Bridging the Gap Between Cybersecurity, MIS and Computer Science: Hannah Parish '24 Cybersecurity '25 MS MIS

Hannah Parish ‘24 Cybersecurity ‘25 MIS has always felt close to the University of Arizona. Not only did she spend her childhood in Tucson and attend University High School, but her family has ties to the city as well. Both of her parents grew up in Tucson, and her mother and sister went to the U of A where they graduated from the Eller College of Management. So naturally, she gravitated toward becoming a Wildcat after she completed her high school education.

Parish pursued her bachelor’s degree in Computer Science with minors in Business Administration and Information Science, Technology and the Arts. While at the U of A, she enjoyed the classes she took at Eller for her minor.

“All the professors I had were extremely supportive and provided a large amount of career guidance through their classes,” she says.

Outside of class, she played club volleyball and worked as a customer applications intern for Tucson Electric Power.

After finishing her degree in 2022, Parish moved to Las Vegas to work for a bank, where she completed a rotational program. It allowed her to work within Government Regulations and Compliance, Security Testing, and Vulnerability Management. Today, she works as a security engineer for the bank.

She’s also back at Eller, pursuing a dual degree in MIS and Cybersecurity. 

Parish’s interest in cybersecurity stemmed from taking a class in the field during her time as an undergraduate. When she elected to go back to school for her master’s in MIS, she decided to go for a dual degree in Cybersecurity as well.

Her favorite part of the Eller experience is the support she’s received as an online student.

“I have really enjoyed being able to talk with my advisor easily and also how willing all of the professors are to meet and provide assistance if needed,” she says.

Parish will graduate with her master’s in Cybersecurity in December 2024 and her master’s in MIS in May 2025. After completing her degrees, she intends to pursue professional certificates within the cybersecurity sector. She also plans to continue learning and growing in her current position with the bank.

“This is a role I did not think I would be able to obtain as fast as I did, but the knowledge I have learned within the Cybersecurity master’s has helped me progress faster within the cybersecurity field and has also provided me with skills on how to self-learn and study to quickly pick up new skills,” she says.