Northcentral Technical College Online IT - Cybersecurity Specialist Associate Degree

This is a 61-credit, fully online associate degree from a Wisconsin technical college that builds toward the CompTIA Security+ certification and ends with a security capstone and an internship course.

Wisconsin residents pay $157.45 per credit and everyone else pays $236.18. It is a strong pick if you want a clear skills path with a certificate stacked inside it, and a weaker one if you need a bachelor's on a fast track.

Northcentral Technical College is a public technical college in Wausau, Wisconsin. Its IT Cybersecurity Specialist Associate Degree is offered 100% online, runs on 16-week semesters and totals 61 credits.

The degree is organized as a sequence. Three Security+ courses, titled Security+ 1, 2 and 3, sit inside the curriculum, and the college lists CompTIA Security+ as the certification the courses prepare you for. Security+ is an entry-level industry exam that many employers use as a baseline for security roles, so having the coursework lined up with it matters more than a long course list would.

The college also sells a shorter IT Information Security Certificate. That certificate counts for 9 of the degree's 61 credits, or 15%, so a student who starts with the certificate does not lose that work if they move on to the degree. This page covers the associate degree, which adds the rest of the credits, the capstone and the internship.

You earn an associate degree in IT Cybersecurity Specialist. The courses prepare you for CompTIA Security+, but the exam is a separate purchase and a separate test.

On outcomes, the college's federal graduation rate is 45% across all students, and 54.5% of students who transferred in earned an award within eight years. The federal College Scorecard shows median earnings of $42,321 for graduates in this field at the college. These are school and field level numbers, so use them as context, not a promise.

Where this degree can lead: Cybersecurity Degree Jobs.

Who It Fits

• You want a Security+ aligned course sequence built into a degree, rather than studying for the exam on your own.
• You are a Wisconsin resident and want tuition for the degree to come to $9,604.45 before fees.
• You want to start with a certificate and see whether security work suits you, knowing 9 credits carry over into the degree.
• You plan to transfer later. The college has transfer guides leading to cybersecurity bachelor's options at Lakeland University, UW-Stevens Point and Western Governors University.
• You may have workplace experience, since the college offers Credit for Prior Learning.

Who Should Skip It

• You live outside Wisconsin and want the lowest price. At $236.18 per credit, tuition for 61 credits is $14,406.98, and a few technical colleges elsewhere charge much less.
• You want a bachelor's degree as quickly as possible. Transfer guides exist for three schools, but an A.A.S.-style technical degree still needs a credit review at each one.
• You want a heavily theoretical program. The coursework here is job-focused.

The notable courses are practical ones: Firewall, Cryptography, Intrusion Detection Systems, Vulnerability Analysis, and Footprinting and Social Engineering. Footprinting is the step where an attacker gathers information about a target, and learning it from the attacker's side is how a defender learns what to hide.

The three Security+ courses make up the spine of the program. The fourth term includes both a Security Capstone course and an IT Internship course, so you finish by applying the skills instead of ending on a lecture course. The internship gives you something concrete to talk about in an interview, though you should ask how students who are already employed arrange it.

The 61 credits are spread over 16-week semesters, which is the standard college rhythm and easy to plan around.

Courses the School Names

• Firewall
• Cryptography
• Intrusion Detection Systems
• Vulnerability Analysis
• Footprinting And Social Engineering
• Security Capstone

Standout Features

• Courses include three Security+ sequence courses (Security+ 1, 2 and 3)
• The IT - Information Security Certificate counts for 9 of the 61 degree credits
• Transfer guides lead to cybersecurity bachelor options at Lakeland University, UW-Stevens Point and Western Governors University

For 2026-2027 the college charges Wisconsin residents $157.45 per credit and out-of-state students $236.18 per credit. Over 61 credits that is $9,604.45 for residents and $14,406.98 for non-residents, before fees.

Fees add to that. There is a minimum $6.00 material fee and a $17.25 per credit activity fee. The program page puts tuition and fees at $10,587 and books and supplies at $672, about $11,259 in all, which is the number to use if you are a Wisconsin resident planning a budget.

If you already have security experience, Credit for Prior Learning could shorten the path and lower the bill. Ask what evidence the college wants and how many credits it will award.

61 credits at $236.18 a credit comes to $14,407 in tuition, before fees. At the in-state rate of $157.45, the same 61 credits come to $9,604.

The degree is fully online and runs on 16-week semesters. Because the fourth term holds both a capstone and an internship course, expect that term to be the busiest.

The college is mid-sized, with 6,746 students, and 24% of its undergraduates study exclusively online. Ask the program office how the labs behind Firewall and Intrusion Detection Systems are delivered, and whether you will need to be on campus for any exam.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• Out-of-state students pay $236.18 per credit, which is $14,406.98 in tuition before fees.
• A $17.25 per credit activity fee and a minimum $6.00 material fee push the real bill above the tuition line.
• The fourth term packs a capstone and an internship together, so plan your work schedule around it.
• Credits from a technical degree may not all transfer, so confirm each bachelor's school's rules.

• How do the Firewall and Intrusion Detection Systems labs work for online students?
• Does the Security+ exam voucher come with the courses, or do I buy it separately?
• How do working students arrange the IT Internship course in the fourth term?
• What counts as evidence for Credit for Prior Learning, and how many credits can I earn?
• If I start with the IT Information Security Certificate, how do I move into the degree without losing the 9 credits?
• Which courses transfer to Lakeland University, UW-Stevens Point or Western Governors University?

A public technical college in Wausau, Wisconsin.

• Best Programs With Internships Rank 5 of 10, associate
• Best Programs With Certifications Rank 9 of 10, associate
• Best Online Programs in Wisconsin Rank 3 of 3, associate

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