A woman using a smartphone with facial recognition technology.

B.S., Information Technology Ethics and Compliance

Understand. Guide. Inform. Lead.

Technologies are not neutral tools. They advantage and disadvantage populations. They are political, have unintended consequences, and carry embedded values. The B.S., Information Technology Ethics and Compliance program positions you to understand technology's impact on society and maximize its positive effects. By understanding how history, politics, culture, and context shape our interactions, you can guide the creation and use of technology towards fair, just, and ethical outcomes.

Is IEC Right for Me?

IEC combines technology with law and policy, business, sociology, and education to understand how technology impacts people, organizations, and society. This program could be a great fit if you want to

  • help people and organizations use technologies in meaningful ways
  • think strategically to ensure technology is used ethically and is compliant with regulations
  • navigate complex sociotechnical systems and advocate for justice, equity, and the public good

Help Me Find My Major

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What You'll Study

Gain foundational knowledge and state-of-the-art skills needed to drive IT solutions that improve the way people live, work, and communicate by exploring topics like these.

    • Social Implications of Information Technology Design
    • Emerging Technologies in Pop Culture
    • Ethics of Leadership or Technology
    • Socially Responsible Information Management
    • Ethical Issues in Data Science Practice
    • Legal and Regulatory Environment of Privacy and Security
    • IT Project Management
    • Informatics, Risk, and the Post-Modern World
    • Decision Theory and Analysis

      Suggested Academic Plan

      Application Focus Areas

      Pick an application focus area or work with an adviser to create your own so you can develop and apply more specialized knowledge in a specific field.

      • Business Foundations
      • Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations
      • Ethics and Sustainability
      • Health Care
      • Human-Centered Design and Development
      • Law and Policy
      • Organizational Leadership (World Campus)
      • ROTC
      • Security and Risk Analysis
      • Custom Application Focus

      Application Focus Areas

      Informatics students working together.

      The Power of Internships

      Every Information Technology Ethics and Compliance student must complete at least one internship before graduating—most complete more than one, and 84% receive a job offer from an internship provider. With hundreds of organizations recruiting and a dedicated Career Solutions team to support you, you'll have the tools and opportunities to launch your career.

      View Past Internships

      "Video games are one of the few mediums where you can try something you've never experienced before and put on someone else's shoes. If we constantly think, 'it's just a game,' that doesn't allow us to think about the emotions or experiences that we could be having within a game."

      Ashlyn Sparrow , Senior Research Associate, Weston Game Lab

      Discover Your Career

      Technology is ever-changing, and so are the careers that create, use, and study it. As you work toward your degree, you’ll identify and refine your career interests through courses, student organizations, and experiential opportunities. With guidance and resources from our dedicated Career Solutions team—from your first job to the executive suite—you'll gain the technical expertise, business savvy, and communication skills to lead in business, health care, defense, technology, and countless other industries.

      Security Operations Center Analyst

      Secures, monitors, responds to incidents, recovers systems, remediates issues, ensures compliance, and coordinates activities to maintain security and system integrity.

      Technology Advisor

      Provides expert advice and detailed information in a specialized field, guiding organizations to ensure safe, effective practices and informed decision-making in complex or high-risk scenarios.

      IT Operations Engineer

      Ensures the smooth functioning of infrastructure and operations supporting application deployment, including network, server management, ITIL, and help desk services. Defines processes, policies, roles, and best practices for enterprise operations.

      IT Auditor

      Evaluates IT infrastructure to ensure effectiveness, security, and compliance, identifying vulnerabilities, assessing risks, and recommending improvements to strengthen controls and mitigate threats.

      IT Project Manager

      Coordinates cross-functional teams to manage technology projects, overseeing planning, execution, monitoring, and closure. Expert in Agile, Waterfall, and project tracking tools, with strategic insight into organizational impact.

      Data Governance Specialist

      Creates policies and strategies for managing data across systems, ensuring compliance, improving data quality, and securing data in complex distributed environments.

      IT Specialist

      Specializes in areas like programming, networks, internet, web design, or mobile computing, adapting to new technologies and trends as they emerge in each field.

      Cloud and Infrastructure Services Consultant

      Supports businesses by leveraging IT clouds, producing architectural artifacts like governance, security, and performance models, and facilitating cloud migrations for meaningful IT changes.

      Business Systems Analyst/Consultant

      Analyzes business problems and designs technology solutions, bridging gaps through architecture, tools, or software applications to resolve issues and improve processes.

      Students pose at the Grace Hopper Conference

      Diversity in Computing Conferences

      Through undergraduate research, student organizations, and experiential learning opportunities like attending the Grace Hopper Celebration and ACM Richard Tapia Celebration, Information Technology Ethics and Compliance students can extend learning far beyond the classroom. These professoinal conferences connect students with industry leaders to celebrate the power of diversity and computing and emphasize the importance of designing technology that advance fairness, equity, and justice.

      Grace Hopper and Tapia Conferences