American Public University System Online Associate of Science in Cybersecurity

APUS's online associate degree in cybersecurity is a flexible, mid-priced starting point with monthly starts, 8-week courses, and a course list that includes Red and Blue Team Security. Military families get a lower rate. It is also a for-profit school with a lower completion rate, so go in with a plan to finish.

American Public University System (APUS) is an online university system in Charles Town, West Virginia that includes American Military University and American Public University. It is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The Associate of Science in Cybersecurity is 60 semester hours, delivered fully online with 12 start dates a year.

About 50,715 students are enrolled, and 100% of them study exclusively online, so the entire school is built around distance learning. This associate degree is the first rung of APUS's cybersecurity ladder, which also includes a bachelor's and a master's. The associate is the shortest and least expensive way in, and the bachelor's adds five concentrations if you continue.

APUS is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. On a resume, the associate degree itself matters less than the skills you can explain from courses like Red and Blue Team Security. Industry certifications are a separate purchase, so ask an advisor which exam fits the courses you took.

Where this degree can lead: Cybersecurity Degree Jobs.

Who It Fits

• Military families and service members. The Preferred Military Rate is $250 per credit, down from the $360 standard rate.
• Working adults who can't wait for a fall start. Monthly starts mean a delay costs weeks, not a semester.
• Students who want hands-on security content early. Hardening Operating Systems and Red and Blue Team Security put you in attacker and defender roles from the start.

Who Should Skip It

• Students watching total cost. At $360 per credit, the 60-credit degree is $21,600, well above a community college's in-state price.
• Students who want a traditional campus experience. Everything here is online.
• Students who need a bigger menu of choices. The associate degree has no concentrations, unlike APUS's bachelor's, which offers five.

The course list is more specific than most associate programs publish. Scripting Languages for the Administrator teaches the automation skills that most security roles use. Networking Concepts covers how traffic moves, which you need before you can defend it. Hardening Operating Systems is about reducing the attack surface of a machine. Cryptography Concepts (ISSC266) introduces encryption, and Red and Blue Team Security has you practice both attacking and defending.

You finish with the Cybersecurity Capstone Portfolio (ISSC298), which lets you assemble your work into something you can show employers. That portfolio habit helps most if you are changing careers and lack a security job to point to. APUS pairs the portfolio with no-cost ebooks, so the materials you study stay in your own library as you move into work.

Courses the School Names

• Scripting Languages for the Administrator
• Networking Concepts
• Hardening Operating Systems
• Red and Blue Team Security
• Cryptography Concepts

Standout Features

• Red and Blue Team Security course

Tuition is $360 for each undergraduate credit, which makes the full 60 credits $21,600. Service members, Guard and Reserve members and their families can use the Preferred Military Rate of $250 per credit. You won't buy textbooks, because the ebooks cost nothing. Any credits you transfer in come straight off the bill, so get your transcripts evaluated first.

60 credits at $360 a credit comes to $21,600 in tuition, before fees.

A new class begins every month, and each lasts 8 weeks. You carry fewer classes at a time and finish each one fast. Many working adults like that, though one missed week hurts more than it would in a 16-week semester.

Because APUS enrolls about 50,715 students, all online, there is a deep bench of support teams and peers. Many of them are military-connected, which shapes how the school schedules and supports students. Ask how much live interaction to expect and whether courses have set weekly deadlines.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• Only 41.5% of transfer-in students finish within eight years, so build a schedule you can keep.
• The associate degree has no concentrations, so you won't specialize until you move to a bachelor's. APUS's bachelor's offers five.
• Two courses in one 8-week term can feel heavy if you work full time.

• Which of my earlier credits count, and how soon do I get an evaluation?
• Am I eligible for the military rate, and does it last through graduation?
• Does the associate degree transfer smoothly into APUS's bachelor's in cybersecurity?
• What hands-on work happens in Red and Blue Team Security, and where do I run it?
• How long does the degree take if I take one course per term?

Online university system in Charles Town, West Virginia that includes American Military University and American Public University, accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.

• Best Accelerated Online Programs Rank 7 of 9, associate
• Best for Military Students Rank 2 of 3, associate
• Best for Working Adults Rank 8 of 9, associate
• Best With Multiple Start Dates Rank 2 of 2, associate
• Best Online Programs in West Virginia Rank 1 of 4, associate

• Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity

  B.S., Bachelor's

  Fully Online $360 per credit Score 62.1

• Master of Science in Cybersecurity Studies

  M.S., Master's

  Fully Online $470 per credit Score 58.7

• Rio Salado College

  Cybersecurity (Associate in Applied Science)

  Arizona $253 per credit Score 45.9

• Germanna Community College

  Information System Technology - Cybersecurity

  Virginia $309.40 per credit Score 46.1

• Central Texas College

  Cyberdefense - Information Assurance AAS

  Texas Score 44.7

• Saint Leo University

  Associate of Arts in Cybersecurity

  Florida $250 per credit Score 46.8