Ashford University Online Bachelor of Science in Cyber & Data Security Technology

This is an ABET-accredited bachelor's with a published per-credit rate of $460 and a format built around one 5-week course at a time. It fits adults who want to move fast and who value hands-on labs and a long course list covering hacking, forensics and cryptography. The federal completion numbers are weak, so you need a plan for staying on track.

Ashford University now operates as the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC), an online university based in San Diego, California. Its Bachelor of Science in Cyber & Data Security Technology is 120 credits and is delivered fully online.

The school is a private for-profit institution, with 28,004 students enrolled and a 100% online share of students in the federal data. Online is the whole business here, not a side offering, which tends to mean the platform, advisers and course design are built for distance students.

The degree has no concentrations. You follow one plan that ends in a capstone, CYB 499.

The program is accredited by the ABET Computing Accreditation Commission, and the university is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). ABET accreditation is the signal employers and graduate programs recognize most readily for computing degrees.

Plan any certification exam study yourself, because the degree is built around courses, not a specific exam. Courses like Cryptography and Risk Management overlap with common security exam topics, but verify that with the department.

Where this degree can lead: Cybersecurity Degree Jobs.

Who It Fits

• Adults who want to focus on one subject at a time. Courses run 5 weeks each and you take them one at a time.
• Students bringing credits with them. The program says credit may transfer from community colleges, other college coursework, military service or job training.
• Career changers who want an offensive-security flavor, since the course list includes Ethical Hacking and Penetration Testing next to Digital Forensics.
• Learners who care about program accreditation and want the ABET Computing Accreditation Commission named on the page.

Who Should Skip It

• Students who struggle with fast pacing. Five weeks per course leaves little room to fall behind.
• Anyone who wants a nonprofit or public school, since this is a private for-profit institution.
• People who want a lab-heavy plan with named platforms or partners. Hands-on labs are part of the plan, so ask which tools and platforms they use before you enroll.

The program page names five courses worth knowing about: Ethical Hacking, Penetration Testing, Cryptography, Risk Management and Digital Forensics. Together they cover the attacker's view, the defender's view, the math behind encryption and the evidence side of an incident.

UAGC says the program uses hands-on labs and real-world case studies, which matters for a hacking course because you learn it by doing. Ask which lab platform the courses use so you know what you'll be typing into.

The capstone, CYB 499, has you design, implement, test and document a secured solution across the seven domains of an organization's IT infrastructure. That's a portfolio piece you can describe in an interview, not just a final exam.

Courses the School Names

• Ethical Hacking
• Penetration Testing
• Cryptography
• Risk Management
• Digital Forensics

Standout Features

• ABET-accredited bachelor's in cyber and data security technology
• Accelerated 5-week courses taken one at a time
• Hands-on labs in cybersecurity coursework

Tuition is published at $460 per credit for undergraduate programs, and the 120-credit degree comes to $55,200 in tuition. That is the full tuition before the per-course fees below.

The tuition isn't the whole bill. The page lists a $115.00 technology fee per course and about $125.00 in average books and materials per course. With one course at a time, those fees repeat every 5 weeks, so build them into your budget.

Because the program accepts credit from community colleges, military service and job training, your actual bill can fall well below the full 120 credits. Get a transcript review before you enroll and ask for the credit count in writing.

120 credits at $460 a credit comes to $55,200 in tuition, before fees.

The format is the main story. Courses are 5 weeks long and you take one at a time. For a working adult, that means a single set of deadlines at any moment instead of juggling three classes. It also means a missed week is a big share of the course.

UAGC reports that 100% of its students are enrolled online, so there is no campus program competing for attention. Advising, tutoring and tech support are all designed for people studying remotely.

Ask whether classes meet at set times. If your schedule varies, you want coursework you can finish on your own hours.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• The federal completion rate for transfer-in students is 20%, low enough that fewer than a quarter of transfer-in students finish within eight years.
• The school's overall graduation rate is 11%.
• Technology fees of $115.00 and book costs of about $125.00 apply to each course on top of tuition.
• Five-week courses move quickly and leave little room to recover from a bad week.
• The school is private for-profit and now operates under the University of Arizona Global Campus name, so ask employers you care about whether they recognize it.

• How many of my existing credits will count, and can I see that evaluation before I pay a deposit?
• Which lab platform do the hands-on courses use, and do I keep access after I finish?
• What does a typical week look like in a 5-week course, and how many hours should I plan for?
• How do the technology and book fees add up across the whole 120 credits?
• What support exists if I fall behind in the middle of a course?
• Do employers in my area recognize UAGC, or should I plan to transfer my credits somewhere later?

Ashford University now operates as the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC), an online university.

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