Page 31 - Cybersecurity Career Guide for UT Austin

CYBERSECURITY CAREER GUIDE 31
(NCAE-C), with focuses that can include
cyber defense, cyber operations, or re-
search. The CAE designation in any of
these areas indicates a program with
classes in engineering, science, social
science, technology, and additional cy-
ber-learning activities. “You know you
have a high-octane program if you see
that designation,” says Eric Brown, asso-
ciate director of the Cybersecurity Edu-
cation, Research & Outreach Center at
Tennessee Technological University.
There are highly ranked programs all
over the country, including those at New
York Institute of Technology, Tennessee
Tech, and the University of Southern
Mississippi. (See start-engineering.
com/4year-degrees for many more op-
tions.) Before deciding where to apply,
talk to your college counselor in addition
to searching online.
While most cyber programs are found
within computer science or engineering
schools, not all cyber tracks are strictly
technical. “Cyber is a mile wide and
about an inch deep,” says Brown. You
might choose a major such as law en-
forcement, psychology, public policy, or
business, and combine it with cyberse-
curity and computer science classes for
a job that may be managing a cyberse-
curity project that requires drafting
strategic plans and policy analyses.
Even if you decide to pursue a com-
puter science degree, coursework outside
of tech can enhance your marketability,
says Mark Loepker, Education Advisor at
the National Cryptologic Foundation.
For example, you might be better able to
understand an adversary’s behavior and
attack strategies by studying psychol-
ogy. Studying library science or biology
UT Austin
University of Texas,
Austin, TX
PHOTOS COURTESY THE SCHOOLS
Tennessee Tech
University,
Cookeville, TN
Oakland University,
Rochester MI