Varun Pathak has joined our team of instructors in India and will be teaching Fortinet and Cisco courses. He is currently based in Agra, in India, not far from the Taj Mahal.
In his career, Varun estimates that he has taught over 400 courses to more than 40,000 students. And still counting!
A trainer since college days
Varun has been a trainer ever since he was a student. In fact, he started training by accident while he was still in his second year at college. He had been tasked with organising an instructor to carry out a training session for his peers. When that instructor failed to show up, Varun stepped in to teach the course himself. He has never looked back. He moved into a training role straight after studying and started traveling extensively, an aspect of the job he greatly enjoys.
After a few years of training, Varun felt that he should have a greater understanding of how the technologies he taught worked in the real world. He moved into roles in a data centre and with PWC before becoming an independent consultant and, eventually, being introduced to Red Education.
Student connection
Varun enjoys the connection he has with his students when training, especially when this is live, in-person. He likes to be a storyteller. When training virtually, he always asks that his students keep their cameras on and maintain eye contact to ensure he is communicating effectively. He enjoys the satisfaction of helping people understand a new concept.
Travel is another aspect of the trainer’s world that Varun takes pleasure in. Having taught so many students and keeping in touch with many of them, he says that he has contacts he can reach out to in most cities in India, so he’s never lonely when traveling.
Climb every mountain
Travel is one of Varun’s great passions when he is not in front of a classroom of students. His great love is the mountains, where he goes exploring off the beaten track as often as he
can. At home, he dedicates time to learning the latest security technologies and upskilling in this ever-changing sector. He also finds the time to mentor students on a Bachelor’s program for two hours a week.
Always believe in yourself
Although you’d never guess it now, Varun says he lacked confidence when he started training, feeling that his spoken English wasn’t up to scratch. Training session by training session, however, he worked hard at improving his skills until he became one of the most popular trainers in the business. The lessons he’d like to share today are that you should always believe in yourself, have confidence and try to push your limits – don’t allow yourself to spend too long just doing what is comfortable. “Whatever happens, happens for a reason,” he says.
What the students say
“Varun Sir mentored me and completely changed my perspective on Cybersecurity. His teaching and ability to connect to students are excellent. He has the ability to inspire the students. I look forward to learning from him again.”
“I have attended many workshops, but this was by far the best content. He covered all the important topics.”
Varun’s qualifications and certifications
- EC-Council Certified (Certified Ethical Hacker)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)
- Microsoft Technical Associate – Security Fundamentals
- Certified Network Security Specialist by International CyberSecurity Institute
- Network Security Expert Level 2 by Fortinet
- B.Tech Information Technology