This research presents a comprehensive comparative analysis of two advanced Natural Language Processing (NLP) models, RoBERTa (Robustly Optimized BERT Pretraining Approach) and SecureBERT, focusing on their application in mapping course descriptions from the University of North Carolina Wilmington's (UNCW) BS Cybersecurity Program to in-demand cybersecurity skills. Selected for their distinct characteristics—RoBERTa's general linguistic capabilities and SecureBERT's specialization in cybersecurity text analysis—these models were evaluated for their effectiveness in aligning academic content with industry needs. The study involved a detailed technical evaluation of each model's ability to interpret and correlate course descriptions with relevant skill sets. This was complemented by a survey among instructors to assess the models' practical applicability in an educational context. The research aimed to determine which model more accurately and comprehensively aligns skills with course content, thus addressing the gap between academic curricula and industry requirements in cybersecurity education. Additionally, the findings incorporate instructor perspectives on the adoption of AI-driven tools, underscoring the importance of further research and development, as well as the need for a continuous dialogue with educators. These insights significantly contribute to the discourse on employing AI-driven tools in curriculum development within the field of cybersecurity education, highlighting their potential to revolutionize the alignment of academic offerings with the evolving demands of the cybersecurity job market. The study's outcomes also entail a pragmatic mapping of the UNCW BS Cybersecurity Program's curriculum to the identified skills, proposing a direct correlation between educational pathways and professional competencies required in the cybersecurity field.

Recommended Citation: Karamustafaoglu A., Clark U., Stoker G., Vetter R., (2023). Bridging The Cybersecurity Workforce Gap: Evaluating Ai-Driven Models for Cybersecurity Curriculum Development. UNCW MS CSIS Proceedings. V. 17 , N. 23 .