Master of Science in Cyber Security Engineering

Program Director: Clifford Neumann, PhD

The Master of Science in Cyber Security Engineering focuses on the fundamental theories and practices for designing, engineering, and operating high assurance secure information systems. The program is intended for students who desire to obtain jobs in which computer security knowledge and skills are required, who wish to continue on a path toward enrollment for a doctoral degree focusing on information security, or who are currently in job fields that have responsibility for information security. 

Admitted students should have a programming background and above average mathematical foundation with an undergraduate degree in computer science, electrical engineering, or information security. They should also have an understanding of computer networking and operating systems and a desire to learn information security techniques and tools that are directly applicable to current information security challenges. 

Students will learn the fundamentals of developing, engineering and operating secure information systems. They will become versed in the challenges and problems of secure operating systems, secure applications, secure networking, database security and privacy, use of cryptography and key management. They will learn to develop a security policy and how policy drives technology decisions. Students will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to administer environments that require high levels of information security, both from the standpoint of the principles of information protection and the role application technology has in meeting information protection needs. Students will understand the value of assets, the business model of threats, the threat matrix, mitigation strategies, and how this integrates with the core organizational mission. They will understand why information security plans succeed or fail. Students will have hands-on experience simulating real-world scenarios with extensive laboratory work that is designed by current and former information security practitioners.