Northwood University Online Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity

Northwood's Bachelor of Science is the full-length version of its online cybersecurity degree: 120 credits, one six-week course at a time, and a flat $525 per credit that comes to $63,000. Choose it if you are starting college from scratch or bringing in few credits. If you already have an associate-level base, compare it with Northwood's 90-credit applied science version before you pay for 30 more credits.

Northwood University is a private, business-focused school in Midland, Michigan, with online and on-campus options. The Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity is 120 credits, and online classes start every six weeks. You take one course at a time, which means each six-week block has your full attention.

Admission requires a high school diploma or GED. Transfer students send college transcripts, and the GRE and GMAT are not required. Northwood also runs a Credit for Prior Learning program that awards credit for validated college-level skills learned outside a classroom.

The same university offers a Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity at 90 credits. This page is about the 120-credit Bachelor of Science.

Northwood Online charges $525 per credit hour for 2026 to 2027, or $1,575 for each 3-credit course. Over 120 credits, tuition comes to $63,000. Estimated inclusive book access adds $30 per credit hour.

The same rate applies whether you study online or on campus, so there is no online discount or surcharge to calculate.

Credit for Prior Learning is the biggest way to lower this number. Each credit you earn that way is a credit you do not buy at $525. Ask for an assessment of your experience before you enroll.

120 credits at $525 a credit comes to $63,000 in tuition, before fees.

Who It Fits

• You prefer to concentrate on one subject at a time. The one-course, six-week rhythm avoids juggling several classes.
• You have work or military experience and want to turn it into credit through the Credit for Prior Learning program.
• You are interested in public service. Northwood students are eligible to apply for the CyberCorps Scholarship for Service.
• You want hands-on practice in the final stretch of the degree. The program describes an ethical hacking project where you build and manage an organization's security posture from start to finish.

Who Should Skip It

• You are bringing in lots of college credit and want the shortest path. The 90-credit applied science degree at the same per-credit price is worth a look first.
• You want a published internship requirement. The page for the Bachelor of Applied Science states one, but this page does not.
• You want a concentration to specialize in. This degree lists none.
• You want a large online student body. Federal data shows 47% of Northwood's undergraduates study exclusively online.

The courses the program lists are Cybersecurity Principles, Scripting, Cryptography, Network Security (Red Team/Blue Team) and Ethical Hacking. The path is clear: start with principles, learn to automate with scripts, understand the math of encryption, practice both attacking and defending a network, and finish by testing systems ethically.

The Red Team and Blue Team course is the one to look at closely. Red teams play the attacker and blue teams defend, and doing both gives you a view of an incident from each side.

The degree finishes with the Technology Capstone Project, course MIS 4500, which draws on all of your major courses. The ethical hacking project described by the school is a real-world exercise, so it can also serve as something to describe in interviews.

Courses the School Names

• Cybersecurity Principles
• Scripting
• Cryptography
• Network Security (Red Team/Blue Team)
• Ethical Hacking

Standout Features

• Credit for Prior Learning program awards credit for validated college-level skills gained outside the classroom
• Eligible to apply for the CyberCorps Scholarship for Service
• Ethical hacking project building and managing an organization's security posture from start to finish
• National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity designation, jointly awarded by the NSA and DHS, according to Northwood

The format is simple. A new class starts every six weeks, and you take one course at a time. If you miss a start, the next one is a month and a half away, not a semester.

That structure suits adults who do better with a single deadline than with four at once. It also means a heavy week at work only affects one class.

Federal data shows 47% of undergraduates at Northwood study exclusively online. The completion rate for students who transferred in is 72.5% over eight years, which is a solid figure for an adult-friendly program.

You graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity. Northwood states that it holds a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity designation, jointly awarded by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

CyberCorps Scholarship for Service eligibility is the most distinctive credential note. That federal program pays tuition in exchange for government service after graduation, so it is worth reading the terms if public-sector work appeals to you.

Where this degree can lead: Cybersecurity Degree Jobs.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• The 120-credit total of $63,000 is more than the 90-credit applied science version at the same rate.
• No concentrations are listed.
• One course at a time is focused but leaves no way to double up.
• One course at a time is focused, but ask whether scheduled live sessions are part of each course.

• How many credits would my work or military experience earn through Credit for Prior Learning?
• Does this degree include an internship, and who approves it?
• Would I be better off in the 90-credit applied science degree given the credits I already have?
• How does the CyberCorps Scholarship for Service application work for online students?
• What tools and lab setup does the ethical hacking project use?

A private business-focused university that offers its cybersecurity degrees both on campus and through Northwood Online.

• Best Online Programs in Michigan Rank 2 of 6, bachelor's

• Bachelor of Applied Science in Cybersecurity

  B.A.S., Bachelor's

  Fully Online $525 per credit Score 51.5

• Dakota State University

  Cyber Leadership and Intelligence, BS

  South Dakota $373.80 per credit Score 51.7

• National University

  Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity

  California $640 per credit Score 51.9

• Indiana Institute of Technology

  Cybersecurity, B.S.

  Indiana Score 52.1

• University of Cincinnati

  Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity (Online)

  Ohio Score 50.8