Cyberguardians Training: Secure Communication Networking for Distributed Energy Resources

Course Cost: $895 (scholarships available for qualifying military veterans)

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites. And students should have a firm grasp of the basic principles of electricity and data communications. An understanding of grid-tied solar PV and energy storage systems will be helpful.

Course Format [27 Course Hours / 9 Weeks]: This is an online course with pre-recorded weekly lectures. Other learning activities include reading assignments, quizzes, videos of narrated PowerPoint presentations, discussion forums, and an individual project.

Course Description: The course begin with an overview of Distributed Energy Resource (DER) market requirements in California, and an introduction to grid standards and DER functions in the U.S. and other national markets around the world. Subsequent modules will present communication protocols for DER, California-specific communication requirements, a drill-down into the features of California’s default communication standard (IEEE 2030.5), a review of cybersecurity requirements, testing considerations, and how to deploy secure DER networks in the field. The purpose of this course is to provide Distributed Energy technical professionals (engineers, product managers, managers, and technical executives) working in the DER industry with an understanding of: California market dynamics; the regulatory and the technical requirements for data communication; cybersecurity and testing considerations; and considerations for deploying secure networks for DER.