Hi everyone! I’m Hrutul Khamar. I’m currently pursuing my M.S. in Cybersecurity at Northeastern University in Boston, graduating in December 2026. Before starting my master’s, I worked in digital forensics, where I gained hands-on experience with forensic investigations, evidence analysis, and forensic tools. Through my graduate coursework and projects, I’ve also been building experience in cybersecurity compliance, cloud security, IT auditing, risk management, and different security frameworks. For Cohort 2, I’m joining the Security Infrastructure Engineer Intern track. I’m really looking forward to getting hands-on experience with production infrastructure, Linux security hardening, DISA STIG compliance, and security configuration. What I’m hoping to gain most from this internship is practical experience that connects what I’ve learned in school with how security is actually implemented in real environments. I’m also genuinely grateful for this opportunity. A big thank you to Kenneth Ellington and the entire Ellington Cyber Academy team for the effort they’ve put into creating this cohort and giving students, recent graduates, and other learners an opportunity to work with real production environments and gain practical experience. I know it takes a lot of additional time and effort to mentor people who are early in their careers, help them understand the industry, and give them some direction. I really appreciate the team for making that investment in us. I’m also looking forward to connecting with my fellow interns across the different tracks. I’m always open to conversations, exchanging ideas, sharing what I know, learning from others, and helping each other whenever possible. Hopefully, we can all support one another and grow together throughout the cohort. Really excited to meet everyone and to get started!