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Ãå±±ÂÖ¼é Bachelor of Arts in Security Studies

Program Highlights

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120 credit hours |  In-state tuition: $420/credit hour | Out-of-state tuition: $540/credit hour

  • Convenient, fully online degree 
  • Faculty have practical experience in cyber security, homeland security, intelligence and national security, and/or security operations
  • Strong foundational curriculum is designed to meet the needs of security and intelligence agencies and the military 

PROGRAM ADMISSIONS REQUIREMENTS

A Unique Security Studies Degree

The need for highly qualified and competent security personnel is growing—this is why UTEP created its unique security studies bachelor's degree program. Students interested in working with homeland security, local law enforcement or cyber security will find security studies ideal. Many entry-level personnel in these areas, plus those in the military, also find that earning a degree in security studies could help them with career advancement.

The curriculum has been designed with security and intelligence agencies and the military in mind. A security studies bachelor's degree could help students:

  • Advance within law enforcement, the national security enterprise,  or the armed forces
  • Play a key part on the security team of a corporation
  • Work with national intelligence
  • Secure sensitive data belonging to corporations or government

Note: This is not a computer science degree. Cybersecurity differs from computer science in the following  ways: Computer science combines critical thinking with programming, networking and coding; on the other hand, cybersecurity deals with risk detection, analysis and prevention in information security.

Develop In-Demand Skills With Experienced Faculty

All of our faculty in the security studies program have practical experience in cyber security, homeland security, intelligence and national security, and security operations. They have designed the curriculum to meet the needs of the security and intelligence agencies and the military and will teach students a solid theoretical foundation plus critical thinking skills key for success in the industry. 

Work With Government Agencies

The government is a big employer in this area. Typical government employers include:

  • Central Intelligence Agency
  • Defense Intelligence Agency
  • Department of Defense
  • Department of Homeland Security
  • Department of State
  • Drug Enforcement Administration 
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation 
  • National Geospatial Intelligence Agency
  • National Security Agency 

Types of security studies jobs include:

  • Customs and border protection officer
  • Military officer
  • Cyber security specialist
  • Emergency management specialist
  • Intelligence collector
  • Federal special agent
  • Risk analyst
  • Intelligence analyst
  • Defense program analyst
  • Corporate security consultant
  • Security operations manager

The UTEP Career Center can assist graduates with a number of resources to help them pursue their career goals in the field of security studies. 

Additional resources from our blog: 

UTEP Edge

Our student success initiative, the UTEP Edge, develops upon students’ assets through a variety of high-impact experiences. These experiences are designed to improve student skills and give UTEP students a competitive advantage as they move forward in their lives and careers. Our goal as a campus is to provide these UTEP Edge experiences to all students, regardless of their area of study, so they will graduate with a competitive advantage over their peers. These are the Edge experiences Security Studies students will have and the Edge skills they will graduate with:

Edge Experiences

  • Student Leadership
  • Study Abroad/Study Away
  • Capstone Experience
  • Research and Scholarly Activities

Edge Skills

  • Global Awareness
  • Critical Thinking
  • Communication
  • Confidence

Learn more about UTEP Edge

Course Overview

The online security studies bachelor's degree has a comprehensive curriculum that provides a broad understanding of complex security problems and the relevancy of real world applications. It is our intention to give UTEP security studies graduates a competitive edge by providing the domain knowledge and analytical skills in demand by federal and private security employers.

Students take a full complement of required courses in English, mathematics, literature, social science, science, the arts, history, economics and other core subjects that provide a broad general education foundation. Click here to see the core curriculum.

The Bachelor of Arts in Security Studies explores the foundations of security studies in all its dimensions— geographic, historical, theoretical and strategic. Effective writing and quantitative skills are also emphasized as you ready yourself for advanced coursework in the following areas:

Security Studies Courses

Gain an introduction to history and security in the long twentieth century (ca.1870-2000); specifically examine major wars, diplomatic initiatives and military developments that proved significant to the international state system and develop a critical foundation for more advanced courses in security studies.

Examine why geographic knowledge is critical to U.S. national security. Analyze a wide variety of geographic issues including demography and climate change. Explore the geographic manifestations of terrorism and discuss the geographic importance of China, Russia, and Africa in the contemporary security environment.

Examine security from a global perspective and discuss security issues that transcend borders and which can only be adequately addressed through global security cooperation. Most of these global security issues are non-traditional in the sense that they are not directly related to traditional nation state competition and interstate war. Learn about the concept of “global security” and explore the key theories, concepts, and issues that fall under its domain, such as realism, liberalism, great power politics, regional issues and asymmetric conflict.

Learn how to employ specific stylistic requirements and lucid prose in order to communicate efficiently and clearly as a security professional in this undergraduate writing course. Use a “learning by doing” model to become skilled at conveying information to national security consumers in writing using both the Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF) paragraph format and the Conclusion Centric report format. Learn to write in a way that is accurate, brief and coherent.

Examine the basic statistical methods and the analytical techniques highly useful in security studies. Applications come from relevant intelligence and security examples. You will learn to illustrate the benefits of statistical thinking and develop a deeper conceptual understanding of complex security problems.

Focus on the application of power through strategy. Informed by theory and history, the use of military power is the primary focus, but you will also discuss and apply three other primary instruments of power: diplomatic, economic, and informational. You will learn to distinguish between hard versus soft power in the conduct of strategy and look at major challenges that impact the making of strategy: nuclear warfare, asymmetric warfare, and the changing environments across the domains of land, sea, air, space and cyberspace.

Study the process of intelligence and its role specifically in U.S. national security. Gain exposure to the theory and practice of intelligence. Special emphasis is placed upon understanding the major issues and challenges associated with the various intelligence disciplines and the organization of the U.S. Intelligence Community. At the end of the course, gain a better understanding of intelligence and be prepared to conduct more advanced study as it pertains to intelligence and national security

Gain an introduction to the history and organization of the Homeland Security Enterprise, particularly in terms of national, state and local policymaking. Examine all threats and hazards that confront the United States with a special emphasis on specific responses to terrorism; also study broader issues of emergency planning, risk analysis, incident command, and the protection of civil liberties.

Critically examine the ubiquitous nature of the cyber domain in U.S. national security. Study fundamental principles and case studies in cyber warfare to learn the importance of cyber power in national military strategy and in joint and combined operations, including defensive and offensive operations in cyberspace. Explore Russian and Chinese cyber warfare capabilities and operations in particular in addition to newly emerging threats from non-state actors.

Explore the fundamental principles of security operations and security management in the post-9/11 era with a special emphasis on personnel security, physical security, information security and industrial security. Also learn about risk assessment and management strategies within the context of homeland security environment.

Review the collection methodologies and analytic processes of U.S. intelligence agencies. Begin with a description of the basic collection disciplines and examples of their application in the field and move on to the processes and products of intelligence analysis. You will also apply the tools of analysis, including structure analytic techniques, to a current national security issue.

Study a wide variety of transnational threats/dangers and the actors, activities, or forces involved in their conduct; their impact on U.S. national security and the special challenges they pose for the Intelligence Community. Examine specific transnational threats such as WMD proliferation, terrorism, narcotics, and financial crime as both unique and interrelated phenomena. Conclude with an assessment of the Intelligence Community’s attempts to deal with these fluid and adaptable threats to our security.

Get a brief introduction to moral philosophy with a primary focus on applied ethics relevant to many aspects of national security. Study military ethics, intelligence ethics and bioethics; gain an awareness and sensitivity to ethical issues that you may encounter in daily work and learn how to resolve these complicated moral issues.

Examine the various fields of security protection, corporate security, asset protection, vulnerability and risk assessments with an emphasis on security management concepts, target hardening and other proactive activities for protecting critical infrastructures: the people, physical assets, and the communications/cyber systems that are indispensably necessary for both homeland and national security.

Study a wide range of cybersecurity concepts; topics include: computing, networking, and internetworking fundamentals; cyber threats and attack vectors; malware; risk analysis; and continuity planning. Learn about information security concepts such as access control, authentication, encryption, computer and network forensics, and security in Linux and Windows environments are covered. Also examine important legal issues related to information, computer, and network security. For students entering non-technical security careers, but who still need a basic understanding of how to protect information systems.

Synthesize student learning across the entire Security Studies curriculum in this capstone course. Produce a formal research paper with distinct applicability for U.S. national security to demonstrate a broad understanding of the theories, facts, and methods in this discipline. Focus your research on a critical security issue as a final preparation for future graduate studies or employment.

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