To address the growing need to protect online infrastructures and equip business students and executives for success in this arena of the global workplace, Missouri S&T has added a cybersecurity and information assurance minor to its bachelor’s degree programs in business and management systems and information science and technology, as well as a graduate certificate in cybersecurity for its MBA and M.S. in information science and technology.
“Cybersecurity is a growing field of employment with a shortage of experts,” says Dr. Keng Siau, professor and chair of business and information technology at Missouri S&T. “The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment for information security analysts to grow 28 percent from 2016 to 2026. It also reports the median annual salary for cyber security analysts was more than twice the national average for all occupations in 2016.”
Data breeches among name-brand businesses and global organizations have become headline news in recent years.
Data breaches among name-brand businesses and global organizations have become headline news in recent years, as have the costs involved to safeguard cyber systems and repair reputations. “Banks, financial institutions and healthcare systems will all need to increase their resistance to cybersecurity threats,” Siau says. “With the increased use of cloud-based services, both global companies and small- and medium-sized businesses are concerned, and our cybersecurity program gives our students a competitive edge in the global workforce.”
Missouri S&T’s cybersecurity minor requires 15 hours of coursework covering current information management approaches to application and software security, data networks, mobile technology, digital commerce, privacy laws, and the human elements involved. The graduate certificate requires 12 hours of coursework on similar topics.
These new offerings build on Missouri S&T’s strengths in information assurance and security. Missouri S&T is accredited by the U.S. National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security as a Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance and Cyber-DefenseResearch.
Missouri S&T’s business and information technology department continues to grow to meet the needs of its students, equipping them with the business mindsets employers are seeking, Siau notes. Its AACSB-accredited business and information technology program has received several notable rankings in the last few years, including:
— No. 1 ranking for lowest MBA average debt at graduation, according to U.S. News & World Report (2016)
— No. 1 ranking for highest proportion of women among ranked full-time MBA programs, according to U.S. News & World Report (2017)
— No. 2 ranking for best MBA salary-to debt-ratio, according to U.S. News & World Report (2017)
— No. 2 ranking for online big data programs, according to Value Colleges (2016)
— No. 10 ranking for top online programs in supply chain, according to Online MBA Today (2017)
— No. 13 ranking for best online graduate business programs (public institutions), according to U.S. News & World Report (2018)
–No. 40 ranking for best online MBA programs (public institutions), according to U.S. News & World Report (2018)
For more information about Missouri S&T’s business and information technology programs, visit business.mst.edu.
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