Information Technology, M.S.

Admission Requirements

In addition to the university’s admission requirements, the minimum admission requirements for the program is having earned a BS in the field of Information Technology (or related fields). It is beneficial for an applicant to have a minimum of two years of professional work experience in order to make sure that prospective candidates can grasp the underlying concepts that provide the foundation for program concentrations.

If a student does not meet the admission/prerequisite requirements, they may be granted conditional admission by completing the following three undergraduate level (or equivalent) prerequisite courses: 

• CPSC - 4342 Introduction to Computer Networks (3)  
• CPSC - 4570 Windows Systems (3)  
• CPSC - 4580 Information Security (3)  

Students with experience in the field may opt to take the final exam for each of the above courses as opposed to taking the course. Students that demonstrate competency with the subject matter by taking and passing the final exam for each course with a score of 70% or higher, will not need to take the prerequisite course. The exam can only be taken once. The exam score will be used as evidence of proficiency in the content area. Please note: If a student needs to enroll in these undergraduate courses in order to be accepted into the MS in Information Technology, the undergraduate courses are NOT part of the MA degree, therefore, federal financial aid cannot be used to cover the cost of the pre-requisite courses.

Degree Requirements

The focus of this graduate program is to prepare students with the advanced skills based on fundamental knowledge in Information Technology, as they pursue their career interest in one of the two concentrations: infrastructure administration or cybersecurity.

The focus for each concentration includes:

Infrastructure Management

• Effectively develop policy and procedures for large-scale enterprise networks
• Manage equipment (servers, switches, and routers) to ensure effectiveness of a data communication system
• Leveraging current technology to manage both voice and data networks
• Advanced management of servers, operating systems, and network operating system environments

Cybersecurity

• Implement preventive measures to secure both data at rest and in transit
• Protecting information from cyber threats, cyber warfare, and cyber terrorists
• Strengthening existing infrastructures by reducing vulnerabilities and exploits
• Protecting business and individuals from digital based attacks