Indiana Tech cybersecurity program earns prestigious national designation

February 1, 2023 cybersecurity professor Matt Hansen, left, and a student

Indiana Tech has been designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense (CAE-CD) for its Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity program. This designation is given to institutions meeting the newest standards of cybersecurity from National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—co-sponsors of a program created to develop skilled cybersecurity professionals across a variety of government agencies at federal, state and local levels.

Schools with the CAE-CD designation are thoroughly assessed by NSA and DHS to determine their capabilities and ensure that their students are receiving top-notch education to become leaders in a variety of cybersecurity fields. Only five other universities in the state of Indiana have earned this elite designation.

“This significant national recognition for Indiana Tech is a testament to the work our faculty, students and staff have done to make our university a go-to source for outstanding cybersecurity education,” said Dr. Ying Shang, Indiana Tech’s dean of the Talwar College of Engineering and Computer Sciences. “When an organization hires an Indiana Tech cybersecurity graduate, its network and data are in the best of hands.”

The CAE-CD designation, which lasts through 2028, comes as another example of the growth and impact of Indiana Tech’s cybersecurity program:

In 2022, as part of $21.5 million expansion and renovation of its Talwar College of Engineering and Computer Sciences, Indiana Tech created the following areas to strengthen the learning experience for cybersecurity and computer science students:
- A state-of-the-art security operations center, which allows students to monitor and learn from activity on the university’s network.
- A digital forensics lab, where simulated crime scenes can be created to give students practice at incident response and digital forensics investigation.
- A data center, where professors can customize virtual environments to test their students’ knowledge and skills.
In 2021, driven by the outstanding reputations of Indiana Tech’s Center for Criminal Justice and its cybersecurity degree program, the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council chose to partner with the university for one of 10 High Tech Crime Units in the state. Through this collaboration, students assist prosecutors and local law enforcement in analyzing and processing digital evidence, which yields faster turnaround times and more thorough investigations.
Over the past two decades, the university’s cyber competition team, the Cyber Warriors, has become a national power. The Cyber Warriors have won Indiana’s Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition 15 of 17 times and finished among the nation’s top 10 teams in 2007, 2011 and 2018. What’s more, every member of the Cyber Warriors has secured a job in their career field prior to graduation for four years running.

Indiana Tech’s cybersecurity program offers students a variety of educational options. Learn more at academics.indianatech.edu/colleges/cyber-center.