Discover B.S. in Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations

Protecting What Matters

The Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations bachelor's degree program will teach you the skills that could help ensure the safety of critical information and assets. As a student, you will learn how to:

  • protect information from hackers
  • discover security vulnerabilities
  • investigate and communicate cyberthreats and attacks

“The cybersecurity program is much more hands on and much more focused. That’s what really sets Penn state apart—we are on the cutting edge.”

Brant Goings, Class of 2020

Finding Your Fit

Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations might be the right program for you if:

  • you enjoy working with and on computers, as well as with their operating systems and applications
  • you want to protect digital information, data stores, and computer networks from threats
  • you want to learn the defense strategies used to anticipate, recognize, and defend against cyberattacks
  • you're passionate about keeping sensitive information out of the hands of cybercriminals, terrorist organizations, and malicious agents
  • you enjoy working on a team to solve technical problems for organizations
  • you are interested in business, computer programming, and mathematics

Developing Your Skills

In the Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations program, you will take hands-on courses based around technical cyber defense strategies, risk management, and data-driven cybersecurity analytics. Teamwork, project management, and collaboration also play vital roles in your IST experience. You will have opportunities to apply your newfound knowledge and skills through semester-long projects with your peers.

Sample Courses

Review the Suggested Academic Plan to see the courses you could take, including:

  • Cyber 342 – Incident Handling and Response
  • Cyber 362 – Cyber Analytics Studio
  • Cyber 366 – Malware Analytics
  • SRA 472 – Integration of Privacy and Security

Application Focus Areas

Within the Cybersecurity Analytics and Operations program, you’ll learn to apply cybersecurity concepts to a specific domain by choosing one of the application focus areas below or working with faculty and advisers to create your own:

  • Application Development
  • Economics
  • Enterprise Technology
  • Geopolitics
  • Healthcare
  • Law and Policy
  • Custom Focus

Discovering Your Path

At the College of IST, every undergraduate student is required to complete at least one internship before graduating. With more than 300 organizations actively recruiting students and a dedicated Career Solutions team, you’ll have the resources and opportunities to get your career off to a strong start.

Potential Careers

Past Student Internships

Examples of the work done in past cybersecurity internships held by our students include:

  • conducting vulnerability research and assessments
  • monitoring networks to ensure that they are secure
  • designing, developing, and implementing solutions and technologies to enhance the security and resilience of technology infrastructure
  • growing expertise in the security of emerging technologies
  • creating security metrics, reports, and dashboards
  • writing information security policies and procedures

Recent Graduate Positions

Examples of positions our graduates have recently accepted include:

  • Cybersecurity Analyst
  • Cyberthreat Advisor
  • Digital Network Exploitation Analyst
  • Forensic Analyst
  • Incident Responder
  • Infrastructure Analyst
  • Penetration Tester

“Cyber is the new frontier, where cyberattacks get more complex and more frequent day to day. At the federal government level, highly classified information could be leaked if cybersecurity wasn’t a thing. It has a universal application, and I’m excited to be a part of this adventure.”

Rahul Emani, Class of 2022

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Office of Undergraduate
Recruiting

E103 Westgate Building
University Park, PA 16802