Certificate in Foundations of Cybersecurity

Learn to identify, prevent, and respond to cyber threats and build expertise for the rapidly growing cybersecurity field.

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Programs

Program Summary

The Foundation in Cybersecurity graduate certificate program, designed for professionals with a computing-related bachelor's degree, provides key skills for protecting data integrity and securing software systems. The four-course curriculum, usually completed over two semesters, builds around core courses in cryptography and system security, with electives in areas such as network protocols, cloud security, or data management. Through coursework and hands-on projects, students learn both theoretical foundations and practical techniques for identifying vulnerabilities and implementing security measures across local and networked systems. The credits earned can later apply toward a full master's degree, making this program an excellent pathway for beginning or advancing a career in cybersecurity.

All Credits earned in the certificate can be applied towards the M.S. in Cyber Security & Privacy. Some courses also apply towards other M.S. degrees offered by the Ying Wu College of Computing. 

Essential Information

Detailed curriculum and course requirements for the Certificate in Foundations of Cybersecurity is available in the program catalog.

Admission Prerequisites ▼

The graduate certificate program in Foundations of Cybersecurity requires an undergraduate degree in a computing discipline. At a minimum, such a degree must have exposed the prospective student to materials from at least two from the following courses:

Students without a prior background in computing may want to consider the Graduate Certificate in Computer Science that is designed to support a smooth transition to computing, while allowing to apply some courses towards the Foundations of Cybersecurity Certificate.

Core Courses & Competencies ▼
[required courses]
CS608 Cryptography and Security
Skills: Symmetric Key Cryptography, Public Key Cryptography, Number Theory, Modular Arithmetic, Elliptic Curve Cryptography, Zero-Knowledge Proofs, Perfect Security Analysis, Discrete Logarithm Problems, RSA Implementation, Access Control Protocols
CS645 Security and Privacy in Computer Systems
Skills: Computer System Security, Cryptography, Access Control, Software Security, Network Security, Privacy
Environments & Tools: Python, FastAPI, PyTest, Git
Sample Elective Courses & Competencies ▼
CS631 Data Management System Design
Skills: Relational database management systems, Transaction management, ARIES, OLTP, OLAP, and HTAP
Environments & Tools: MySQL, PostgreSQL
CS643 Cloud Computing
Skills: Cloud Platform Development, Parallel Computing Techniques, Containerization & Virtualization, Distributed Storage Systems, Cloud Security & Privacy, Data Analytics Architecture, Machine Learning Deployment, DevOps Practices, Cloud Performance Analysis, Serverless Computing
Environments & Tools: AWS EC2, AWS S3, AWS SQS, AWS Rekognition, Apache Spark/MLlib, Docker, Kubernetes, Java/Python/Scala, Linux (Amazon/Ubuntu), MapReduce/Hadoop
CS646 Network Protocols Security
Skills: Network Security, Protocol Analysis, Security Assessment
Environments & Tools: Wireshark, Snort, OpenSSL
CS656 Internet and Higher-Layer Protocols
Skills: TCP/IP model, Packet Switching, Circuit Switching, Routing, Subnetting, NAT, DNS, Wireless Networks, Network Security
Environments & Tools: Java, Wireshark, Netcat
Program Outcomes ▼
After completing the program, graduates will be able to:
  • Design and build secure infrastructure for managing data and communication both in the cloud and on local servers.
  • Provide expert insight on security standards and protocols in large-scale software development or data analytics projects.
  • Play a key role in performing ad-hoc analyses of data stored in corporate or government databases and propose solutions to potential vulnerabilities.
Campus Options & Cost ▼
Tuition & Fees by Campus (based on AY 2024-2025 rates)
  • Online: $13,716
  • Jersey City: $13,132-$14,880
  • Newark, NJ residents: $17,192-$18,540
  • Newark, non-NJ residents: $23,900-$25,248

The lower amounts assume the student takes two courses in a summer semester.

For details, see NJIT's Tuition and Fee Schedule.
For information about the cost of living, see Tuition and Costs at NJIT.

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