Cyber Security Degrees » Schools by State » Pennsylvania

Pursuing an online program is an easier way to complete a cyber security degree in higher education, and Pennsylvania has many institutions that offer certifications, undergraduate, and graduate programs.

Courses can be offered in a synchronous format, where students can watch lectures remotely and take part in a virtual classroom, or watch videos of lectures recorded on demand. Coursework is typically completed at any time of the day, either at the students' own pace, or in order to keep up with the rest of the class, they will have to meet weekly deadlines. All interaction is done through a content management system either created by the university or with a third-party service, such as Blackboard.

Here is a list of Pennsylvania cyber security degrees that are from NSA CAE Designated Institutions:

Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania
Carnegie Mellon University M.S. in Information Security, Specialization in Cyber Operations
Drexel University
East Stroudsburg University
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Lehigh Carbon Community College 2 Year Cyber Security Program
Pennsylvania Highlands Community College 2 Year Cyber Security Program

Click to jump to the full list of Pennsylvania cyber security schools.

NSA CAE Designated Institutions for Cyber Security in Pennsylvania

The National Security Agency (NSA) endorses cyber security programs in higher education by designating them as one of the National Centers of Academic Excellence (CAE). With the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), many of these institutions will fall under Cyber Defense, either setting an education (CAE CDE) or research (CAE-R) standard. There is a separate designation for two-year degrees, which are generally reserved for community or specialized school. A handful of colleges have been designated as a CAE in Cyber Operations (CAE-CO).

In the state of Pennsylvania, there are 12 institutions that have received one of the CAE designations. Many of the larger, popular universities, like Drexel University, Robert Morris University, and the University of Pittsburgh, have accredited cyber security programs. There are a few two-year programs available at Lehigh Carbon and Pennsylvania Highlands Community College, and Valley Forge Military College.

Online Cyber Security Programs in Pennsylvania

Drexel University has online cyber security programs in both undergraduate and graduate format. The Bachelor of Science in Computing and Security Technology gives students the ability to analyze problems within an organization's network, develop the soft skills needed to communicate and work together with a team, and be able to design processes that will protect the flow of information that blocks unauthorized access. Up to 24 semester credits can be transferred into the program if they have been taken in the past 15 years, and students will need to submit official transcripts and a completed application to gain admittance.

For further education, Drexel offers the online Master of Science in Cybersecurity. This provides a more advanced look at the cyber security field with required courses in Principles of Cybersecurity, Information Ethics, Information Policy, and Security Engineering. There are 33 more credit hours needed, or 11 courses, to complete the full curriculum. Each course is completed within a 10-week quarter, with four of them available each year. There is no difference between the online programs and their on-campus counterparts.

Master's in Cyber Security Degrees in Pennsylvania

Due to the complicated nature of information technology and network security, it is recommended that those who are looking to get into engineering or managerial roles should consider a Master's program. This provides the education needed to advance along in a specific career, or make the switch into cyber security for those working in a different segment of the IT sector. In order to gain entry into a Master's program, students will typically need to have an undergraduate degree with a 3.0 cumulative GPA, prior coursework in computer science and mathematics, and they will need to submit official transcripts, an updated resume, letters of recommendation, and a personal statement declaring why they are pursuing this degree.

The University of Pittsburgh's School of Computing and Information offers a graduate certificate and a Master of Science in Information Science with a specialization in Information Security. This is a program that is completed on-campus and has a curriculum of 36 credits. Additionally, there are subtracks in this specialization: Big Data, Health Informatics, and Database and Web Systems. Some courses, like Cryptography, Algorithm Design, and Database Management, will all be taken regardless of track, but then there will be a series of recommended courses that are customized to their specific category.