Cybersecurity, M.S. at University of South Florida

The Master of Science in Cybersecurity is an interdisciplinary major that utilizes talent across the Colleges of Business, Engineering, Arts & Sciences, and Behavioral and Community Sciences. The major prepares students for leadership, managerial and domain-specific roles in Cybersecurity and for employment in managerial and operational positions that require quick analytical thinking, decision-making under uncertainty regarding critical resources, and domain-specific technical skills for managing secure operations. Specifically, based on the design of the concentrations and the core of this major, the major is also expected to prepare students for

1. intelligence positions that require innovative, analytical, decision-making, and technical skills for providing cybersecurity intelligence,
2. information assurance positions that require secure management of information and data transferred, used, stored, and processed in information systems,
3. law enforcement positions that are required to deal more and more with cyber-crimes, and
4. cybersecurity positions that require deep technical skills in the security domain.

Because this is a graduate-level major, to ensure that students possess the foundational knowledge for academic success, students admitted to this major are most likely to be successful if they have academic or work experience in the areas of C/C++ programming, computer networks, operating-system design, algorithms, data structures, and computer organization. An undergraduate degree in computer science, computer engineering, MIS, or IT is recommended for admission. Note: For the Information Assurance Concentration it is recommended that students have a background in accounting information systems, database management, and systems analysis and design.