WGU recognition and if its worth it? Masters in information security assurance

romeo1808

Hey guys,
I'm a Canadian, and was interested in the Masters of information security assurance program. I was wondering if anyone knew if its worth it to go through this program or should i look for reputable programs? I was unable to find any info about how reputable this program is and if its looked as a highly recognized masters program. Any help would be appreciated, and private messages are more than welcomed. Thanks

anhtran35

Masters in IA? I haven't seen requirements such as these for InfoSec jobs. CISSP is the key.

wbirchett

I took this program. The school is great, it is just very non-traditional. The EC-Council certs gained are taught directly from EC-Council's CBT. The program is architected around the 10 domains of the CISSP (which i take next month). It took me 2 years, 6months of which was capstone or research thesis. The CEH course prepared me enough to take the exam in 90 minutes of the 240 available. The difference of WGU is the competency based learning. A traditional school you pay for contact hours (3 credit hour course is 3 55 minute classes per week or 2 75 minute) which you take a few exams. WGU you pay for a 6 month block of time. If you can prove you have learned the material by either writing papers or passing a certification, then you move on to the next class.

During my risk management class, I had to do risk matrix, identify mitigation techniques. My degree plan also included a GIAC exam, but that has been dropped due to the transition of GIAC G2700 to the GIAC GCCC which focuses less on ISO27001 and more on controls in general in ISO and NIST.

I know they use ucertify and skillsoft for a lot of their other IT coursework.

Overal, i think was a good program. However, i have been a non-traditional student through both my bachelors (AIU) and now masters (WGU)

Keep in mind, they are non profit university. That is why their tuition is lower. if it were not at least a decent school, then it wouldn't be regionally accredited (since 2003). Plus their nursing (i know, not IT) was awarded a major award by one of the national bodies. For-profit universities have often built their businesses around supplying the sort of career training that requires no external validation from a professional body. They target fields where the credential from the university is sufficient. So you don’t have a lot of nursing programs in the for-profit sector, because there’s an external nursing exam. You don’t have a lot of law schools, because there’s a bar exam. You have legal assistants or medical assistants professions defined only by the piece of paper a university hands you. That, of course, frees the for-profits from an element of external accountability.

WGU’s Teachers College has been honored with high rankings on the National Council on Teacher Quality’s annual assessment of the nation's 2,400 teacher prep programs.
WGU is No. 1 in secondary education…
WGU is No. 16 in elementary education, one of only 26 elementary programs to be recognized for high quality…
WGU is one of only 10 universities to have two top-ranked programs

The way i see it, not only did i get a MSISA for under $15K where my BSIT cost $40K, the digital courseware and certs cost more than the tuition if purchased outside of the program. CEH courseware $2800, same for the CHFI, EC-Council CEH book set 7x $50. $1000 for the ISO-27001 standard pdfs. and thats just 3 courses.

Back in 1997 i dropped out of college to pursue my CCNA. I did this because the Dot Com boom and high salaries, now that is not the case, you need a degree to go with them. WGU offers both to IT graduates. I can attest my latest job change to my MSISA which came with a $20,000 per year increase. Well worth the effort.

romeo1808

Wow Thank you, i've contacted them and waiting for a councilor to get in contact. Do we get a CEH or just get prepared and have to write it separately?

srabiee

WGU is non-profit and regionally accredited.

wbirchett

You get 2 verification attempts for each certification.

gespenstern

As far as I understand their MSISA program it looks like a preparation for CISSP. I wonder if it's worth to have MSISA if you already have CISSP.

NOC-Ninja

If your work is paying for your school then its worth it. Other than that, I see this degree as a IT sec engineer, IT sec manager, CSO and etc.
I see you have network +. If I am in your situation, I would make sure I have a networking job > invest in CCNA > CCNP > and CCIE.

romeo1808

Thanks, my goal is to get into securities. I was thinking of doing my ccent and than my ccna security and thatn work towards a cissp. My current post grad certificate gets me ready for both ceh and cissp but i'm not sure if its enough or if i should get the masters

binarysoul

romeo1808 wrote: »

Thanks, my goal is to get into securities. I was thinking of doing my ccent and than my ccna security and thatn work towards a cissp. My current post grad certificate gets me ready for both ceh and cissp but i'm not sure if its enough or if i should get the masters

Hey, don't forget there's a school in Alberta (I think) offering Masters in Infosec; also in Ontario there is a program offered by Ontario University.

UOIT - Information Technology Security (MITS)

aspiringsoul

I'm currently enrolled in the program. I should probably complete it around September of 2016. I'm about to begin studying for the CEH.

I definitely recommend this program for those who prefer to teach themselves and have plenty of self discipline and who work full time jobs. It also is a great value for the money....and regionally accredited too. I say go for it. The only other schools that I was considering for Information Assurance was Dakota State University which is similar in cost and a reputable online school.

colemic

gespenstern wrote: »

As far as I understand their MSISA program it looks like a preparation for CISSP. I wonder if it's worth to have MSISA if you already have CISSP.

Yes, because they actually can satisfy different requirements, for different parties involved in the hiring process, for example. HR may not care about certs, but they often care about degrees. And the actual hiring manager may not care about a degree, but they often care about certs (and they are often required by law for certain positions, such as 8570.)

They are complementary to each other, but they definitely don't replace one another.

romeo1808

Thanks everyone!!!
I have a phone conversation with the councillor next week so I can get some more info!

I'm currently doing a post grad certificate in information security management: Information Security Management-2015/2016 | Fanshawe College
And also studying for my CCENT to get my CCNA Securities. Would it be a good decision, to do the WGU Masters, as the two seem somewhat simillar