Graduate Certificate in Cybercriminology and Cybersecurity

Earn your cybersecurity graduate certificate and fight 21st-century crime.

As our world becomes more and more high tech and data driven, cybercrime is a growing threat. Digital fraud, identity theft, security breaches, cyberbullying and other attacks threaten everything from private business and government agencies to personal security.

Bridgewater State University’s Department of Criminal Justice is leading the fight against cybercrime with a graduate certificate in cybersecurity and cybercriminology. Different than other cybersecurity certificate programs, ours adds cybercriminology to focus on the investigative side of cybercrime. Through courses covering in-depth topics, from cutting-edge techniques and policy to ethics and criminological theory, you’ll gain a broad understanding not just of how cybercrime happens but also why it happens, who perpetrates it and who suffers from it.

Graduate Admissions

Bridgewater State University
Maxwell Library, Room 019
10 Shaw Road
Bridgewater, MA 02325

(508) 531-1300

gradadmissions@bridgew.edu

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Cybersecurity and Cybercriminology Program Highlights

Professor Michael DeValve sitting in a classroom desk talking with 4 students in his class

Gain a foundation for further learning

When you earn your cybercriminology and cybersecurity graduate certificate from BSU, you can apply some of those credits toward our Master of Science in Criminal Justice. You’ll also gain transferrable skills, such as techniques to investigate and identify criminal activity that can add considerable value in pursuing other graduate degrees with BSU, particularly within our criminal justice department.

Professor Hannarae Lee teaching a class on analyzing criminal data

Learn from experienced faculty

Faculty members who teach in the graduate certificate in cybersecurity and cybercriminology program are at the forefront of innovation in this emerging and exciting tech field. You’ll learn directly from the professionals who use this technology and know how it’s best applied to fighting and solving cybercrime.

2 BSU students working on computers at a long table

Hands-on graduate coursework

Four of five cybersecurity and cybercriminology courses put you in our labs, where you’ll experience first-hand the basics of working with digital evidence. Develop skills in using Magnet Axiom, an industry-leading digital investigative platform for data analytics.

Small class sizes mean better access to instructors

With classes of fewer than 20 students, you’ll benefit from close-knit collaboration with other graduate students and personalized attention from instructors.

Attend national conferences and events

Students in our cybercriminology and cybersecurity graduate certificate program will have the opportunity to attend professional conferences around the country that enhance their education and connect them to people in the industry.

It’s a cybersecurity certificate vs degree

An advantage to a cybersecurity certificate vs a degree is that while some cybersecurity jobs require a bachelor’s degree, many do not require a degree in cybersecurity. That means you can earn our cybersecurity and cybercriminology certificate and still be in demand, regardless of your bachelor’s degree field.

Program of Study for Cybersecurity and Cybercriminology Graduate Students

By integrating technical investigation with the examination of cybercrime’s causes, BSU's interdisciplinary approach is different than other cybersecurity certificate programs or online graduate certificate programs in cybersecurity. As a result, you’ll develop both essential skills and in-depth knowledge of cybercrime.

While earning your graduate certificate in cybersecurity and cybercriminology, you’ll also explore cutting-edge approaches to policy, the ethics of cybersecurity and how criminological theory is applied to digital investigation.

From Introduction to Cybersecurity to Cybercrime Forensic Investigation, you’ll take courses that will provide you with both a high-level understanding of cybercrime in the 21st century, as well as an in-depth understanding of criminological theories and hands-on investigative techniques.

Admission Requirements and Program Details

Click the link below to reveal the program's admission requirements and program description.

Program details from 2024-2025 Undergraduate/Graduate Catalog

Co-Chairs: Dr. Jennifer Hartsfield and Dr. Hannarae Lee

Programs Related to Cybersecurity and Cybercriminology

Bridgewater State University offers other graduate programs related to the Cybersecurity and Cybercriminology graduate certificate that may interest you, including:

Restorative and Transformative Justice, Graduate Certificate
Trauma and Victim Studies, Graduate Certificate
Criminal Justice, MS
Criminal Justice, Administration of Justice Concentration, MS
Criminal Justice, Crime and Corrections Concentration, MS
Criminal Justice, Restorative and Transformative Justice, MS
Criminal Justice, Trauma and Victim Studies Concentration, MS
Master of Business Administration
Master of Public Administration
Master of Certified Public Manager

Careers in Cybersecurity and Cybercriminology

BSU’s graduate certificate in cybersecurity and cybercriminology is designed to pave your way to forensic analyst careers in law enforcement, government agencies and many different industries.

The need for skilled professionals in the cybersecurity field is high, and projected to grow. Just a few of the private companies in the Boston area that offer jobs in cybersecurity include:

Microsoft
IBM
American Express
Humana
Novartis
Verizon

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that cybersecurity jobs will grow

31%

through 2029, which is over 7 times faster than the average job growth.

Graduate Funding Opportunities

The College of Graduate Studies provides various opportunities for graduate students to receive funding while working towards their degrees. Appointments are competitive and are determined by undergraduate and/or graduate grade point averages, pertinent experience, educational preparation and interviews. For information on assistantships, fellowships and conference funding awards, please visit our Graduate Funding Opportunities page.

For more specific questions, please visit the Financial Aid Office website or contact them directly at finaid@bridgew.edu.

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