M.S. in Information Assurance and Security

Program Description | Admission | Degree RequirementsCourses


Program Description

Graduate study in Information Assurance and Security is accessible both to students who have completed undergraduate Computer Science or Management Information Science majors or minors and to those with baccalaureate degrees in technical fields with the equivalent of a Computer Science or Management Information Science minor in formal coursework or professional experience. Applicants who do not possess the appropriate academic, technical, or experiential backgrounds may be required to take stem work courses to ensure a minimum standard of technical competence. Stem work decisions are made on an individual basis by the department chair.


Admissions

Applicants seeking admission to the graduate program in Information Assurance and Security must submit the following directly to the Office of Graduate Admissions:

  1. Graduate Application
  2. Application fee
  3. Official transcript from the baccalaureate degree granting institution
  4. Official GRE scores
  5. Two letters of recommendation that address the applicant's qualification for graduate study


Admission preference is given to applicants with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.


Degree Requirements

The Master of Science in Information Assurance and Security program has a total of 36 semester credit hours. There is an internship and non-internship option available for a Master of Science degree in Information Assurance and Security. Selection of the non-internship option will require completion of an additional elective course in Computer Science, Digital Forensics, or Information Assurance.

M.S. in Information Assurance and Security

Item
Requirement
Options
Hours
Required
1
Specified
Courses
Choose all from:
COSC 5325 <CS 534> Operating System Security
COSC 5335 <CS 537> Database Security
DFSC 5325 <DF 564> Organizational System Security
DFSC 5335 <DF 566> Risk Assessment and Financial System Security
DFSC 6335 <DF 589> Disaster Recovery
DFSC 6347 <DF 637> Directed Management and Development Project
18
2
Electives
Choose five from:
Approved Information Assurance and Security courses1
15
3 Internship DFSC 6370 <DF 670> Internship or an approved elective
3
TOTAL
36
Notes:
1 Selections should be made in consultation with the Graduate Advisor.

 

Elective Courses

DFSC 5310 <DF 531> Principle and Policy In Information Assurance
COSC 5330 <CS 535> Malware
DFSC 5319 <DF 561> Network Security I
DF 587 File Systems Forensics
DFSC 5318 <DF 630> Cyber Law
DFSC 6310 <DF 661> Cyber Warfare and Terrorism
COSC 5310 <CS 568> Cryptography and Steganography
DFSC 6311 <CS 661> Network Security II

 

Other Scholarly Requirements

A committee advisor is assigned to each student at the time the student registered for DFSC 6347 <DF 637> Directed Management and Development Project. Committee appointments are made by the Chair of the Computer Science Department based upon recommendation from the Computer Science Graduate Advisor. The advisory committee consists of graduate faculty from the Computer Science Department. Students are required to complete a written comprehensive examination prior to registering for DFSC 6347 <DF 637>. Students may be also be required to supplement their written responses in an oral examination. Students must be enrolled the semester in which they take comprehensive examinations. Once enrolled in DFSC 6347 <DF 637>, a student must be continually enrolled in each major semester until graduation.


Courses

Computer Science (COSC)
Digital Forensics (DFSC)

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