Northwest receives national cyber defense designation

Northwest Missouri State University is now a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense.

The University recently was awarded the designation, which it will maintain through 2029, by the Maryland-based National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity.

“Gaining the designation as a Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense is the result of relevant curriculum, talented faculty and efforts to share cybersecurity knowledge,” Dr. Joni Adkins, the director of Northwest’s School of Computer Science and Information Systems said. “Students will benefit from a robust cybersecurity curriculum, federal scholarship eligibility, connections to others in the cybersecurity community, and internship opportunities while faculty can participate in professional development opportunities. Ultimately, we hope this designation will help us to grow our undergraduate cybersecurity major to meet the industry need for security professionals.”

Institutions that receive a CAE designation have met rigorous requirements set forth by the National Security Agency (NSA). The agency awards the designations to institutions committed to helping reduce threats to the national infrastructure by promoting higher education and research in cyber defense while providing the nation with a pipeline of qualified cybersecurity professionals.

All regionally accredited two-year, four-year and graduate-level institutions in the United States are eligible to apply to become a Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense. An institution must apply to be re-evaluated every five academic years.

Enhanced by its new cybersecurity laboratory and other learning experiences offered within the School of Computer Science and Information Systems, Northwest’s cybersecurity program and profession-based learning environment provides students with opportunities to conduct a variety of cybersecurity activities. Furthermore, projects are designed to give students a taste of how their future jobs could look and prepare them to help protect companies from risks and threats.

For more information about Northwest’s Center for Cybersecurity and related degree programs, visit www.nwmissouri.edu/CyberCenter/.