<p>I have recently become interested in codebreaking/cryptography. I know its considered to be a branch of mathematics/comp sci at alot of places but I'm looking for schools in the midwest that offer a major in cryptography. Also im looking for any more information on the practical applications of a cryptography degree.</p>
<p>Check out the NSA Stokes Scholarship. That is what you should look at. Basically, any applied mathematics, computer science, or math major will help.</p>
<p>[Student</a> Programs at National Security Agency (NSA) - Scholarships/Employment Programs](<a href=“http://www.nsa.gov/careers/students_4.cfm]Student”>http://www.nsa.gov/careers/students_4.cfm)</p>
<p>You get full tuition scholarship and get internships at the NSA.</p>
<p>thats pretty sweet. Ill definitely look into it. Looking for more info still :)</p>
<p>I can’t answer your question, but I’m not sure many people here can, so I will just say a couple of things since my daughter has done some college level research in this area. Not the area of codebreaking, but in the area of codemaking. She is a Math/CS major with in the CS department. It is a pretty important field for many internet applications and she has worked in areas related to privacy and electronic cash. </p>
<p>I don’t think you are doing yourself any favor by selecting such a narrow major (if there are any.) A CS or math major will give you a lot of options and you can do research and take crypto and related courses at will. But you will want to explore the theoretical basis behind the math related to this area, to truly be proficient.</p>
<p>If you haven’t, a good read about a High Schooler who explored this area (and won some awards) is In Code: A Mathematical Journey by Sarah Flannery. It is a interesting, fun read, but there is some math in there too for those who are interested. She did some work in public key cryptology.</p>
<p>There are not a lot of schools that offer majors in cryptography.</p>
<p>What you want to do is get a CS (or math, if the math department does that sort of thing) degree at an NSA Center of Excellence. You can find them here: [Centers</a> of Academic Excellence](<a href=“http://www.nsa.gov/ia/academia/caemap.cfm?MenuID=10.1.1.2]Centers”>http://www.nsa.gov/ia/academia/caemap.cfm?MenuID=10.1.1.2)</p>
<p>As you can see, there are many in the Midwest, including IU, UIUC, U of Minnesota, Iowa State, and many others.</p>