University at Albany Online Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Risk

This is the Albany degree for people who want to manage cyber risk, compliance and privacy as much as they want to defend networks. You pick a technical concentration or a health-privacy one, finish with an internship or thesis, and pay a New York public-university rate that is lower than most private schools charge.

The University at Albany (UAlbany) is a public research university in the State University of New York system, and its Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Risk is delivered fully online, with in-person and hybrid versions of the same degree offered to people who live nearby. You can study full time or part time.

The degree has 36 credits of coursework in the concentration you choose, followed by a 3-6-credit internship or thesis where you work on a real problem. UAlbany also states that the National Security Agency (NSA) designates it a Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity.

That is a school-level designation, not an approval of this one degree, but it tells you the university's cyber work has been reviewed by the federal program.

UAlbany has a second, separate master's that touches the same field. The Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity degree is listed under a different program page and is more investigative. This one is built around risk, policy and compliance, and that is the difference to weigh when you choose between them.

UAlbany publishes online graduate tuition and fees combined at $540.38 per credit for New York residents and $634.38 per credit for non-residents. Those figures are for students enrolled below 12 credits, which is how most working adults will study, and they apply to Fall 2026 or Spring 2027.

Multiply the rate by the credits you actually take, then add the 3-6 credits of internship or thesis. Ask whether the per-credit rate changes if you ever take 12 or more credits in a term, since the published figure is for part-time loads. Online rates here are only available if you are enrolled in an exclusively online program.

Who It Fits

• You work in, or want to move into, compliance, audit, governance or risk, and you want a master's that treats security as a management problem as well as a technical one.
• You work in a hospital, insurer or health-records office and want the Cybersecurity and Privacy of Health Information concentration, which is aimed at people without a heavy technical background.
• You live in New York and want the lower resident rate of $540.38 per credit.
• You want a thesis option, because you are thinking about doctoral study or research later.

Who Should Skip It

• You want a lab-heavy offensive security degree built around penetration testing and forensics. The Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity master's at the same school is closer to that, and so are programs with listed ethical hacking courses.
• You need to know the full course list, term length and start schedule before you apply. Ask for the course-by-course plan, the duration and the online class format before you apply.

The two concentrations are the real choice here. The technical one is called Cyber Risk Management and Compliance, and the school says it covers network security, application security, threat analysis, digital forensics and security operations. So even the risk-flavored track includes hands-on security topics, not only policy.

The second concentration is Cybersecurity and Privacy of Health Information, which the school describes as the non-technical option. It suits someone whose job is protecting patient records and meeting privacy rules rather than configuring firewalls.

Either way, the coursework is 36 credits, and then you complete a 3-6-credit internship or a thesis in which you solve a real-world problem. Ask for the current degree plan and compare the elective list to the jobs you want.

Standout Features

• Choice between a technical concentration and a policy and health-privacy concentration
• Rolling admission for fall, spring and summer
• UAlbany is designated a Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity by the NSA (school-level designation stated on the page)

The degree is available online, in person or hybrid, and you can be full time or part time. The online version is the one this site counts. Federal data shows 26% of UAlbany's graduate students study exclusively online, which is a much smaller online community than you would find at a school built around distance learning, so ask how many students are in your online sections.

Admission is rolling for fall, spring and summer, which means you can apply when you are ready rather than waiting for one deadline. The application asks for transcripts from every school you attended, two letters of recommendation, a resume and a personal statement.

Ask whether classes meet live or run on your own schedule, and request a sample online syllabus before you pay a deposit.

You graduate with a Master of Science in Cybersecurity and Risk. Plan to study for any certification, such as CISSP, separately, and ask the department whether the coursework maps onto one.

The NSA Center of Academic Excellence designation belongs to the university. It is useful on a resume for roles that touch federal work, but it does not by itself say anything about this program's courses.

The internship or thesis ending is the credential feature that matters most. An internship gives you a project and a reference. A thesis gives you a research paper and a faculty advisor, which helps if you want a doctorate.

Where this degree can lead: Cybersecurity Degree Jobs.

The full rubric is on the methodology page.

• Course list, duration and online class format are details to request from the department before you apply.
• Federal data shows 26% of graduate students at the school study exclusively online, a smaller share than at distance-first universities.
• The risk and compliance focus is a lighter fit for someone who wants a deeply technical offensive security degree.
• Out-of-state students pay $634.38 per credit.

• Can I see the current degree plan for each concentration, with course titles and the order they are offered in?
• Does the internship have to be arranged by me, or does the school place online students with employers?
• How is the thesis option approved, and who advises online students?
• Do classes meet live at set times, or can I finish coursework on my own schedule?
• How does this degree differ from your Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity master's, and can I switch if I change my mind?
• What does a full-time versus part-time path look like in semesters, and how does the per-credit rate change if I take 12 or more credits?

A public research university in the State University of New York system.

• Best Cybersecurity Management Degrees Rank 10 of 10, master's
• Best Cybersecurity Policy Degrees Rank 6 of 10, master's
• Best Thesis Option Programs Rank 3 of 9, master's
• Best Programs With Internships Rank 3 of 10, master's
• Best Online Programs in New York Rank 4 of 8, master's

• Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity

  B.S., Bachelor's

  Fully Online $424.46 per credit Score 59.3

• Master of Science in Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity

  M.S., Master's

  Fully Online $634.38 per credit Score 55.7

• Southern New Hampshire University

  Master of Science in Cybersecurity

  New Hampshire $659 per credit Score 55.6

• University of Illinois Springfield

  Master of Science in Cybersecurity Management

  Illinois Score 55.6

• American National University

  Master of Science in Cybersecurity

  Virginia $411 per credit Score 55.5

• Mercyhurst University

  Master of Science in Cyber Security

  Pennsylvania $1,132 per credit Score 55.5