Degree Planning- MS degree

[dodek101]

Location: New Jersey, USA
Age:45
What kind of degree do I want?:
MS in Cybersecurity, AI or Computer Science, open to suggestions
 
Current Regional Accredited Credits:
TESU - BSBA General Management (2021) 120 credits 2.80 GPA
TESU - ASNSM Computer Science (2021) 60 credits

Certifications:
A+, N+, S+, AWS Cloud Practitioner
IBM Cybersecurity Analyst Professional Certificate- Coursera
Google Project Management: Professional Certificate- Coursera
Google IT Fundamentals Professional Certificate- Coursera
TEEX- a lot of cert in cybersecurity
 
Budget: I have a max of $8K saved up.

Commitments: I currently work full time and can work on my studies part time or in the evenings/weekends.


Timeline: I plan to finish the courses required for the degree in 2-3 years, taking two courses per semester.

Tuition assistance/reimbursement: Yes, my workplace offers tuition reimbursement. I receive $815 per graduate credit, based on the grade received for the course: A-100%, B-75%, C-50%.

 
My goal is to use the tuition reimbursement program to advance my career in IT public sector.
After graduating from TESU, I secured a position in local government as an IT help desk technician, and I have been in that role for two years now. I have not yet applied to any graduate schools and am unsure where to start. My biggest concern about being accepted into graduate MS programs is my low GPA and the fact that my BA is not in the field of Computer Science.

My question is, which online schools should I consider applying to?
Are there any alternative ways to earn credits?
Should I improve my GPA somehow to be considered by graduate schools?"
Out of those three majors, Cybersecurity, AI, or Computer Science, which one would be more attainable?
Any suggestions and questions are welcome.

[jg_nuy]

Hello:
You will want to take a look at the specific requirements for the schools that you consider.

A common suggestion is WGU's Masters in Cybersecurity and IS (includes a number of certs in the degree plan) or their Masters in IT:
Cyber and IS: https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degrees/cy...ogram.html
IT: https://www.wgu.edu/online-it-degrees/in...ogram.html

This list found on the sister site might also be useful— https://www.geteducated.com/online-colle...-degree/#/

---

Another place to consider could be The University of the Cumberlands - $355/graduate credit & fully online and their minimum GPA is 2.5 on a 4.0 scale:
Masters of IT: https://www.ucumberlands.edu/academics/g...technology
All graduate programs (includes Info Systems Security, Cyber Engineering options): https://www.ucumberlands.edu/academics/graduate
Admission requirements: https://www.ucumberlands.edu/admission-a...quirements

[rachel83az]

Another option would be the GT OMCS. It's rigorous, but it's from a good school. It should be right around your budget.

[ItsNeverTheLionsYear]

Georgia Tech's OMSCS will most likely take you if you took:

• Intro to programming
  
• Object oriented programming
  
• Data structures & algorithms
  

and you got good grades, or if you have considerable work experience. They also recommend taking:

• Computer Architecture
  
• Discrete Math
  
• At least calc 1
  
• Linear algebra
  
• Stats/Probability (sometimes offered as two separate courses)
  

You might still be able to get in with alt credit in these areas, other users have, but they tend to have experience.

The catch with OMSCS is that while you can take 2 courses at a time with a full time job, the consensus is that you really shouldn't unless you hate yourself and love suffering. This would extend your timeline to just over 3 years. The other catch is that you have to get Bs in at least two fundamental courses in the first year to stay in the program.

Your GPA might be an issue. They want a GPA over 3.0, as will most masters programs. You might be interested in taking supplementary courses at Oakton College in order to pump your GPA up and get more of the subjects above covered, especially if you didn't take many graded classes for the BSBA. If you get your assignments in on time and put a decent amount of effort in, you'll probably get good grades.

There's also the UT Austin MSCSO and MSAI, which are both just over $10k, but taking multiple classes at once is more feasible. The catch there is that their admissions are way more competitive. OMSCS has something like an 85% admission rate, whereas MSCSO is more like 40%. Might still be worth an application. 

If you want to go down the cybersecurity path specifically, you'll have more options. Notably WGU offers a cybersecurity MS, and admissions are not at all competitive there. I can't really speak to that path as much but it's a "hot" field which means more online offerings out there.

[davewill]

Don't forget Georgia Tech's Online Master of Science in Cybersecurity

They generally want a CS background, but they have a Policy track that doesn't have that requirement:

Prerequisites
For admission into the Policy Track of the Online Master of Science in Cybersecurity program, all applicants are expected to have:

Applicants with technical backgrounds are expected to have:

• A Bachelor of Science degree from an accredited institution in Engineering or Computer Science.
  
• Relevant experience in information system security management in a government, military, or business setting.
  
• Two- to-three college-level courses in political science, law, public policy, economics, or international relations.
  
• A minimum GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).
  

Applicants with non-technical backgrounds are expected to have:

• A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution in Business, Economics, International Relations, Political Science, Public Policy, Pre-law, or law degrees.
  
• One- to two-years of practical experience in the management or operation of information systems or networks.
  
• At least one college-level course in computer science or programming.
  
• A minimum GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) in prior undergraduate or graduate programs.
  

Applicants who are accepted into the program, and lack a sufficient technical background, are encouraged to take a computer science course to ensure success in the program (we recommend Introduction to Computing in Python). It your responsibility to start the program with this foundation knowledge.

[bjcheung77]

@dodek101, I would tread with caution on all avenues you are trying to pursue at the moment, the main thing is the low GPA. You should create a shortlist of programs that have been mentioned, in addition to those, there are a few other programs listed in the Graduate section. You can review those as well, my recommendation is to get a public/state institution that provides you a 'bridge' program, or go for an Applied Computer Science program at the Masters level.

Here's a recent example set from earlier this week and in the year where I recommended the same thing:
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...-s-program
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...ce-or-Math

Here's a thread with links to multiple programs I've recommended and created threads about:
https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...cal-degree

[Captainrekt000]

Augusta University - MS Information Security Management for $7k for 30 credits ($230/credit)

https://www.augusta.edu/online/ms-inform...gement.php

[bjcheung77]

Awesome find... Augusta University has a great tuition model, I think most of their Masters are at $230/credit (except for some). I wonder if they have the same tuition for all enrolled students regardless of the location or state they're in. When clicking through a few of their links, their butt-in-seat tuition shows it's much more expensive for out of state students.

[Captainrekt000]

Awesome find... Augusta University has a great tuition model, I think most of their Masters are at $230/credit (except for some).  I wonder if they have the same tuition for all enrolled students regardless of the location or state they're in.  When clicking through a few of their links, their butt-in-seat tuition shows it's much more expensive for out of state students.

https://www.augusta.edu/online/financial-aid.php

For some reason, the tuition different for all degrees. $230 for all students for MS Info Sec and Masters Education.

Their OOS for the other online masters is $738/credit 

The MPH is not terrible at $430/credit for all students ($20k) but not as good as ACE MPH ($10k) https://ace.edu/degree-programs/masters-...ic-health/

Or Northeastern State MPH ($16k) https://nsuok.edu/MastersDegreeinPublicHealth.aspx