Georgetown’s CS department appears to lopsided in some areas (perhaps those which are of your interest), though it may not have that much in some other areas:
http://courses.georgetown.edu/index.cfm?Action=List&ProgramID=16
Sounds interesting. Thanks for all the help regarding my question.
@ucbalumnus I am not interested in Georgetown
Here is what I am thinking now:
1- U Maryland seems to have a great math program as well
2- It is worth the money for those going into cybersecurity and government
3- If I go there, in theory, and then decide that I want to specialize in something else or change my major, then the out of state tuition is not worth it.
So as for number 3, I have to make sure that I want to have a career in cybersecurity.
So, I have to figure out as to the statistics in working in that area and interview a few cybersecurity professionals.
If you know any resources, or any professionals that could help with this, please let me know.
Also: how generous is University of Maryland with out of state tuition scholarships?
@DrGoogle Do not forget what edward snoweden did. He divulged state secrets, and only a small part was related to the snooping of the NSA. The rest was sensitive information and damaged the workings of american intelligence agencies.
I know. I’m not a fan of him, the reason I mentioned him because it was revealed he had nothing and was able to make 6-figure. He is a traitor.
That is great. I do not plan to be a traitor, but I would love making six figures.
As someone who was educated in Maryland , I can say College Park has become very competitive with their admissions . You would be competing with some pretty accomplished students from all over the country for merit aid . Although I’m sure your credentials are stellar based on your comments here, so
are everyone else’s competing for admission and aide at College Park. It’s really hard to say .
UCLA… o wait
These ideas are more for a location for a masters, since they would be very expensive as an undergrad. If you excel as an undergrad, you could get into a funded program for a masters. There is a lot of money in this field right now.
CMU has the top cybersecurity program in the US, probably. UCSB may actually be second right now. CMU would be a lot tougher to get into.
Google the results of college-level CTFs (capture the flag competitions) to see where the teams come from. CMU has the PPP team, and UCSB has Shellphish. Both have other lower-level teams also. Some of the teams have several undergrads.
My son was at CMU, and they were saying that a graduate of their cybersecurity program who “wasn’t even all that good” in the words of the faculty member telling the story, has gotten a job starting at $200K right out of school doing corporate security for a company in San Francisco.
OK, maybe Berkeley, RPI, and some others, too.
Besides asking about classes, ask the undergrad CS departments about the hacking teams at that university.
Also, you can get started learning now. Go to https://picoctf.com/learn also, I think the picoCTF challenges from 2013 and 2014 are still available online, even though the contests are long over.
For winners of various college CTFs, see:
Thanks so much for the feedback! I think I am going to send a few emails to chairs of CS departments in my area about this.
I know that Clemson and USC both have hacking teams.
Nice!! That is what I want to do!
Some more info for you. At the 2015 Palmetto Cyber Defense Competition in April, USC placed first, Charleston Southern was 2nd and College of Charleston placed 3rd.
Shows where I am leaning to go to. USC seems like a good bet for me.
Thanks!! Shame clemson did not get second, but the quality of courses offered just confirms my suspicions.
Clemson’s math major program is not “double major” friendly, by the way.
Hello,
To continue my question, I have been thinking about working in the government recently after acquiring a master’s in cybersecurity. Would going to a military academy like west point boost my odds of landing a job in the government?
Depends on whether the Army is the part of the government you want to work for.
Remember that you will have a military commitment once you graduate from a service academy.
Going to West Point may or may not help. If you want a civilian job, it’s all about your experience and skills. But some personal connections may be beneficial.
If I want to work for the NSA, FBI, or US Cyber Command, would going to west point help?
It won’t hurt, but it probably won’t help that much either. Really depends on your degree and real world work experience.