Applied Cybersecurity, MS

The Master of Science in Applied Cybersecurity is a 30-unit terminal professional degree that prepares graduates to enter and advance in the cybersecurity workforce. Across ten courses culminating in a capstone, students develop broad, practical command of the field rather than a single specialization, spanning applied artificial intelligence, network and infrastructure security, cryptography, secure software development, defensive operations, offensive security, cloud security, digital forensics and incident response, and governance, risk, and compliance. Each graduate course is designed to build on undergraduate-level competencies, requiring more advanced analysis, design, and leadership in line with WSCUC expectations for graduate work and CAE-CD guidance for four-year and graduate education. Graduate projects and the capstone encourage students to investigate emerging threats, technologies, and practices, contributing applied insights that can inform organizational security strategy.

The program is offered through the School of Emerging Technology at Golden Gate University. Every course is workforce-oriented, ending in artifacts and skills graduates can demonstrate to employers, and the degree concludes with a capstone in which students integrate the full program to address a realistic security problem.

The program opens with AI 300 (Applied AI and Agents: From Tools to Intelligent Systems), the gateway course every student takes first, establishing a shared foundation in applied AI and agentic systems and ensuring a common baseline of technical proficiency before students progress into the advanced security courses. AI is then integrated as a scaffold for learning throughout the program, used critically and ethically, and examined as a growing attack surface in its own right, so that graduates are prepared both to secure AI-enabled systems and to apply AI techniques to cyber defense, threat hunting, and incident response in line with emerging CyberAI program-of-study expectations.

On completion of the program, graduates will be able to:

1. Apply artificial-intelligence and machine-learning methods to security problems, and critically assess AI systems as an attack surface.
2. Secure networks, systems, and cloud infrastructure using layered, defense-in-depth controls.
3. Design, evaluate, and remediate software for security, and apply cryptography appropriately.
4. Conduct intelligence-driven defensive operations, offensive security testing, and incident response in realistic settings.
5. Translate technical risk into governance, compliance, and policy decisions aligned to recognized frameworks.
6. Integrate competencies from across the program in a capstone that designs, analyzes, and defends a professional-grade security solution for a sponsoring organization.

The MS in Applied Cybersecurity is designed to complement Golden Gate University’s CAE-CD Cyber Defense-aligned undergraduate curriculum by advancing students’ capabilities across the same Knowledge Units at a graduate level and by deepening alignment to the NICE Workforce Framework. Courses such as Network and Infrastructure Security, Applied Cryptography, Secure Software Development and Application Security, Threat Intelligence and Defensive Operations, Offensive Security and Penetration Testing, Cloud Security and DevSecOps, and Digital Forensics and Incident Response build on undergraduate foundations to prepare graduates for NICE work roles in categories including Protection and Defense (PD), Investigate (IN), Securely Provision (SP), and Oversee and Govern (OG). A program-level curriculum map and CAE-CD Knowledge Unit alignment matrix are maintained for accreditation review.