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University of Pittsburgh    
2020-2021 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog 
    
 
  Apr 19, 2024
 
2020-2021 Graduate & Professional Studies Catalog [Archived Catalog]

Cybersecurity, Policy and Law, Graduate Certificate


Cybersecurity is a multidisciplinary domain that involves technical issues, security policies, regulation, and law.  Our integrated curriculum - incorporating coursework from Pitt’s School of Computing and Information, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, and School of Law — provides students with the skills to develop comprehensive cybersecurity policies and strengthen cybersecurity ecosystems to minimize risk. 

As part of the certificate’s multidisciplinary approach, the certificate requires courses to be taken from all three Pitt schools. Students must complete a minimum of three courses from SCI, one course from GSPIA, and one course from the School of Law to earn the certificate.

Courses


School of Computing and Information courses

Graduate School of Public and International Affairs courses

  • PIA 2156  - ETHICS AND POLICY IN CYBER SPACE
  • PIA 2379  - INTRODUCTION TO CYBER CRIMES
  • PIA 2360  - CYBER SECURITY POLICY
  • PIA 2389  - CRIMINAL OPERATIONS IN THE CYBERWORLD
  • PIA 2327  - TERRORISM AND COUNTER TERRORISM
  • PIA 2346  - INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE
  • PIA 2365  - TRANSNATIONAL CRIME
  • Policy Analysis for Cybersecurity & Intelligence Studies (New course) 

School of Law courses

Prerequisite Requirements


Students must have at least a BA or BS in Computer Science, Information Science, Engineering, or similar type of degree.

Admissions Requirements


The following are requirements and prerequisites for admission to the Cybersecurity, Policy, and Law program.

All applicants must submit:

  • Official transcript
  • Two letters of recommendation that attest to the applicant’s aptitude and motivation to pursue studies at a level beyond the bachelor’s or master’s degree
  • Personal statement
  • Resume

Applicants must have successfully completed at least one three-credit college course with a grade of B or better in each of the following:

  • Structured programming language. A course on structured programming using Java, C# or C++ is required. CMPINF 0401  - INTERMEDIATE PROGRAMMING is  recommended to meet this requirement.
  • Statistics. A course covering data collection, descriptive and inferential statistics is optimal. It should cover measures of central tendency and variability, regression, correlation, non-parametric analysis, probability and sampling, Bayesian analysis, significance tests, and hypothesis testing. Either STAT 0200  - BASIC APPLIED STATISTICS or STAT 1000  - APPLIED STATISTICAL METHODS is recommended to meet this requirement.
  • Mathematics. A college-level mathematics course, in discrete mathematics or calculus, is required. Any of the following Pitt courses are recommended to meet the requirement: MATH 0120  - BUSINESS CALCULUS, MATH 0220  - ANALYTIC GEOMETRY AND CALCULUS 1, or MATH 0400  - FINITE MATHEMATICS.


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