity Club, we learned more about the software used in the competition and setting up devices running this software to experiment with security features. I thought it would be a good opportunity to learn more and challenge myself.”
In addition to Cassie, Middlesex team members included Paul Groulx, Wahid Sultani, Ali Bacheteler-Bissell and Anthony Ralphs. During the competition, the teams broke into rooms to go through live, hands-on defensive cybersecurity scenarios.
“Experiences like the NECCDC give me proper firsthand exposure to what I may face in a real-world environment,” said Groulx, an MCC IT Cybersecurity student, of Lowell. “They also allow for the opening of social networking opportunities with people in the industry. I took on the role as Inject Lead and looked into what my responsibilities would be as this was my first time ever competing in this type of competition. I then got myself familiar some of the tools so that I wasn't lost when it mattered.”
“Experiences like these are crucial to me since I see it as an opportunity to learn and network with people that may help in my future career and professional goals,” said Sultani, an MCC IT Cybersecurity student, of Lowell. “It allowed me to get a sense of what it's like actually working in the field and how valuable the organization and businesses are to the teams maintaining the systems' integrity and availability for customers.”
Ahead of the competition, students were led by MCC’s Department Chair of IT Cybersecurity and Networking Syeda Ferdous Begum and Assistant Professor of IT and Cybersecurity Scott Gordon. Organizing training sessions, the faculty members developed hands-on cybersecurity scenarios, guided students through defensive strategies and best practices, and strengthened their technical and communication skills. The goal was to help students apply their classroom knowledge in a real-world, high-pressure environment, according to Begum.
“It’s a valuable opportunity to mentor them in strengthening their technical skills, teamwork and confidence while preparing them for careers in cybersecurity and representing the college with professionalism,” Begum said. “For faculty, it provides insight into current industry practices and emerging threats, helping ensure curriculum remains relevant and aligned with workforce demands.”
Begum and Gordon also assisted in organizing the team’s roster and planning how to break up responsibilities. Though students were challenged during the event, Gordon believes they were well-prepared to participate. They also gained the experience of being an IT professional in a real organization.
“Preparing for the competition alone involves learning and using different technologies that we don't necessarily get a chance to teach in our classes, and this is a great way for students to be exposed to more technology,” Gordon said. “For faculty, being more closely involved with student activities helps us better understand students' perspectives and skill levels, which in turn helps us do a better job of filling in the gaps during normal coursework.”
Middlesex was excited and proud to host the event on-campus, according to Dr. Marie Hronik-Tupaj, MCC’s Dean of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics). This type of competition provides students with valuable and relevant experiences beyond the classroom.
“[Competitions] are fun, challenging, a chance to network, meet employers, build confidence, expand skills, and work with professors outside of the classroom setting,” Hronik-Tupaj said. “Congratulations to all our participants and the winners!”