Keene State’s Computer Science department is adding a new major to its program, cybersecurity.
Students can declare as a cybersecurity major now, but will be running in fall of 2023.
The person behind the creation of the cybersecurity major, Dr. Wei Lu, said the students who go through the major will gain knowledge in programming, law, math and criminal justice.
The major might be housed within the computer science department, but it crosses into other departments like politics and criminal justice, Lu said.
“The major idea when we designed this program, we hope students not only understand how the technology works and they also have built up some domain knowledge in legal studies, criminal justice systems, law and regulations, business management and data analysis skills,” Lu said.
Students will do just that, gaining a total of 120 credits throughout their stay at Keene State, according to the requirements for the cybersecurity Bachelors of Science degree.
Students that embark on their journey of cybersecurity begin learning the basics in stats, math, and programming.
Then students begin to dive deeper into what cybersecurity is and how to protect networks through classes like homeland security and cyber crime.
Next up will be data analytics, students will learn about machine learning and data analysis.
From there they will be learning about the laws behind cyber crime through a criminal justice class. They will also take a game theory class to learn how to win against cyber attackers.
Finally students are also required to pick certain Integrative Studies Program (ISP) courses. Students can choose between six classes that deal with the law, communications and management.
“Cybersecurity is really not about technology,” Lu said.
It also has to deal with understanding the law within the bounds of the United States, but also internationally. Since cyber security deals with the internet there are no borders, Lu said.
Cybersecurity is also about telling a story. People that work in cybersecurity need to be able to visualize the information they have collected to be able to show to decision makers, like the bosses or policy makers, Lu said.
Lu added that he feels this major can have good synergy with other majors and be great for students who are looking to be a double major.
Tim Bruns can be contacted at
tbruns@kscequinox.com
