The University of Arizona Master of Science in Cyber and Information Operations is designed to equip students with the knowledge, skills and abilities to be successful in a variety of cyber-related occupations in the private and public sectors.
The STEM-designated degree offered through the Arizona Online campus requires 30 total units and can typically be completed in 12 months for full-time students.
MS CIO Student Competencies
Graduates of the University of Arizona MS in Cyber and Information Operations will have the following competencies:
Competency 1
Students will demonstrate and apply knowledge of offensive cyber operations.
Competency 2
Students will demonstrate and apply knowledge of defensive cyber operations.
Competency 3
Students will identify, evaluate and apply tactics, techniques and procedures used to conduct and defend against information operation campaigns.
Competency 4
Students will explain the relationship among and apply knowledge of cyber ethics, cyber policy and US and international cyber laws.
Master's Project or Thesis
The MS in Cyber and Information Operations requires that students complete a thesis or a report, either option serving as their culmination experience:
Thesis
The master’s thesis will explore a specific research question. The research must contribute new knowledge and understanding to the field of study.
Students identify a graduate faculty member to serve as the chair of their thesis committee. In consultation with their thesis chair, they will identify at least two other graduate faculty members to serve on the committee.
Students will work closely with their faculty chair on the research they conduct for their thesis.
An oral defense of the thesis must be conducted and approved by the thesis committee prior to submitting the final product to the Graduate College.
Report
The master’s report should have practical significance and requires the application of graduate course material. The report captures the application of new or existing methodologies to a current industry or a community-oriented problem. The specific topic of the report and progress towards its completion will be developed by the CYBV 909 professor and each student individually.
This option will not require a thesis committee but, like the thesis option, can still be used to prepare a student for a PhD program.
Curriculum & Courses
If an applicant has not completed recent programming coursework (preferably Python) or have recent programming experience (within last 3 years), they will be required to take CYBV 500: Security Programming in their first semester.
CYBV 500: Security Programming
Advances the concepts and principles of development of practical applications supporting cybersecurity and digital investigation activities created through Python programming. Students will build on programming fundamentals using Python elements, secure programming standards and developing applications for cybersecurity. Examining application requirements students will develop, debug, execute and deploy Python scripts.
Units: 3
CYBV 500 is a supporting course that will not count towards the 30 units required for the MS CIO degree.
Alternatively, students can also attempt the Python Challenge, an internal Python skills assessment to avoid having to take CYBV 500.
MS CIO students will take the following 7 required core courses:
Students who choose the master’s report option will select two courses from CYBV 525, CYBV 528, CYBV 535 or CYBV 680. Students who opt for the master’s thesis will take CYBV 692 and CYBV 696 to support the additional research needed to meet thesis requirements.
Choose one of the following: