2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Building a strong defense system requires a deep understanding of hacker behavior and system vulnerabilities. This makes Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing courses vital components of cybersecurity education. In the past, a course was developed that integrated both theoretical knowledge and practical examples to help students build a solid foundation in cybersecurity principles. In addition, the course offered hands-on lab exercises that were structured around the Cyber Kill Chain model. By mapping hands-on exercises to the seven stages of the Kill Chain, students gained a structured and realistic understanding of how cyberattacks unfold from initial reconnaissance to achieve attacker goals. To align with the goals of engineering technology education, students engaged with industry-standard software, scripting techniques, and network security applications.

This paper presented a comprehensive review of the practical lab exercises integrated into the course curriculum. These exercises not only bridged the gap between theoretical concepts and real-world applications but also provided students with hands-on experience. Additionally, the paper analyzed the results of an exit survey conducted among students who completed the course. The survey assessed the effectiveness of the labs for future improvements in both structure and content.