Morocco: 665 EMSI Cybersecurity Students Face a Real-Time Crisis Exercise

Yesterday 18:45

The Moroccan School of Engineering Sciences (EMSI) is taking cybersecurity training beyond the classroom with a large-scale crisis simulation involving 665 students across Casablanca, Rabat, Marrakech and Tangier from September 23 to 25.

Developed in partnership with Paris-based cybersecurity school Cybersup, the three-day exercise is designed to expose future engineers to the operational realities of a cyber crisis, where decisions must often be made before all the facts are available.

The participants will be divided into 19 teams. Each team will face the same evolving crisis but will be responsible for determining its own response, creating different trajectories as decisions shape the course of the scenario.

Decisions under pressure

The scenario will remain undisclosed until the first alert is issued on Wednesday morning. From that point onward, the teams will receive identical developments and information, while the subsequent events will depend on the choices they make.

The students will operate within a fictional organization responsible for essential services. Their mission will extend well beyond identifying a technical threat. They will have to assess incomplete information, establish priorities, conduct investigations, maintain operational continuity and coordinate responses while also managing crisis communication.

This approach places decision-making at the heart of the exercise. Rather than focusing exclusively on technical responses, students will have to consider the organizational and human consequences of every action they take.

“Training an engineer also means teaching them how to make decisions when they do not have all the answers,” EMSI Director General Mohamed El Rhabi said, according to the school.

From technical expertise to crisis management

EMSI instructors will supervise the teams throughout the exercise, while Cybersup will deploy six international cybersecurity specialists with experience in incident management and operational response.

The collaboration is intended to give students a broader understanding of cyber emergencies, combining technical investigation with coordination, communication and organizational decision-making.

The exercise will culminate on Friday, when each team presents its analysis before a jury composed of EMSI academics and cybersecurity professionals. A common assessment framework will be applied across the four participating cities, allowing the teams to be evaluated against the same criteria.

A practical test of cybersecurity skills

The simulation reflects a broader shift in cybersecurity education toward practical crisis management. In real-world incidents, technical knowledge is only one component of an effective response. Organizations must also determine priorities, communicate with stakeholders, protect essential operations and adapt as new information emerges.

By placing 665 students in the same simulated crisis at the same time, EMSI is creating an environment in which time pressure, uncertainty and the consequences of decisions become integral parts of the learning process.

The initiative therefore seeks to bridge the gap between academic preparation and the demands faced by cybersecurity professionals when an incident develops rapidly and information remains incomplete.

EMSI expands its cybersecurity training approach

Founded in 1986 and recognized by the Moroccan state, EMSI trains engineers in fields including digital technologies, industry, civil engineering, finance and intelligent systems.

The institution is a member of Honoris United Universities and operates campuses in several Moroccan cities, including Casablanca, Rabat, Marrakech, Tangier and Fès, as well as a campus in Nouakchott, Mauritania. According to the information provided by the school, EMSI has more than 23,000 graduates working in Morocco and abroad.

Cybersup, its partner for the exercise, is a Paris-based institution specializing in cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and digital law. Its programs, ranging from Bac+1 to Bac+5, combine practical training, professional certifications and contributions from industry specialists.

The three-day simulation puts that practical philosophy directly into action, giving future engineers an opportunity to experience cybersecurity not simply as a technical discipline, but as a field where analysis, judgment and communication can determine how a crisis unfolds.