DoD: Information Assurance Scholarship Program

try2pingit

As a powerful incentive for students to enter the IA field, DoD offers the Information Assurance Scholarship Program

Nearly every day, the United States faces growing threats and attacks against our critical government systems. DoD’s mission is to address the Nation’s urgent security challenges and to proactively seek solutions to protect and defend our information and information systems. One of the key security challenges DoD faces daily is assuring that the Department's information, information systems, and information infrastructure are protected and available in order to support the Department's transformation to a secure net–centric environment.

Achieving Information Assurance (IA), however, requires more than possessing leading–edge technologies and superior operational capabilities. It requires well–educated, highly skilled, and technically savvy people in a variety of IA–related disciplines. Finding and properly training an adequate number of such personnel is one of the most important challenges DoD faces as we look to the future.

To continue to provide the growing number of trained personnel needed, DoD is working with universities across the country, known as National Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance, often referred to as CAEs, to develop and expand IA–related curricula and to offer programs of study for future IA professionals.

Refer to this Gov site: ::::IASP::::HOME::::

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I know veritas_libertas posted a thread on this early last year, this is sorta like a follow up

I recently applied to Polytechnic Institute of NYU for the M.S. in Telecommunications Networks program. I ended up also applying for their M.S. Cybersecurity program after I heard about this DoD scholarship. If I do, I'll pursue it full throttle... Free tuition for a MS degree and guaranteed employment with the Government after graduation? Sweet... I always had an interest in pursuing CCNP Security> CCIE Security and CISSP anyway.

Have any of you received this scholarship? How was your experience during school and after? How has your experience been working in a Federal Agency? What do you guys think about it?

Search for National Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance:
Centers of Academic Excellence - Institutions - NSA/CSS

phantasm

Crappy thing... WGU is not a CAE.

shednik

phantasm wrote: »

Crappy thing... WGU is not a CAE.

They generally target research schools for the scholarship I believe.

I know quite a few people who have gone through the program at my school (University of Pittsburgh). If I were single and starting my grad degree all over again this would have been a great opportunity I think. In addition to the school being paid for I believe you get a stipend every semester as well. I know a number of the graduates from the scholarship now work for CERT at Carnegie Mellon.

Go for it, but treat it like you would a job!!

Joe

jtoast

phantasm wrote: »

Crappy thing... WGU is not a CAE.

If all goes well, that should change in June.

YuckTheFankees

The only question I have about the scholarship is the job with the government after you graduate. Will it be any job in general, just as long as it’s with the government or will it be in information assurance?

colemic

I think it will be IA-related, but it could be in Boston, or Bismark, or Idaho, or DC, or... you get the picture.

phantasm

colemic wrote: »

I think it will be IA-related, but it could be in Boston, or Bismark, or Idaho, or DC, or... you get the picture.

That's what turns me off right there. My family and I are not mobile at this point because my wife is in a good spot in her career and I wouldn't take her away from it. Otherwise I'd be all over it seeing as I meet most of their criteria... except for being enrolled. lol.

YuckTheFankees

thats why being single is the way to go!

shednik

They don't place you in the jobs you apply for them.

BradleyHU

oh yeah...2 of the schools i'm thinkin about transferring my grad credits to is CAE. i'm definitely gonna apply now.

YuckTheFankees

Does anyone know how far away WGU is from attaining CAE? This will definitely play a factor for me when I apply to grad school next year.


Has anyone applied for this scholarship and received the money?

jdchilders

YuckTheFankees wrote: »

Does anyone know how far away WGU is from attaining CAE? This will definitely play a factor for me when I apply to grad school next year.


Has anyone applied for this scholarship and received the money?

Rumor was they were supposed to acquire it sometime in June...but here we are June 22nd, with no update.

YuckTheFankees

jdchilders wrote: »

Rumor was they were supposed to acquire it sometime in June...but here we are June 22nd, with no update.

I've read some threads where people thought it was going to happen last year but it seems to be pushed back every month or quarter...

jdchilders

YuckTheFankees wrote: »

I've read some threads where people thought it was going to happen last year but it seems to be pushed back every month or quarter...

They tried last year, but missed a couple required points. The next earliest time they could try was June (you can only submit once or twice a year, June was one of those windows).

I had talked to one of the counselors and specifically asked them a couple months ago, and they said they were resubmitting for June in hopes of acquiring the certification. Maybe i'll call back...

YuckTheFankees

If you do call them please let us know what they say. im very interested in this issue. Have you attended WGU before?

jdchilders

YuckTheFankees wrote: »

If you do call them please let us know what they say. im very interested in this issue. Have you attended WGU before?

UPDATE:


WGU HAS applied, and they are currently in "candidacy status" meaning its now being reviewed by the NSA CAE board- they should hear back within a few months.

Mike-Mike

nice, thanks for the update