Cybersecurity, BS

About the Program

The Cybersecurity major is part of the Computer and Information Technology program. The Computer and Information Technology program is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET, www.abet.org.

Keeping data secure is an important goal of any good IT system. Once a system has been breached, personal, financial or classified data becomes vulnerable to exploitation. When you major in cybersecurity at Purdue University, you will learn the skills to create and maintain secure networks as well as ways to track down hackers who aim to breach that security.

The demand for professionals with cybersecurity skills is high, and it will continue to grow as more companies and industries work to safeguard their records and their reputations. The cybersecurity plan of study at Purdue will be able to help meet this need by providing a comprehensive IT education that also emphasizes key security concepts. The major’s holistic approach combines skills such as secure coding, cryptography, digital forensics and UNIX fundamentals with analytical thinking and criminology.

You will have plenty of opportunity for hands-on projects. Whether you are testing vulnerabilities or creating a new security protocol, you will put theories into practice daily. Because of industry partnerships, you will have access to internships that will put your cybersecurity knowledge to use quickly.

Cybersecurity Website

Computer and Information Technology Department Major Change (CODO) Requirements  

Degree Requirements

120 Credits Required

Departmental/Program Major Courses (66 credits)

A C- GPA is required across all CNIT courses

CIT Common Core (42 credits)

Other Departmental /Program Course Requirements (12 credits)

• Statistics Selective

• STAT 22500 - Introduction To Probability Models Credits: 3.00 or
• STAT 30100 - Elementary Statistical Methods Credits: 3.00 or
• STAT 50100 - Experimental Statistics I Credits: 3.00 or
• STAT 51100 - Statistical Methods Credits: 3.00
• Cybersecurity Interdisciplinary Selective - Credit Hours: 9.00
• IT Professional Experience Requirement - Credit Hours: 0.00
• Globalization Requirement - Credit Hours: 0.00

Supplemental List

Click here for Cybersecurity Supplemental Information .

Grade Requirements

• Students must earn a C- or better in all CNIT courses that are a prerequisite to another CNIT course
• Any course taken at Purdue can be attempted no more than three times (inclusive of W, WF, WN, I, and IF)

GPA Requirements

• 2.0 Cummulative GPA required for Bachelor of Science degree
• 2.0 Cummulative GPA in all CNIT courses required for Bachelor of Science degree

Course Requirements and Notes

• Students must select courses from Cybersecurity Supplemental Information. 
• Courses with the ♦ are essential for the CIT degree critical path to graduation
• Credit cannot be earned for both AGEC 21700 and ECON 21000 to fulfill degree requirements
• Credit cannot be earned for both COM 31400 and COM 31500 to fulfill degree requirements
• A single course may not fulfill multiple requirements within the CIT BS degree​

Non-course / Non-credit Requirements

• Co-Curricular Requirements include the following:
  • Professional IT Experience
  • Globalization requirement

University Requirements

Sample 4-Year Plan

Critical Course

The ♦ course is considered critical.

In alignment with the Degree Map Guidance for Indiana’s Public Colleges and Universities, published by the Commission for Higher Education (pursuant to HEA 1348-2013), a Critical Course is identified as “one that a student must be able to pass to persist and succeed in a particular major. Students who want to be nurses, for example, should know that they are expected to be proficient in courses like biology in order to be successful. These would be identified by the institutions for each degree program.”

Pre-Requisite Information

For pre-requisite information, log in to mypurdue.purdue.edu and click here.

Disclaimer

The student is ultimately responsible for knowing and completing all degree requirements. Consultation with an advisor may result in an altered plan customized for an individual student. The myPurduePlan powered by DegreeWorks is the knowledge source for specific requirements and completion.

Comparative information about Purdue University and other U.S. educational institutions is also available through the College Navigator tool, provided by the National Center for Education Statistics, and through the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard.