UW System students at eight campuses will have the opportunity to complete an online master’s degree in cybersecurity beginning fall 2020, pending approval from the Higher Learning Commission.
The UW System Board of Regents announced approval for the 12-course, 34-credit program Monday, a collaboration between the UW Extended Campus and eight other system schools.
“There is an incredible talent gap in cybersecurity both in Wisconsin and around the globe,” UW Extended Campus Executive Director Aaron Brower said in a press release. “We believe this program meets market needs while offering students the skills and education employers want.”
The new program will include four tracks of study: digital forensics, cyber response, governance and leadership, along with security architecture. To be admitted, students need a bachelor’s degree with prerequisite courses in computer science and calculus or statistics.
UW-Platteville Provost Joanne Wilson called cybersecurity a “fast-growing field,” and the new master’s degree program “aims to prepare students to fill in-demand cybersecurity positions across all industries, in both private and government sectors,” according to the release.
UW-Whitewater’s program will feature “extensive hands-on learning” and opportunities to work with businesses and real-world case studies through collaboration with the university’s Cyber Security Center for Small Business, according to a press release.
“With our faculty’s expertise and commitment to cybersecurity research, the close association with the Cyber Security Center for Small Business, the strength of our existing programs and the new Master of Science in Cybersecurity, UW-Whitewater is poised to lead cybersecurity education activities in Wisconsin,” UW-Whitewater Dean of the College of Letters and Sciences Frank Goza said in the release.
