UNO Cybersecurity Program Ranked Highly for Military, Veteran Students

OMAHA - Military and veteran students looking to pursue a career in cybersecurity have no better, more affordable option than the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) according to a recent report from the Military Times.

Chosen as the nation's top cybersecurity program from a public university, UNO was ranked second overall in the country and the best program in the Midwest.

UNO was one of 10 programs identified by Military Times, the leading publication of military-related news for service members and their families, in the new rankings. UNO has also been ranked as one of the Top 10 overall universities, as well as having the nation's No. 1 business school, for military-affiliated students and their dependents.

The "Military Times 10 Best Cybersecurity Programs" list was compiled by evaluating public and private university programs on categories such as the number of cybersecurity degrees awarded per total student population, the number of computer science degrees awarded per total student population, accreditation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology and recognition by the NSA.

UNO student Kevin Sefcovic is a Navy veteran and Cybersecurity major.

Research affiliations with several federal government offices in partnership with the Nebraska Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) and Nebraska Applied Research Institute (NARI), including the NSA, Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Strategic Command, UNO's College of Information Science and Technology (IS&T), which houses UNO's cybersecurity program, is constantly applying classroom lessons to address real-world problems.

"It is an honor to be recognized by the Military Times for our work in cybersecurity education. We’re proud of our military and veteran students, and to provide them high-quality programs such as our cybersecurity degrees is one of our biggest priorities,” said Hesham Ali, dean of the College of IS&T. “Over the last decade, our cybersecurity programs have been offering students the most technically advanced education available. Being able to partner with government organizations like NSF allows us to offer even greater opportunities to our students.”

Students like Kevin Sefcovic, who came to UNO after leaving the Navy in 2014, have found a passion for defending the country from malicious attacks and infrastructual weaknesses. Sefcovic is also a member of the Office of Military and Veteran Services' "Vets in Tech Learning Community" (VTLC), which is a career-based learning community for military-affiliated students seeking a degree in STEM fields.

"As soon as I heard the NSA said that UNO was great, I thought, ‘If I want to work for the government… what better way is there to go about this?'"

Whether it's working with the National Science Foundation to research infrastructure instability or helping NATO establish a cybersecurity exercise, students of all backgrounds are getting one of the best cybersecurity education experiences in the country.

The full list of cybersecurity programs ranked by Military Times can be found here.

More information about UNO's cybersecurity program can be found here.

Academic resources for service members and their dependents, including learning communities, can be found at UNO's Office of Military and Veteran Services.