Department of Computer Science - Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity

z-2020-2021 Program-NEW - Full Proposal (Major or Certificate)

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General Catalog Information
Next

  • Select Program below.

    Shared Cores are available in Acalog for shared information in program curriculum.

  • Type of Program *

  • **Read before you begin**

    1. Please turn on the help text before starting this proposal by clicking on the icon in the top right corner of the heading. Items with help text indicating format should be typed in the exact format as the help text (excluding the quote marks).
    2. Once all required fields have been filled in, click in the upper left corner, to launch proposal.
    3. Once you have launched the proposal form you can then begin editing imported fields, adding justifications, etc. All changes from that point will be tracked. Optionally, you may also attach syllabi or any additional supporting documents by clicking on the Proposal Toolbox icon.  . Please be aware that forms submitted without appropriate justifications will be returned to the proposer without consideration.
  • Status*
  • Identify Purpose of Proposal*
  • BASIC INFORMATION
  • College*
  • Department*
    (e.g. Department, Division, School)
  • Program Level*
  • Title of Proposed Degree Program*
    Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity
    Bachelor of Science in Cybersecurity
  • Provide Catalog Program Description:*

    A major in cybersecurity requires 80 credit hours of coursework based on a strong core of computer information technology, computer science and business information systems courses supplemented with courses covering cross-cutting topics like ethics, communication and risk management.  The primary objective of the program is to educate future cybersecurity professionals who understand the processes and technologies needed to secure the information infrastructure of a modern organization.

  • Does this proposal require TEC approval?*

  • Substantive Change:  Please use the following link to determine if this will constitute a SACCOC substantive change to NKU's current curriculum.   Substantive Change Form
    This form must be filled out, signed by the submitter and appropriate Dean (or Designee), and uploaded to this curriculog proposal.  If you have question about this form please contact the SACSCOC Liaison, Abdou Ndoye at ndoyea2@nku.edu or 859-572-5379

  • What previously approved NKU programs are closely related to this new program and how are they related?

    The BS in Cybersecurity utilizes existing courses from several departments.  The closest related programs are the BS in Computer Information Technology (CIT), which has a Cybersecurity track, and the BS in Computer Science.  The CIT Cybersecurity track prepares students for work as cybersecurity analysts but does not prepare students for other cybersecurity roles such as cybersecurity engineer or architect, or roles in which the security specialist requires additional knowledge of computer science or business.  The BS in Cybersecurity goes well beyond the 9 security-specific hours found in the CIT Cybersecurity track. 

  • Will this constitute a SACSCOC Substantive Change?*
  • Degree Level*
  • If Certificate, select appropriate option
  • Program Type*
  • Degree Type*
  • Name of Program Director*
    James Walden
    James Walden
  • Intended Date of Implementation*
    Spring 2020
    Spring 2020
  • Anticipated Date for Granting First Degrees*
    Fall 2021
    Fall 2021
  • Evaluation Criteria

  • All actions in the approval of new programs for public institutions are subject to a stipulation regarding the program’s ability to attain specified goals that have been established by the institution and approved by the Council on Postsecondary Education (the Council). At the conclusion of an appropriate period of time, the program’s performance shall be reviewed by Council staff following criteria established in the Council’s Academic Programs Policy.

  • MISSION

  • Centrality to the Institution’s Mission and Consistency with State’s Goals

    A program will adhere to the role and scope of the institution as set forth in its mission statement and as complemented by the institution’s strategic plan.

    Follow this link to view the state's postsecondary education strategic agenda.

  • 1. List the objectives of the proposed program. These objectives should deal with the specific institutional and societal needs that this program will address.*

    The primary objective of the program is to produce cybersecurity professionals who understand the processes and technologies needed to secure the information  infrastructure of a modern organization.

    These objectives should deal with the specific institutional and societal needs that this program will address.
  • 2. Explain how the proposed program relates to the institutional mission and academic strategic plan. *

    This program will improve career readiness and employability of university graduates by educating them as professionals who will address the critical need for cybersecurity skills across the state, region, and nation.

  • 3. Explain how the proposed program addresses the state’s postsecondary education strategic agenda.*

    This program will encourage more students taking advantage of this postsecondary cybersecurity education opportunity in order to fill computer and information security workforce shortages. It will also guide students to a successful cybersecurity oriented career path to help secure critical information infrastructure of Kentucky and other regions of the nation.

  • 4. Explain how the proposed program furthers the statewide implementation plan.

    This program will encourage more students to take advantage of this postsecondary cybersecurity education opportunity in order to fill computer and information security workforce shortages. It will also guide students to a successful cybersecurity oriented career path to help secure critical information infrastructure of Kentucky and other regions of the nation.

  • Program Quality and Student Success

  • The curriculum should be structured to meet the stated objectives and student learning outcomes of the program.

  • 1. List all student learning outcomes of the program.
    <p>Assess risks to an organization&#39;s information infrastructure using appropriate standards and effectively communicate those risks to decision makers.</p>
    <p>Identify and deploy appropriate security controls to mitigate risks.</p>
    <p>Design, implement, and evaluate the security of software systems.</p>
    <p>Employ principles and best practices of cybersecurity in response to cyber incidents.</p>
    <p>Explain ethical and legal issues involved in security and privacy.</p>
    List all student learning outcomes for the program.
  • 2. Explain how the curriculum achieves the program-level student learning outcomes by describing the relationship between the overall curriculum or the major curricular components and the program objectives. *

    Outcome 1: achieved primarily through CIT 285 Cybersecurity Fundamentals, CYS 310 Cybersecurity Risk Management, and CIT 430 Computer Forensics. These 3 courses at 3 different levels give students different opportunities and angles on learning risk assessment and communicating risks to decision makers.

    Outcome 2: achieved primarily through CIT 285 Cybersecurity Fundamentals, CYS 444 Software Security,  and CIT 485 Advanced Cybersecurity. These 3 courses at 3 different levels give students knowledge on security controls and applying these security controls to mitigate risks.

    Outcome 3: achieved primarily through CIT 285 Cybersecurity Fundamentals, CSC 482 Computer Security, CYS 444 Software Security and MAT 483 Cryptography. Students learn and practice on secure software design, secure coding,  crypotography, code review, and software vulnerability analysis through these courses.

    Outcome 4: achieved primarily through CIT 285 Cybersecurity Fundamentals, CYS 330 Intro. to Ethical Hacking, and CIT 430 Computer Forensics. This sequence of courses give students the technical knowdge and process on correctly handling cybersecurity incidents.

    Outcome 5: achieved primarily through PHI 310 Information Ethics, CYS 330 Intro. to Ethical Hacking, and CIT 485 Advanced Cybersecurity. This sequence of courses gives students knowledge on ethical and legal issues involved in security and privacy.

    See the table below showing the mapping of SLO to course.

    SLO Introductory Enhanced Mastery
    1 CIT 285 Cybersecurity fundamentals CYS 310 Cybersecurity Risk Management CIT 480 Computer Forensics
    2 CIT 285 Cybersecurity fundamentals CYS 444 Software Security CIT 485 Adv. Cybersecurity
    3 CIT 285 Cybersecurity fundamentals CSC 482 Computer Security CYS 444 Software Security
    4 CIT 285 Cybersecurity fundamentals CYS 350 Intro to Ethical Hacking CIT 430 Computer Forensics
    5 PHI 310 Information Ethics CYS 350 Intro to Ethical Hacking CIT 485 Adv. Cybersecurity

     

    Describe the relationship between the overall curriculum or the major curricular components and the program objectives.
  • 3. Highlight any distinctive qualities of this proposed program*

    This program is designed to meet the Department of Homeland Security/National Security Agency (DHS/NSA) curriculum requirements for certification as a Center of Academic Excellence (CAE) in Cyber Defense Education. While NKU is currently designated as a CAE, creating an undergraduate degree program in cybersecurity is important to ensure NKU will keep up with the continual expansion of educational criteria required to maintain CAE status. This program will be the first and only undergraduate cybersecurity degree offered by a CAE in Kentucky.

    The content of the degree is also unique. In particular, the combination of business and technical skills in the B.S. cybersecurity degree is a unique combination driven by guidance from the advisory board for NKU’s Center for Information Security, which is responsible for coordinating educational and research activities in cybersecurity. 

  • 4. Will this program replace any existing program(s) or concentrations within an existing program?*
  • If yes, please specify.

    This program does not replace any existing program. This program will help enhance existing Business Informatics, Computer Science, Computer Information Technology, Mathematics and Statistics programs at NKU as this program will boost enrollment of corresponding courses in the above mentioned programs that are part of this program curriculum. This program will also help provide potential elective courses for these existing programs.

  • 5. Include the projected faculty/ student in major ratio

    10 faculty for 200 students (approx)

  • 6. Is there a specialized accrediting agency related to this program?*
  • If yes, identify the agency
    Department of Homeland Security / National Security Agency
    Department of Homeland Security / National Security Agency

  • 7. Upload the SACS Faculty Roster Form in the Proposal Toolbox . Faculty resources shall be demonstrated to be adequate and appropriate for the proposed program. The number of faculty should meet external standards where appropriate. The qualifications of faculty will support the objectives and curriculum of the proposed program.

  • Attached
    Pull From Digital Measures

  • Access to the qualitative and quantitative library resources must be appropriate for the proposed program and should meet recognized standards for study at a particular level or in a particular field where such standards are available. Adequacy of electronic access, library facilities, and human resources to service the proposed program in terms of students and faculty will be considered.

  • 8.a. Describe the library resources available to support this program. You may attach any documentation provided to SACS*

    The NKU Steely Library provides adequate resources in the form of online journals, reference texts, and texbooks to support this program. In addition, NKU has interlibrary loan services that will allow students to get additional cybersecurity study resources.

  • Describe the physical facilities and instructional equipment available to support this program. Physical facilities and instructional equipment must be adequate to support a high quality program. The proposal must address the availability of classroom, laboratory, and office space as well as any equipment needs.

  • 8.b. Describe the physical facilities and instructional equipment available to support this program*

    All classes will be offered within the state-of-the-art facilties in Griffin Hall of College of Informatics which includes smart classrooms, Networking Lab, Virtualization Lab, Cyber Threat Intelligence Lab, and high speed WiFi access.

  • 9. Clearly state the admission, retention, and completion standards designed to encourage high quality*

    Admission: The program follows NKU’s admission standards, i.e., successful completion of Kentucky's pre-college curriculum and standard test score meeting CPE college readiness standards. If a propective student standardized test score falls below the CPE college readiness standards, the student will be required to take a College Placement Test to determine proper placement in English, math, and/or reading prior to course registration.

    CPE Placement Standards

    ACT:  English 18, Math 19, Reading 20

    SAT: Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 480, Math 500

    Retention: College centralized student academic advising & student course success markers.

    Completion: Students need to have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA on all work attempted at NKU. Students must earn a grade of C- or better in each course that counts as part of this program. Students also need to fulfill NKU’s Bachelor’s degree requirements in order to complete this program.

  • 10. Clearly state the degree completion requirements for the program*

    Students need to complete 120 credits hours to complete this major.  The 120 hours consist of 80 hours within the major, 37 hours of general education coursework, 45 hours of advanced (3xx/4xx) coursework and a secondary area of study.  The secondary area of study is automatically provided as embedded minors in both computer information technology and computer science are contained within the major.  The 80 hours comprise 74 hours in the core and 6 hours of elective courses.  The major includes 6 hours of general education coursework, two embedded minors, and more than 45 advanced hours.  Therefore, the BS in Cybersecurity student will have 80 hours in the major + 31 hours of additional general education coursework.  The student will then have 9 hours of free electives to complete the 120 hours for graduation.

    General Education:  31 (6 additional hours are core requirements)

    Cybersecurity Coursework:  80

    Free electives:  9

  • 11. Provide the following information for the program and for each concentration (some categories may not apply to all programs):

  • Total number of hours required for degree (incuding General Education credits)*
    120
    120
  • Number of hours in degree program core*
    74
    74
  • Number of hours in concentration*
    0
    0
  • Number of hours in guided electives*
    6
    6
  • Number of hours in free electives*
    0
    0

  • 12. Describe how the proposed program will articulate with related programs in the state. It should describe the extent to which student transfer has been explored and coordinated with other institutions.

    Attach all draft articulation agreements related to this proposed program in the Proposal Toolbox .

  • Describe how the proposed program will articulate with related programs in the state*

    NKU has a basis for transfer in our existing articulation agreement for the  KCTCS Associate of Applied Science in Computer and Information Technologies – Information Security Track to Bachelor of Science in Computer Information Technology at NKU. Many of the classes in this new program are included in the existing agreement. NKU Computer Science Department Chair Maureen Doyle initiated an articulation conversation in May 2019 asking our partners at KCTCS for creating a pathway into our new cybersecurity program. We will work on course mappings for the articulation agreement of this cybersecurity program once the cybersecurity program is approved.

    It should describe the extent to which student transfer has been explored and coordinated with other institutions.

  • 13. List courses under the appropriate curricular headings, Then follow the directions below to create proposed curriculum in Proposal.  Click here to download the course template.

    Prospective Curriculum Field

    Step 1

    There are two options to add courses for proposed changes: "Add Course" and "Import Course." For courses that already are in the catalog, click on "Import Course" and find the courses needed. For new classes that are in the Curriculog Approval Process click on "Add Course"-- a box will open asking you for the Prefix, Course Number and Course Title.

    Step 2

    Click on  "View Curriculum Schema." Click on "Add Core" which will be the header for your course groups of the program. After creating the different sections you can proceed to assign courses in each header by clicking on "Add Courses" this will bring up the list of courses available from Step 1. Select the courses you wish to add and reorder as needed by dragging courses. For removing courses click on the .

    Commonly used headers: Degree Requirements, Core Courses, Electives.

  • Prospective Curriculum*
  • Attached*
  • Delivery Method*
  • 14. Will this program utilize alternative learning formats (e.g. distance learning, technology-enhanced instruction, evening/weekend classes, accelerated courses)? *
  • 14.a. Describe planned alternative methods of program delivery you checked, involving greater use of technology, distance education, and/or accelerated degree designs, to increase efficiency, better address student educational and workforce needs, and maximize student success, for both traditional and non-traditional students.

    This proposed program is a hybrid program utilizing both face-to-face and distance education methods for addressing student educational and workface needs, and maximize student success.

     

Demand
Next

  • Program Demand/Unnecessary Duplication

    Proposed programs must respond to the needs of the academy and to larger economic and social environments. Thus, the institution must demonstrate demand for the proposed program. All proposed programs must address student demand. Programs must also address either employer demand or academic disciplinary needs.

  • 1. Student Demand

  • a. Provide evidence of student demand. Evidence of student demand is typically in the form of surveys of potential students or enrollments in related programs at the institution, but other methods of gauging student demand are acceptable. *

    We have seen strong interest in the Cybersecurity track of the Computer Information Technology degree, which was initially offered in 2016. As of spring 2019, the Cybersecurity track is the highest enrolled track in the BS/CIT degree. 

    The BS/CIT Cybersecurity track focuses on teaching students to work as security analysts.  Students interested in other cybersecurity career paths, such as security engineer or architect roles, do not have a program that serves their needs.

    Participation in NKU’s cyberdefense team, with many students attending the weekly Friday night practices that cover material beyond the BS/CIT curriculum, demonstrates interest in cybersecurity knowledge beyond what is currently offered in our curriculum.

    Typically in the form of surveys of potential students and/or enrollments in related programs at the institution.
  • b. Identify the applicant pool and how students will be reached. *

    The applicant pool consists of traditional high school students and US veterans who are seeking to advance their career in cybersecurity. We plan to have high school visits, college fairs, and advertising events to help reach prospective students of this program.

  • c. Describe the student recruitment and selection process. *

    We plan to have multiple recruitment events such as Norse Days, Welcome Wednesdays, the College of Informatics Showcase, high school camps at NKU, high school visits, and collaboration with InterAlliance for student recruitment. The student selection process follows NKU admission standards.

  • d. Identify the primary feeders for the program.*

    Local high school, community colleges with articulation agreements, and other community colleges.

  • e. Provide any evidence of a projected net increase in total student enrollments to the campus as a result of the proposed program*

    We estimate about 30 new students plus 20 existing students transferring from related programs in year 1, up to a stable population of 200 students by year 4. This is based upon the demand for professionals in this field and the attraction to this major which is not replicated at other colleges of universities. This yields a net of 30 new students per year, or 120 after 4 years.

  • f. Project extimated demand for the first five years of the program.
  • Degrees Conferred
  • Degr Conferred Year 1
    0
    0
  • Degr Conferred Year 2
    15
    15
  • Degr Conferred Year 3
    30
    30
  • Degr Conferred Year 4
    75
    75
  • Degr Conferred Year 5
    100
    100
  • Majors (Headcount - Fall Semester
  • Major Headcount Fall Semester Year 1
    50
    50
  • Major Headcount Fall Semester Year 2
    100
    100
  • Major Headcount Fall Semester Year 3
    150
    150
  • Major Headcount Fall Semester Year 4
    200
    200
  • Major Headcount Fall Semester Year 5
    200
    200

  • 2. Employer Demand:

    Clearly describe evidence of employer demand. Such evidence may include employer surveys, current labor market analyses, and future human resources projections. Where appropriate, evidence should demonstrate employers’ preferences for graduates of the proposed program over persons having alternative existing credentials and employers’ willingness to pay higher salaries to graduates of the proposed program.

    Attach additional documentation in Proposal Toolbox.

    Data provided in tables should be uploaded in the proposal toolbox.

  • a. Describe the types of jobs available for graduates, average wages for these jobs, and the number of anticipated openings for each type of jobs. *

    According to our employer survey results, 94% employers said that they have difficulty in finding/hiring qualified cybersecurity professionals. 98% employers responded that they are interested in hiring future NKU graduates with Bachelor of Science degree in Cybersecurity. 94% employers think that the region needs more cybersecurity specialists and the proposed program will fulfill those needs. 98% employers think that Kentucky has a critical need for cybersecurity skills and students graduating with this Cybersecurity Degree from NKU address this critical need in the state. 98% employers think that students graduating with this Cybersecurity Degree also address the critical need in US.

    The following type of cybersecurity job roles are currently employed at the employers surveyed (The list is ranked based on the percentage of response counts from employers):

    1. System Security Analyst                                    (21.59%)

    2. Product/Software Security Engineer                (19.89%)

    3. Penetration Tester                                            (17.61%)

    4. Cyber Defense Analyst                                      (15.34%)

    5. Cyber Defense Infrastructure Support Analyst(15.34%)

    6. Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst                      (10.23%)

    Based on the survey, employers are very concerned about the skill gap in cybersecurity. Cybersecurity will remain one of the greatest growth areas in the future. No matter whether companies are going to the public cloud, private cloud, or using their own data center, cybersecurity graduates will fill an ever growing gap in security. The survey shows that this proposed program will be a huge benefit to the region and the nation. It will also be a key differentiator for the College of Informatics at NKU from the other universities in the area.

    Type of jobs available for graduates are:

    1. System Security Analyst

    2. Product/Software Security Engineer

    3. Penetration Tester

    4. Cyber Defense Analyst

    5. Cyber Defense Infrastructure Support Analyst

    6. Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst

    Based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov), the percentile annual wage estimates for security analyst are $73, 890 (25% percentile), $98,350 (50% percentile, median), and $126, 870 (75% percentile). These figures were taken from the website in September, 2019.

    According to the Department of Homeland Security’s Cyberseek project (www.cyberseek.org), the state of Kentucky has 5225 security workers and 1644 unfilled security jobs, while the Greater Cincinnati metropolitan region has 4410 security workers and 1410 unfilled security jobs. These figures were taken from the web site in April 2019.

    According the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), U.S. employers posted an estimated 313,735 job openings for cybersecurity workers between September 2017 and August 2018. The total U.S. cybersecurity workforce at the time had approximately 715,000 workers.

    Industry reports such as the (ISC)2 2017 Global Information Security Workforce Study also indicate a severe cybersecurity talent shortage. A projected 1.8 million cybersecurity positions will remain unfilled worldwide by year 2022.

  • 3.  Academic Disciplinary Needs:

    If the program proposal is in response to changes in academic disciplinary need, as opposed to employer demand, please outline those changes. Explain why these changes to the disciple necessitate development of a new program.

  • Clearly describe all evidence justifying a new program based on changes in the academic discipline or other academic reasons*

    N/A, this program is being proposed to fulfill employer demand and a lack of this specific curriculum.

  • 4. Similar Programs:

    A new program may serve the same potential student population. The proposed program must be sufficiently different from existing programs in the state or access to existing programs must be sufficiently limited to warrant initiation of a new program.

    Identify similar programs in other Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states and in the nation.

    If similar programs exist in Kentucky,

  • a. Are there similar programs in other Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states and in the nation? *
  • Please identify similar programs in other SREB states and in the nation.

    The program that comes closest in content to the proposed program is NKU’s own Bachelor of Computer Information Technology Cybersecurity track. While the Cybersecurity track prepares students for work as a cybersecurity analyst, it does not prepare students for other roles like cybersecurity engineer or architect positions that require additional computer science and business knowledge.

    The second closest program is Eastern Kentucky University’s (EKU) new Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity B.S. degree. EKU’s program focuses on digital forensics, cybersecurity and cybercrime investigation.  NKU’s program will focus on business risk management, ethical hacking and secure software development.

    There are no B.S. cybersecurity programs in the Greater Cincinnati metropolitcan area where NKU is located. University of Cincinnati does have a cybersecurity track in their B.S. Information Technology program, which is similar to NKU’s BS/CIT cybersecurity track described above.

  • b. Please identify any similar programs exist at public institutions in Kentucky.

    As noted above in part a, EKU has a program in Digital Forensics and Cybersecurity.

  • c. Does the proposed program differ from existing programs? *
    (i.e., students in a different geographic area)
  • If yes, please explain

    Please refer back to the answer in part a.

  • d. Does the proposed program serve a different student population (i.e., students in a different geographic area) from existing programs?
  • If yes, please explain.

    NKU is in a different geographical region from EKU.

  • e. Is access to existing programs limited?*
  • If yes, please explain
  • f. Is there excess demand for existing similar programs?*
  • If yes, please explain
  • g. Will there be collaboration between the proposed program and existing programs?*
  • If yes, please explain the collaborative arrangements with existing programs

    NKU and EKU communicate regularly and have worked together on cybersecurity initiatives in the past, with faculty and students from both institutions attending events and conferences at the other university. NKU plans to continue and expand on this collaboration.

  • If no, please explain why there is no proposed collaboration with existing programs
  • Advanced Practice Doctorates

  • If the proposed program is an advanced practice doctorate, please address the following 5 questions.  If not, skip to the COST/FUNDING section.

    For submission to CPE you will need to attach the following, additional documentation, in the Proposal Toolbox. 

    1. Letter of commitment from each clinical site that specifies the number of students to be accommodated and identifies other academic programs that also use the facilities.

    2. Letter from each institution with a similar program stating that the proposed program will not negatively impact the existing program.

  • 1. Does the curriculum include a clinical or experiential component?
  • If yes, list and discuss the natureand appropriateness of available clinical sites.
  • 2. Describe how the doctorate builds upon the reputation and resources of the existing master’s degree program in the field.
  • 3. Explain the new practice or licensure requirements in the profession and/or requirements by specialized accrediting agencies that necessitate a new doctoral program.
  • 4. Explain the impact of the proposed program on undergraduate education at the institution. Within the explanation, note specifically if new undergraduate courses in the field will be needed.
  • 5. Provide assurance that funding for the program will not impair funding of any existing program at any other public university.
COST/FUNDING
Next

  • The resource requirements and planned sources of funding of the proposed program must be detailed in order to assess the adequacy of the resources to support a quality program. This assessment is to ensure that the program will be efficient in its resource utilization and to assess the impact of this proposed program on the institution’s overall need for funds.

  • 1. Will this program require additional resources?*
  • If yes, provide a brief summary of additional resources that will be needed to implement this program over the next five years

    One (1) already hired cybersecurity faculty member will start in spring 2020. With increasing enrollments, we anticipate needing one (1) more faculty member in year 4. We will need time from existing administrative staff and will also need one student assistant for 20 hours/week. 

  • 2. Will this program impact existing programs and/or organizational units within your institution?*
  • If yes, please describe the impact

    We may see some current CSC and CIT Cybersecurity students as well as future students who might have selected CSC or CIT Cybersecurity enrolling in the BS in Cybersecurity.  However, we anticipate a net increase in enrollment within the department as a whole as a result of the BS in Cybersecurity.

  • 3. Provide adequate documentation to demonstrate sufficient return on investment to the state to offset new costs and justify approval for the proposed program.

    Please see the following cost/funding explanation for details. The program will generate positive return on investment starting from year 2. The year 3, year 4, and year 5 estimated net positive return on investment is $296,919.38, $503,419.38,  and $500,919.38 respectively.

    The tables for funding sources, expenses/requirements are combined and attached.

     

  • Complete the Funding Sources, by year of program template and Breakdown of Budget Expenses/Requirements template tables for the first five years of the proposed program and provide an explanation of how the institution will sustain funding needs, attach document in Proposal Toolbox. *The total funding and expenses in the table should be the same, or explain sources(s) of additional funding for the proposed program.

    Links to the Funding Source and Budget Expenses/Requirement Templates are:

    A.  Funding Source Template

    B.  Budget Expenses/Requiement Breakdown Template

  • Attached
  • Attached
PROGRAM REVIEW AND ASSESSMENT
Next

  • Describe program evaluation procedures for the proposed program. These procedures may include evaluation of courses and faculty by students, administrators, and departmental personnel as appropriate. Program review procedures shall include standards and guidelines for the assessment of student outcomes implied by the program objectives and consistent with the institutional mission.

    For each assessment method, please provide direct indicators of achievement of program-level student learning outcomes and frequency of data collection:

  • 1.a. Which components will be evaluated?*

    The BS Cybersecurity Program Committee and the department dedicated program assessment coordinator will be responsible for assessing the program on the same schedule as other four-year degree programs at NKU are assessed, and for evaluating student learning outcomes.  The quality of the program will be tracked by:

    • Graduation/completion rate data
    • Employer surveys
    • Graduate surveys
    • A review/feedback process managed by the NKU Center for Information Security Advisory Board
    • Full curriculum review on a standard five-year cycle according to NSA/DHS CAE criteria (as NKU is a national center for Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education designated by NSA and Department of Homeland Security)
    • Full progam review on a standard five-year cycle according to Kentucky CPE criteria
    • End-of-semester evaluations by students
    • All 5 program SLOs will be evaluated at introductory, enhanced, and mastery levels. 
  • 1.b. When will the components be evaluated?*

    The five student learning outcomes will be evaluated in a 3-year cycle. We will evaluate one to two learning outcomes during each year of the 3-year assessment cycle.  Other aspects of the program (grdauation data, etc) will be collected when available and assessed during the 5-year review period.

  • 1.c. When will the data be collected?*

    Course-level assessment data will be collected during spring and fall semesters based on the rotation of SLO assessment.  Based on data collected, the program will be reviewed annually based on assessment results every fall semester.

  • 1.d. How will the data be collected?*

    Each course in the assessment cycle will have instruments (projects, programs, exam questions, homeworks).  The instruments will be collected for each course being assessed in that semester.  Student results (performance on the instruments) will be collected by the faculty teaching those courses.  Other data will be collected through Institutional Research and surveys.

  • 1.e. What will be the benchmarks and/or targets to be achieved?*

    Course learning outcomes will be set by the faculty (and confirmed by the BS cybersecurity program committee). 

    Yi and Maureen need to fill this in.

  • 1.f. What individuals or groups will be responsible for data collection?

    The program assessment coordinator in the department will be responsible for scheduling the assessment rotation and will notify intructors who need to collect assessment data for a specific academic semester.  The BS in Cybersecurity program director will be responsible for ensuring all data is collected and submitted.

     

  • 1.g. How will the data and findings be shared with faculty?

    The assessment data and findings will be shared with faculty members in the program annually (every fall).  During this review, all faculty members teaching in the program will be asked to suggest improvements to the program based on assessment results.  The data and findings will also be discussed at departmental meeting to gather feedback for assessment.

     

  • 1.h. How will the data be used for making programmatic improvements?*

    For student learning outcomes, the assessment results show the number of students meeting learning outcomes.  The departmental faculty will review these results and suggest course-level changes such as new assignments, changes to curricula and improved course delivery mechanisms. 

  • 2. What are the measures of teaching effectiveness?*

    This is achieved through the combinations of course evaluation and student learning outcome assessment.

     

  • 3. What efforts to improve teaching effectiveness will be pursued based on these measures?*

    Program assessment results will be shared with faculty teaching in the program.  Students’ feedback from course evaluation will be used together with program assessment results for generating approaches for course improvements.  Given the assessment results and student feedback, best practices will be applied to determine strategies for improving teaching effectiveness.  Further, peer coaching will be used when available and applicable.

  • 4. What are the plans to evaluate students’ post-graduate success?*

    Program alumni survey and empolyer survey will be utilized for evaluating students’ post-graduate success.

VPUAA Processes
Next
  • CIP Code
    11.1003
    11.1003
  • BOR Approval Date
    January 15, 2020
    January 15, 2020
  • CPE Final Approval Date
    3/27/2020
    3/27/2020
  • CPE ID
    14937
    14937

  • User Tracking

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