Masters online cybersecurity options?

[edwardfurlong]

I am hoping in the next semester or two to be finished with COSC general studies with a concentration in information systems studies, I am also hoping this will be seen as an IT degree for graduate admissions requirements.

I know WGU is mentioned quite a bit, but I do not think I have the time to finish a degree quickly to make it worthwhile.

I have $5,500 a year tuition reimbursement that can be used for one class a semester / quarter.

Right now I am looking at American Public University, Bellevue University, Fort Hayes State University, and Dakota State University.

I have been going through various searches of "most affordable, best, top (etc) online cybersecurity program" None of the lists have been that great, the costs are wrong or not listed.

Most of the programs seem to have fairly similar curriculums, Bellevue is designated a national center of excellence, but I have no way of knowing if one school is significantly better than another from just that information.

Does anyone have any opinions of the listed schools or know of any other good options?

Thank you in advance.

[ajs1976]

I have looked into each of those schools. My degree plan a for a Masters in IT/IS with a concentration in Cybersecurity.

APU - I found mixed reviews online. People seem to either really love it or really hate it. Enough to make me question the place. Price is good and they will take the SSCP as grad credit along with some other certs. There is a cap on non-traditional grad credit.

Bellevue - Couldn't find much feedback on this online and for some can't remember much about it.

Fort Hayes - Good price, but seemed to have to many general liberal studies type courses for my taste. Maybe it has changed. A member here was looking into it at one time.

DSU - This was my first choice. Cheap but building a good reputation. Harder to get into and can be demanding. IS course have a lot of group work which can be frustrating because of language barrier and timezone difference with the number of international students. Not sure if the Info Sec program has that many group projects. The certificate offerings for the Info Sec program are interesting to me.

CSU-Global - Heavily researching this one right now. The 8 week courses that start every month, might give me the flexibility I need.

[mednat]

From your list DSU would be my top choice. They have built a solid reputation for their IT and security departments. They are on my "some day" list of schools I'd like to to take a program with.

[cookderosa]

Maybe interest to you: https://www.sfs.opm.gov

The website looks dry, but spend a few minutes poking around. The award is PHENOMENAL if you can land it.

[mednat]

Maybe interest to you: https://www.sfs.opm.gov

The website looks dry, but spend a few minutes poking around. The award is PHENOMENAL if you can land it.

That looks very impressive Jennifer. How do you find these awesome programs?

[cookderosa]

That looks very impressive Jennifer. How do you find these awesome programs?

LOL, I dedicate a good amount of time to things like that. I find it very enjoyable! Of course 99.99% of the time it's not something *I can use, but I almost always bump into someone who can.

[edwardfurlong]

Thanks for the replies!

I don't have any of the certifications that would count toward APU, and I think they all require security experience, I have IT experience, but it's not security.

I think I just need to get a little more organized in my research, I'm just trying to get a feel for things at the moment.

The scholarship looks interesting but this part worries me as I probably can't relocate.

"11. Where will the jobs be located?
Jobs will be located throughout the United States. However, the overwhelming majority will be in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. Therefore, participants will be required to be available for placement nationwide."

[ajs1976]

SSCP only requires a year of Info Sec experience and depending on what you do in IT you may have enough that fails within the domains.

[deuce2w]

Here is one from a NSA/DHS recognized school:
Applied Information Technology, Cyber Security Concentration (MS) - Mason Online

[cookderosa]

Thanks for the replies!

I don't have any of the certifications that would count toward APU, and I think they all require security experience, I have IT experience, but it's not security.

I think I just need to get a little more organized in my research, I'm just trying to get a feel for things at the moment.

The scholarship looks interesting but this part worries me as I probably can't relocate.

"11. Where will the jobs be located?
Jobs will be located throughout the United States. However, the overwhelming majority will be in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. Therefore, participants will be required to be available for placement nationwide."

The scholarship doesn't require relocation during, you can choose your school, but it does require summer internship (paid) which wouldn't be "relocation" rather just a temporary placement but then upon graduation there is a service requirement. The way *I read it (which could be wrong) you are in charge of that job search, so you would control where you applied.

Highlights: must be a full time student within 2 years of graduation with your bachelor's or master's degree that is focused on cybersecurity or info assurance. Must be a US citizen and be able to obtain security clearance.

25-50% of applicants receive the award rate last I looked (my notes are from 2015) which is excellent.

The award pays 100% of your tuition on the remaining years, a yearly cash stipend of $20,000 (bachelor) and $32,000 (masters) on TOP of the full tuition, full health insurance benefits, as well as books at your school (that would NOT require relocation). Recipients obligation is to do summer internships 1:1 for every year you're in the program. 2 years means 2 internships, 1 year means 1. The internships are PAID on top of all the other benefits mentioned above at the GS7 rate (bachelor's) and GS9 (masters). So, you're not really relocating, you're doing a summer internship (twice).