Graduating from Utah Tech University with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice earlier this year, Pryce Seely is already making a splash in the world of cybersecurity and has begun working with the NCIS, or the Naval Criminal Investigation Service.
Utah Tech University graduate accepted into NCIS
By Jake Harber
Seely, who calls both Southern Utah and the state of Washington his home, graduated from Brigham Young University Idaho in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in business. After moving back to Kanab, Utah, and securing a job, Seely began to read more and more reports about cybersecurity and the rising number of cyber threats worldwide.
Back to school at Utah Tech University
After doing more research, Seely left his job to return to school and took as many relevant cybersecurity classes as possible at Utah Tech University. Outside of classes, Seely also ran the Utah Tech Cyber Club, even competing nationally and placing 167th out of more than 4,000 teams last spring.
After graduating, Seely went on to work for Arctic Wolf, a prominent cybersecurity company, before being accepted into the NCIS. Reflecting on a life-long need to serve his country, Seely feels that by working for the NCIS he is fulfilling that need.
“Pryce exudes a quiet confidence, often placing him in a de facto leadership role,” Mark Spooner, director of the Digital Forensics Crime Lab at Utah Tech, said. “His leadership abilities and knowledge of IT systems and cybersecurity make him a perfect choice for the NCIS.”
By being involved at Utah Tech, whether running the Utah Tech Cyber Club or working closely with Spooner as an intern, Seely was able to really specialize in cybersecurity and secure this job with the NCIS.
“He’s got the connections and he’s a professor that will go and help his students,” Seely said, referring to Spooner.
Pryce will be working for the NCIS in the state of Washington until November, when he’ll report to Glynco, Georgia, to begin a five to six-month training program at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.
“It is very gratifying to see student interns succeed so quickly upon graduation and then have the opportunity to make such an impact in such an important field for such a prestigious agency,” Spooner said.
For more information about Utah Tech University’s Digital Forensics Crime Lab, please visit dfcl.utahtech.edu.