Best Online Cybersecurity and AI Degrees (2027)

Ten courses at $5,620 each, taught with practitioners from the Applied Physics Laboratory, government and defense. Seven concentrations let you aim at Cyber Operations, Space Cyber, Assured Autonomy or Cyber Artificial Intelligence, and the capstone research project is optional. Pick it if you want a specialty most programs don't offer and can meet the prerequisite courses with B- grades. Courses are priced steeply, so budget carefully.

Sam Houston splits into a Cybersecurity track or an Artificial Intelligence track, then lets you finish with a thesis or a non-thesis master's project. Coursework includes Operating System Security, Database Security and Business Continuity Management. Texas residents pay $320.25 per credit across 30 credits, so it fits a local who wants a public-university degree on a tight budget. Nonresidents pay $748.25, and fees come on top.

Capella blends security with applied AI, and its virtual labs put both to work on realistic scenarios before a capstone that follows 11 core courses. The coursework maps to CISSP, and eligible students get exam vouchers from CompTIA, Cisco and SAS. A CEH certification can save up to $8,770 through GuidedPath. It suits a certified professional who wants credit for it. Add $175 for the resource kit.

You can finish in one year and leave with a master's plus a graduate certificate in your chosen specialty. Two courses per eight-week term is a real load, but five starts a year keep the door open. Coursework lines up with Security+ and CEH, and the Fundamentals track admits people with no technology background. Expect an interview with the program director and a 500-word personal statement before you're accepted.

Marymount, in Arlington near Washington, D.C., has you working with Kali Linux and Wireshark in courses like Computer Network Defense and Applications of Cryptography. Human Factors in Cybersecurity adds the people side, and a Data Science or Digital Health track narrows your focus. Admission takes only transcripts and a professional resume, with no test scores listed. Graduates also get priority toward Marymount's doctoral program, which helps anyone eyeing research.

This is a management degree: 60 quarter credits at $420, or $25,200 in tuition, aimed at people who already work in IT. Learning labs simulate on-the-job situations, and courses include Ethical Hacking and Network Defense and Computer Forensics and Investigations. Concentrations in AWS cloud, artificial intelligence, data analytics or project management steer you toward a role. Plan on about 15 hours a week and roughly two years.

Regent gives online students access to the same multimillion-dollar cyber range on-campus students use, which is rare for a distance program. Four concentrations cover Practitioner, Artificial Intelligence, Management and Policy, and courses include Digital Systems Design and Forensics and Cybersecurity Compliance. With eight start dates a year, you can begin almost any season. Tuition is $20,850 for 30 credits, plus a $750 services fee each semester.

SNHU runs on eight-week terms, so you focus on a short burst of coursework, then reset. A course costs $1,062, which makes each term an easy cost to plan around. Labs give you practice with AI-assisted security tools, and the NSA has validated this degree as the school's cyber defense program of study. It fits a beginner with a busy schedule. A missed week costs more in a short term.

Ferris charges $534 per credit hour for your first two years and $582 for your last two, a plain number to plan around. The program is also offered face to face and in HyFlex, so you can move to live sessions if you want them.

Ferris says it is an NSA Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense and a Center of Digital Forensic Academic Excellence, which helps if investigations are your goal.

This degree is ABET-accredited and carries the NSA's Cyber Defense Education designation, so the credential holds up with employers. Core courses include Network Security and Digital Forensics, and concentrations reach beyond security into Artificial Intelligence, Data Management, Game Development and Supply Chain Management and Logistics. That breadth suits someone who wants options. The average student takes about four years, so expect a long haul.

Cybersecurity here is a focus area inside an IT bachelor's, so you can pair it with an AI and machine learning or cloud path if you're unsure. Security courses include Internet Security, Network Security, Cybercrime and Information Systems, and Computer Forensics. Tuition steps down from $380 to $323 per credit across 135 quarter credits, plus $100 per course. It's not a stand-alone security major.

Pick this if the data side of security appeals to you more than the network side. The college says you'll build skills in data mining, statistical modeling, anomaly detection, security monitoring and visualizing threat patterns with industry tools. It's a 65-credit associate degree with local internships, and the printed estimate is $14,235. A 3+1 pathway with Franklin University leads toward a bachelor's.