The world's digital revolution continues. As organizations rely on the cloud and other digital networks to maintain their data, it is critical that sensitive information — from financial records to social security numbers — is kept stable and secure. Approximately 90% of businesses in the U.S. are targeted by malicious hackers each year and cybersecurity experts are essential in preventing these attacks.
The cybersecurity program is a collaboration between the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Humanities Departments to teach students the skills needed in this fast-paced and exciting field.
Through an interdisciplinary approach, cybersecurity majors will learn written and oral communication; critical thinking and analytical reasoning; complex problem solving; teamwork skills in diverse groups; creativity and innovation; quantitative reasoning; as well as awareness and understanding of cultural diversity, ethical decision making, and intercultural knowledge and competence in addition to the necessary technological skills.
Students participate in the NSA Code Breaker Challenges, an online, challenge scenarios sponsored by the National Security Agency.
The 2019-2020 Challenge Scenario:
Tech savvy terrorists have developed a new suit of communication tools that are being used for attack planning. Recent intelligence suggests the terrorists are communicating via TerrorTime, a custom Android secure messaging application. Students mission is to:
Security Analyst
Security analysts are expected to stay up-to-date on the latest intelligence, including the sophisticated methodologies that hackers in critic
Security Software Engineer
On the front lines of the war on cyber terror, a security software engineer develops and integrates innovative technology into applications to
Cryptographer
A cryptographer produces cutting edge techniques to secure private communications and are a critical component to successful cyber security op