Master Degree Program Evaluation

s3r01

Hello,

I have 4 years experience in the InfoSec field primarily doing DFIR, Vuln Mgmt and some SysAdmin work. I have a bachelors in DF/IA and I am considering going back to school for a Master's Degree. WGU seems to be pretty well represented here at least at the Bachelor's level but I was curious about their Master's Degree in Cyber Security and IA. Has anyone completed this program and if so how do you feel about its effectiveness?

Also, what other programs offer a similar education for roughly the same price? My state school does offer a Masters in Cyber Security but its roughly $20k which is way out of my budget.

I appreciate any insight those of you that have gone down this road can offer.

Eagle75799

I completed my MS in Cybersecurity from WGU in December 2017. As far as the learning, from my experience in cybersecurity I knew probably 75-80% of the material. This allowed me to progress quickly in several of the classes, where as soon as the class unlocked I would go straight to the evaluations. I did learn some material that has helped me on the job as well. I believe that it was effective in communicating what they were trying to teach, and you will gain some knowledge that will help you in your career as a result. If you don't have the certs, the training is good (I already had CEH), but the tests do not cover near the same depth as the training material, sadly. However, as with any school or certification, you learn based on how much effort you put in. You can do the minimum and pass, or you can study the material and really learn it.

That said, the MS was totally worth it. I finished in December, and I had a job come to me and offer me a raise in February that my current company could not match. What I spent on the degree was more than made up for by the raise. Of course, YMMV. Hope that helps.