
The College of Information Science's Bachelor of Applied Science in Cyber Operations (BAS CO), offered on main campus and online, equips students with the versatile skills they need to become a critical part of the nation's cyber defense.
120
Units to Complete Degree, Includes:
42 Major Units
2
Ways to Study:
On Campus
Online
Emphasis Areas:
Cyber Engineering
Defense & Forensics
Cyber Law & Policy
Learning Outcomes
The BAS in Cyber Operations is a robust program with learning outcomes designed to position graduates for essential careers in cybersecurity and beyond.
- Operating Systems and Low-Level Programming: Demonstrate a thorough understanding of various operating systems and be able to develop low-level applications with the required complexity and sophistication to implement exploits for discovered vulnerabilities.
- Malware Reverse Engineering: Safely perform static and dynamic analysis of unknown software, including obfuscated malware, to fully understand the software's functionality.
- Offensive Cyber Operations: Explain and demonstrate the phases of offensive cyber operations, what each phase entails, who has the authorities to conduct each phase and how operations are assessed after completion.
- Defensive Cyber Operations: Describe, evaluate and operate a defensive network architecture employing multiple layers of protection using technologies appropriate to meet mission security goals.
- Forensics: Demonstrate and explain how to acquire a forensically sound image, understand user activity, determine the manner in which an operating system or application has been subverted, identify forensic artifacts left by attacks and recover deleted and/or intentionally hidden information.
- Networking: Demonstrate a thorough understanding of how networks work at the infrastructure, network and applications layers; how they transfer data; how network protocols work to enable communication; and how the lower-level network layers support the upper ones.
- Critical Thinking and Problem Solving: Demonstrate understanding of how variability affects outcomes, how to identify anomalous events, how to integrate and differentiate continuous functions of multiple variables and how to solve complex problems using computation and scripting languages.
- Law, Ethics and Policy: Describe and explain the relationship between cyber ethics and law, US and International cyber laws and criminal penalties related to unethical hacking; and apply the notion of gray areas to articulate where the law has not yet caught up to technology innovation.
- Security Principles and Vulnerabilities: Demonstrate and explain the various types of vulnerabilities and their underlying causes and how security principles interrelate and are typically employee to achieve assured solutions; and explain how failures in fundamental security design principles can lead to system vulnerabilities that can be exploited as part of an offensive cyber operation.
- Cyber Threat Intelligence: Describe and demonstrate how knowledge about an adversary's motivation, intentions and methods are collected, analyzed and disseminated to help security personnel and business staff to align resources and protect critical assets within an enterprise architecture.
Emphasis Areas
The Bachelor of Applied Science in Cyber Operations offer three dynamic emphasis areas:
Design, implement and manage offensive and defensive cyber operations within complex network environments, with a strong focus on technical skills like penetration testing, malware analysis and network forensics. You'll also learn legal and ethical implications of cyber operations.
The Cyber Engineering emphasis within the BAS CO holds the Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity - Cyber Operations (CAE-CO) designation from the National Security Agency, one of only 23 programs in the U.S. to receive the prestigious credential.
Career Options: Chief Cybersecurity Architect, Cyber Operations Officer, Cyber Engineer, Security Engineer, Vulnerability Researcher, Software Reverse Engineer, System Security Engineer
Defend systems and networks and identify and apply techniques used in the collection and analysis of cyber-based evidence. Through an exclusive state-of-the-art virtual learning environment called Cyberapolis, students practice attacks and counterattack systems to learn about cyber vulnerabilities and how they can be exploited and defended.
Career Options: Information Security Analyst, Cyber Analyst, Penetration Tester, Incident Responder, Cyber Forensics Specialist, Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst, Malware Researcher/Analyst
Combine your highly technical, hands-on Cyber Operations courses with a strong foundation in law, strategy and policy relevant to cyber professionals.
BAS CO Law & Policy emphasis students are also eligible for the Master of Legal Studies accelerated master's program. Learn more.
Career Options: Chief Information Security Officers, Cybersecurity Analysts, Cybersecurity Compliance Officer, Cyber Advisor, Policy Analyst, Executive/Legislative Staff, Federal/State Law Enforcement
Sample Four-Year Plan
120 units are required for graduation.
Click to view sample courses by year:
Year 1 | Fall
ENGL 101: First-Year Composition | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
UNIV 101: Introduction to the General Education Experience | 1 unit |
General Education | 3 units |
General Education | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 16 units |
Year 1 | Spring
ENGL 102: First-Year Composition | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
General Education | 3 units |
MATH (based on placement) | 3 units |
General Education | 3 units |
TOTAL | 15 units |
Year 2 | Fall
Major Course | 3 units |
General Education | 3 units |
General Education | 3 units |
First-Semester Language | |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 16 units |
Year 2 | Spring
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Second-Semester Language | 4 units |
TOTAL | 16 units |
Year 3 | Fall
UNIV 301: General Education Portfolio | 1 unit |
General Education | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 16 units |
Year 3 | Spring
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 15 units |
Year 4 | Fall
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 15 units |
Year 4 | Spring
Major Course | 3 units |
Major Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
Additional Elective Course | 3 units |
TOTAL | 12 units |
TOTAL DEGREE CREDITS | 120 units |
This is a sample plan and is subject to change based on catalog year, placement tests, AP/CLEP credit, transfer work, minor requirements, summer school, etc. The official degree requirements may be found in the University General Catalog and all University of Arizona students should refer to the Academic Advising Report for specific graduation requirements.
Curriculum & Courses
Bachelor's in Cyber Operations students take a mix of foundations, general education, core major and electives courses, subject to change based on catalog year, placement tests, AP/CLEP credit, transfer work, minor requirements, summer school, etc.
Choose from either the Cyber Engineering, Defense and Forensics, or Cyber Law and Policy emphasis area.
View or download fillable BAS CO degree checklist by emphasis area:
Click a link below to learn more and view course information:
Foundations
Specific unit requirements may vary based on placement and/or prior college-level coursework:
- First-year English or equivalent
- MATH Foundation (MATH 112 recommended)
- Second-semester second language proficiency
General Education
- Introduction to General Education (1 unit)
- Exploring Perspectives Courses (12 units, including at least one course from each domain: Artist, Humanist, Natural Scientist, Social Scientist)
- Building Connections Courses (9 units)
- General Education Capstone (1 unit)
Supporting Coursework
- MATH 112 or MATH 122A/B
- CYBV 300 (prerequisite: MATH 112)
- CYBV 310
- CYBV 311
- CYBV 312
View All College of Information Science Undergraduate Courses
Technical Requirements
The CyberApolis virtual desktops are accessible through the student VPN and remote desktop protocol application, or through a web browser.
System specifications for CyberApolis virtual learning environment:
- Windows: Version 7 or later
- Mac: OS 12.0 or later
- Linux: Modern 64-bit distribution released in the last 3-5 years (e.g., Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian).
- Memory: 4 GB or higher (RAM)
- Hard Drive: 60 GB (Mac OS High Sierra and Windows 10 require 16 GB)
- Processor: Intel i3 (equivalent or higher) with a minimum of 400 kbps bandwidth with less than 100ms of latency
View more details on technical requirements at Arizona Online.