Information Assurance, MEIA

Network and system security has become very critical and increasingly urgent in today’s network and information systems. Information Assurance deals with operations that protect and defend information and information systems by ensuring their availability, integrity, authentication, confidentiality, and non-repudiation. The Master of Engineering in Information Assurance curriculum includes courses designed to prepare individuals who engineer computer/network systems or develop policy for these systems with knowledge of methods, techniques, and tools used in information assurance.

These courses are regularly offered in the late afternoon and evening to provide a more ideal time slot for the working professional.

The MEIA degree program and curriculum are certified by the National Security Agency’s (NSA) Committee on National Security Systems (CNSS and meet the Information Assurance Professional (4011) Training Standards).

Admission Requirements

A Bachelor of Science or a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics, computer science, engineering information systems, or equivalent.
An overall undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 (on a scale of 4.0; awarded within the past five years). Applicants with a grade point average of less than 3.0 or with degrees awarded greater than five years ago may be required to take the GRE or may be admitted on a case-by-case basis. Applicants with a grade point average between 2.75 and 3.0 awarded within the past five years may be admitted provisionally.
It is recommended the applicant have two years experience with commercial, industrial or government software development or system/network administration.
A completed online application, including official transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and a concise statement of experience and career goals.

Program Prerequisites

Knowledge of a modern programming language, e.g., Java, C++, C#

Degree Requirements (30 credit hours total)

Required Core Courses (15 credit hours, common to all options)

Degree Completion Courses (15 credit hours)

Three options are available: Thesis, Non-Thesis or Portfolio.

1. Thesis Option

Complete CS 7000 Master Thesis (6 credit hours)
Complete three courses from the approved list of courses. The Graduate Studies Committee must approve the courses selected.

2. Non-Thesis Option

Complete CS 7010 Master Project (3 credit hours).
Complete four courses from the approved list of courses. The Graduate Studies Committee must approve the courses selected.

3. Portfolio Option

Submit a 5-8 page paper that describes at least one, and at most four, projects in which the student has been engaged. For each project it will describe the overall project objectives, the team, the students’ role on the team, the formal information assurance/development methodology used, and the lifecycle stages in which the student was engaged. It should explicitly relate the project(s) to at least two of the MEIA courses which the student has completed. It should also include examples - at least one example work artifact from the information assurance process, with the artifact not counting toward the 5-page minimum length. The document should be a formal technical paper. It is recommended that students include appropriate references to relevant information assurance sources, such as books, papers and blogs.

Transfer Credit

Up to 9 hours of graduate work may be transferred from an accredited graduate program, provided:

The coursework has not been used for any other degree.
Grade earned for the course(s) is B or better.
The coursework has been taken within the past six years.
The course coverage is equal in level, content, and depth to the course for which it is being substituted.

Additional Graduate Degree Requirements

Considering the PhD in Computer Science or Security? A Written Qualifier Exam is required for both degrees.

Engineering–Concentration in Computer Science, PhD

The Written Qualifier Exam consists of four distinct topics: CS 5700 Computability, Automata and Formal Languages, CS 5720 Design and Analysis of Algorithms, CS 5200 Computer Architecture, and CS 5500 Operating Systems. Waiver to the written qualifying examination will be given if the student has passed the required courses listed above at UCCS with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.75.

Engineering–Concentration in Security, PhD

The Written Qualifier Exam consists of four distinct topics: CS 5220 Computer Communication, CS 5910 Fundamentals of Network and Computer Security, CS 5920 Applied Cryptography, and CS 5950 Homeland Security and Cyber Security. Waiver to the written qualifying exam may be given, if the student has passed the required courses listed above at UCCS with a minimum average GPA of 3.75.