Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Information Assurance
MSCIA Admissions Standards
- Admission requirements in addition to those of the Graduate School:
- Bachelor’s degree in technology or business-related areas; or
- Bachelor's degree and significant work experience in a related field.
- 2.75 cumulative GPA or 3.00 in recent semesters contributing to 60 semester hours.
MSCIA Admission Requirements and Instructions
- A completed MSU Graduate School application submitted online is required; paper applications are not accepted. To access the online application, please visit the graduate admission requirement website. The exception to this application is for readmission (available on the Graduate School website under Forms).
- Requirements and Instructions. Detailed admission requirements and instructions can be found reviewed at graduate admission website.
- In order for a student to pursue a graduate degree at MSU, the student must complete the formal online application for admission to the Graduate School and receive an official letter granting admission. Students are required to have a minimum undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of at least 2.75 (on a 4.0 scale) for admission consideration. A GPA of 3.00 or above for the last 60 hours of coursework will be considered if a student does not meet the 2.75 requirements. Students who do not meet either GPA requirement may appeal to the department chairperson for consideration.
- Statement of Purpose. An applicant must submit a concise (500-1500 words) essay describing his/her primary interest in the MSIS program, experiences related to the area of study, and objectives in pursuing the MSIS degree at MSU. In particular, the essay should be as specific as possible in describing the student’s interests, and relevant educational, research, commercial, government, or teaching experiences. If applying for more than one program, submit a separate Statement of Purpose for each program.
- Applicants must earn an admission score of at least 400 to be considered. This score is calculated as follows:
Statement of Purpose score (total possible = 100 points) plus undergraduate GPA multiplied by 100 plus the number of years of professional level work experiences multiplied by 10 up to a maximum of 100 points). A resume must be submitted with evidence to support the number of years of professional experience.
| Required Courses | ||
| CYBR 557 | Foundations of Information Assurance and Security | 3 |
| CYBR 559 | Systems Analysis | 3 |
| CYBR 560 | Manage/Integrate IS Function | 3 |
| CYBR 561 | IS Project Management | 3 |
| CYBR 563 | Database Systems and Application | 3 |
| CYBR 566 | Knowledge Management | 3 |
| CYBR 568 | Security Management | 3 |
| CYBR 575 | Business Network Systems Management | 3 |
| CYBR 584 | Cyber Crime and Digital Forensics | 3 |
| CYBR 585 | Risk Analysis, Policy and Regulatory Compliance | 3 |
| Total Hours | 30 | |
Faculty
Professors
Dr. Kristi Berg
Professor
Dr. Serena Pontenila
Assistant Professor
Kyle Bittle, ABD
Assistant Professor
Justin Deisch
Instructor