Northern Michigan University is a state leader in cybersecurity education, according to rankings released by Programs.com. NMU offers the top-ranked associate degree program among Michigan universities or colleges, and the fifth-best bachelor's degree.
The Programs.com description states that NMU's associate of business degree in information assurance and cyber defense falls under the umbrella of NMU's AACSB-accredited College of Business and combines cybersecurity fundamentals with either a business track covering accounting and management, or a computer science track built around Python and C++.
“Students train in a campus cyber lab with enterprise networking hardware and a private cloud environment for ethical hacking practice,” the information states. “The degree stacks directly into NMU's CAE-CD bachelor's in information assurance and cyber defense for students who want to continue their education.”
Qualities of NMU's bachelor's degree program highlighted in the rankings appear as follows:
- First CAE-CD Designated Institution in the Upper Peninsula: NMU pioneered NSA-recognized cybersecurity education in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, opening access to nationally credentialed training in a region with limited four-year program options.
- Upper Peninsula Cybersecurity Institute: The on-campus UPCI drives student internship placements, industry stakeholder partnerships, community outreach and high school cybersecurity events.
- Business and IT Integration: NMU's curriculum pairs cybersecurity with business and computer information systems coursework, preparing graduates to protect not only systems, but the organizational assets those systems hold.
Programs.com is a New York-based education platform that helps students find the country's top cybersecurity programs. It evaluates schools based on curriculum strength, career outcomes, affordability and overall academic reputation. View the full Michigan rankings here. Learn more about NMU's cyber defense programs here.