SecurityDegreeHub.com ranks URI’s cyber program 12th-best in U.S.

SECURITYDEGREEHUB.COM HAS NAMED the University of Rhode Island among the top 15 schools offering online programs in cybersecurity. Above, students of URI's Digital Forensics and Cyber Security Center, from left: Annemarie Bernier, Nicholas Karayev, Kasey Gesualdi, Ryan Marcotte, Daniel Masterson and Brittany Siter. / COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND
SECURITYDEGREEHUB.COM HAS NAMED the University of Rhode Island among the top 15 schools offering online programs in cybersecurity. Above, students of URI's Digital Forensics and Cyber Security Center, from left: Annemarie Bernier, Nicholas Karayev, Kasey Gesualdi, Ryan Marcotte, Daniel Masterson and Brittany Siter. / COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND

SOUTH KINGSTOWN – The University of Rhode Island’s cyber program ranked 12th in a report released July 31 by SecurityDegreeHub.com ranking the top 20 online cybersecurity degree programs for the 2017-18 academic year.

SecurityDegreeHub.com, a research and resource website for students pursuing careers in security, selected and ranked the top 20 schools according to the type of degree program available, recognition by the National Security Agency’s list of Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity, and U.S. News and World rankings.

Other factors weighed in the SecurityDegreeHub.com ranking included student-faculty ratio, program speed, access to technology, fieldwork opportunities, technical support and affordability.

“In today’s world, students may need to juggle full-time job and family responsibilities in addition to getting an education,” stated the SecurityDegreeHub.com report. “Online schools provide a great way to get a quality education, on a schedule that fits the need of the student. This ranking offers a list of schools that meet both criteria: the flexibility of an online education with the quality of top-tier colleges and universities.”

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URI’s Digital Forensics and Cyber Security Center launched in 2004 under a U.S. National Science Foundation Grant. The center offers an online master’s degree program in cybersecurity, which integrates courses in digital forensics, incident response, intrusion detection, network security and “ethical hacking,” also known as cyber penetration testing. Instead of a master’s thesis, students enrolled in the program participate remotely in labs and internships with the school’s partnered companies.

The online master’s degree costs $655 per credit, or $2,620 per course.

In addition, URI offers a cybersecurity graduate certificate program online for working professionals who complete the requisite four courses. Students in the certificate program can choose a concentration in advanced incident response, advanced intrusion detection and defense, or penetration testing.

Certificate credits can be transferred into URI’s master’s degree or doctorate programs in computer science with a concentration in cybersecurity.

“Cybersecurity is a growing and continuously advancing field of security that shows no signs of slowing down,” said Chris Collier, editor of SecurityDegreeHub.com. “We feel it is important students get a marketable degree from a high-quality program that meets their needs both in and out of the classroom.”

Champlain College, located in Burlington, Vt., was the only other New England school to appear in the ranking. Champlain has been designated a National Center of Digital Forensics Academic Excellence by the U.S. Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center and offers online bachelor’s degree programs in cybersecurity as well as computer forensics and digital investigations. The school also offers an online master’s degree program in information security operations.

Pennsylvania State University ranked as the best online cybersecurity program in the SecurityDegreeHub.com report, followed by John Hopkins University at No. 2 and the University of Arizona at No. 3.

Kaylen Auer is a PBN contributing writer.

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