Cyber Security Engineering is concerned with the development of cyber-resilient systems which include the protection of physical as well as computer and network systems. It requires a proactive approach in engineering design of physical systems with cyber security incorporated from the beginning of system development. Cyber security engineering is an important quantitative methodology to be used in all industries including transportation, energy, healthcare, infrastructure, finance, government (federal, state, and local), and defense. The program is focused on the cyber security engineering of integrated cyber-physical systems. This degree provides a foundation in cyber security engineering and is most appropriate for students with a strong mathematics and science background.
Program Educational Objectives
Graduates earning the Bachelor of Science degree in Cyber Security Engineering at George Mason University are expected within three to five years after graduation to be professionals who:
1. Establish themselves in a successful cyber security engineering career in industry, government, or academia
2. Communicate and perform ethically and effectively as members or leaders of multi-disciplinary teams on mission/business outcomes
3. Maintain current knowledge of evolving threats, risks and technology through continuing education, professional conferences, graduate school and on-the-job experiences
4. Have the ability to obtain and maintain professional licensing.
Accreditation
The bachelor of science in cyber security engineering program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org, under the commission’s General Criteria and Program Criteria for Cybersecurity and Similarly Named Engineering Programs.
Policies
For policies governing all undergraduate degrees, see AP.5 Undergraduate Policies.
Advising and Plan of Study
All cyber security engineering students are assigned a faculty advisor. With the advisor's help and approval, each student is required to complete a plan of study, which constitutes a learning plan for the degree program. The plan of study must be signed by the student's advisor and the Program Chair and be updated and signed by the advisor at least once a year.
Change of Major
See Change of Major for more information.
Grade Requirements
Students in the Cyber Security Engineering, BS program must complete all mathematics, science, and CEC courses with a grade of C or better.
Termination from the Major Policy
No math, science, or College of Engineering and Computing course that is required for the major may be attempted more than three times. Those students who do not successfully complete such a course within three attempts will be terminated from the major. Undeclared students in the College of Engineering and Computing who do not successfully complete a course required for a College of Engineering and Computing major within three attempts will also be terminated.
In addition, students in the College of Engineering and Computing with evidence of continued failure to make adequate progress toward declaring or completing a College of Engineering and Computing major will be terminated from the school. Adequate progress is determined by the major program. For more information, see AP.5.2.4 Termination from the Major.
Once a student has attempted one of these courses twice unsuccessfully, the third attempt must be no later than the next semester of enrollment, excluding summers. Failure to take the course at that time will result in termination from the major. A third attempt of a College of Engineering and Computing course requires support by the student's major department as well as permission by the department offering the course. This permission is not guaranteed. If the student is unable to take the course when required, the student may request an extension to a future semester; extensions require approval of the student's advisor, their department, and the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs. The deadline for extension requests is the add deadline for the semester in which the course is required.
Students who have been terminated from a College of Engineering and Computing major may not register for a College of Engineering and Computing course without permission of the department offering the course. This applies to all undergraduate courses offered by the College of Engineering and Computing except IT 104 Introduction to Computing (Mason Core) and STAT 250 Introductory Statistics I (Mason Core).
A student may not declare any major in the College of Engineering and Computing if the student has previously met the termination criteria for that major at any time, regardless of what the student's major was at the time the courses were taken.
Degree Requirements
Total credits: 126
Cyber Security Engineering Core
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Core Courses | ||
| CYSE 101 | Introduction to Cyber Security Engineering | 3 |
| CYSE 130 | Introduction to Computing for Digital Systems Engineering (Mason Core) | 3 |
| CYSE 211 | Operating Systems and Lab | 3 |
| CYSE 230 | Computer Networking | 3 |
| CYSE 304 | Cyber Security in Logic Design and Digital Systems | 3 |
| CYSE 411 | Secure Software Engineering | 3 |
| CYSE 421 | Industrial Control Systems Security | 3 |
| CYSE 425 | Secure RF Communications | 3 |
| CYSE 430 | Critical Infrastructure Protection | 3 |
| CYSE 445 | System Security and Resilience | 3 |
| CYSE 450 | Cyber Vulnerability Lab | 1 |
| CYSE 476 | Cryptography Fundamentals | 3 |
| CYSE 491 | Engineering Senior Seminar (Mason Core) | 3 |
| CYSE 492 | Senior Advanced Design Project I | 3 |
| CYSE 493 | Senior Advanced Design Project II (Mason Core) | 3 |
| Technical Electives | ||
| Select 9 credits from the following approved technical courses: | 9 | |
| Embedded and Real Time Systems | ||
| Power Systems and Smart Grid Security | ||
| Mobile Devices and Network Security | ||
| Transportation Systems Design | ||
| GPS Security | ||
| Human Factors and Cyber Security Engineering | ||
| Intrusion Detection | ||
| Cyber Security Audit and Compliance | ||
| Methods of User Authentication | ||
| Reverse Software Engineering | ||
| Special Topics in Cyber Security Engineering | ||
| Total Credits | 52 | |
Electrical and Computer Engineering
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ECE 301 | Digital Electronics 1 | 3 |
| Total Credits | 3 | |
Systems Engineering
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| SYST 205 | Systems Engineering Principles | 3 |
| Total Credits | 3 | |
Mathematics and Statistics
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MATH 113 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus I (Mason Core) | 4 |
| MATH 114 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus II | 4 |
| MATH 125 | Discrete Mathematics I (Mason Core) | 3 |
| MATH 203 | Linear Algebra | 3 |
| MATH 213 | Analytic Geometry and Calculus III | 3 |
| MATH 214 | Elementary Differential Equations | 3 |
| STAT 344 | Probability and Statistics for Engineers and Scientists I | 3 |
| Total Credits | 23 | |
Natural Sciences
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| PHYS 160 | University Physics I (Mason Core) | 3 |
| PHYS 161 | University Physics I Laboratory (Mason Core) | 1 |
| PHYS 260 | University Physics II (Mason Core) | 3 |
| PHYS 261 | University Physics II Laboratory (Mason Core) | 1 |
| Total Credits | 8 | |
Computing
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CS 112 | Introduction to Computer Programming (Mason Core) | 4 |
| SYST 230 | Object-oriented Modeling and Design | 4 |
| CS 222 | Computer Programming for Engineers | 3 |
| Total Credits | 11 | |
Engineering
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ENGR 107 | Introduction to Engineering | 2 |
| Total Credits | 2 | |
Oral Communication and Economics
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| COMM 100 | Public Speaking (Mason Core) | 3 |
| or COMM 101 | Fundamentals of Communication (Mason Core) | |
| ECON 103 | Contemporary Microeconomic Principles (Mason Core) | 3 |
| Total Credits | 6 | |
Remaining Mason Core
Students must complete all Mason Core requirements not fulfilled by major requirements.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Written Communication | 6 | |
| Literature | 3 | |
| Arts | 3 | |
| Global History | 3 | |
| Global Contexts | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 18 | |
Bachelor of Science in Cyber Security Engineering Sample Plan of Study
Detailed four year plans and degree planning checklists can be found at https://advising.gmu.edu/current-student/majors-at-mason/.
- Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Computer Engineering, Accelerated MS
- Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Cyber Security Engineering, Accelerated MS
- Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Digital Forensics, Accelerated MS
- Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Operations Research, Accelerated MS
- Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Systems Engineering, Accelerated MS
Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Computer Engineering, Accelerated MS
Overview
Highly-qualified undergraduates may be admitted to the bachelor's/accelerated master's program and obtain a BS in Cyber Security Engineering and an MS in Computer Engineering in an accelerated time-frame after satisfactory completion of a minimum of 150 credits.
See AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees for policies related to this program.
This accelerated option is offered jointly by the Cyber Security Engineering Department and the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department.
Students in an accelerated degree program must fulfill all university requirements for the master's degree. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.
BAM Pathway Admission Requirements
Applicants to all graduate programs at George Mason University must meet the admission standards and application requirements for graduate study as specified in Graduate Admissions Policies and Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.
Students will be considered for admission into the BAM Pathway after completion of a minimum of 60 credits with an overall GPA of 3.0.
Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits and course-specific pre-requisites.
Accelerated Master’s Admission Requirements
Students already admitted in the BAM Pathway will be admitted to the MS program, if they have met the following criteria, as verified on the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form: 3.0 overall GPA, successfully meeting Mason’s requirements for undergraduate degree conferral (graduation), and completing the application for graduation.
Accelerated Pathway Requirements
To maintain the integrity and quality of both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs, undergraduate students interested in taking graduate courses must choose from the following:
Advanced standing courses: Students may take up to 6 credits of graduate-level courses that will count as advanced standing (i.e., overlap between the BS/MS program) from the list below:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| ECE 505 | Hardware Security | 3 |
| ECE 508 | Internet of Things | 3 |
| ECE 511 | Computer Architecture | 3 |
| ECE 512 | Computer Architecture Security | 3 |
| ECE 542 | Computer Network Architectures and Protocols | 3 |
These courses may be used as technical electives in the Cyber Security Engineering, BS program.
Reserve credit courses: Additional courses (up to 6 credits) may be selected from the above list as credits to be put on reserve to be later applied to the graduate program. Students can take these courses while undergraduates but these reserve courses will only count for the graduate degree program.
For more detailed information on coursework and timeline requirements, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees.
Degree Conferral
Students must apply the semester before they expect to complete the BS requirements to have the BS degree conferred. In addition, at the beginning of the student's final undergraduate semester, students must complete a Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Transition form. At the completion of MS requirements, a master's degree is conferred.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Cyber Security Engineering, Accelerated MS
Overview
Highly-qualified undergraduates may be admitted to the bachelor's/accelerated master's program and obtain a BS in Cyber Security Engineering and an MS in Cyber Security Engineering in an accelerated time-frame after satisfactory completion of a minimum of 144 credits.
See AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree for policies related to this program.
This accelerated option is offered by the Department of Cyber Security Engineering.
Students in an accelerated degree program must fulfill all university requirements for the master's degree. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.
BAM Pathway Admission Requirements
Applicants to all graduate programs at George Mason University must meet the admission standards and application requirements for graduate study as specified in Graduate Admissions Policies and Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.
Students will be considered for admission into the BAM Pathway after completion of a minimum of 60 credits with an overall GPA of 3.0.
Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits and course-specific prerequisites.
Accelerated Master’s Admission Requirements
Students already admitted in the BAM Pathway will be admitted to the MS program, if they have met the following criteria, as verified on the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form:
- 3.0 overall GPA,
- successfully meeting Mason’s requirements for undergraduate degree conferral (graduation),
- and completing the application for graduation.
Accelerated Pathway Requirements
To maintain the integrity and quality of both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs, undergraduate students interested in taking graduate courses must choose from the following:
Advanced Standing Courses
Students may take up to 12 credits of graduate-level courses that will count as advanced standing (i.e., overlap between the BS/MS program) from the list below:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| CYSE 521 | Industrial Control Systems Security | 3 |
| CYSE 570 | Fundamentals of Operating Systems | 3 |
| CYSE 580 | Hardware and Cyber Physical Systems | 3 |
| CYSE 587 | Cyber Security Systems Engineering | 3 |
These courses may be used as technical electives in the Cyber Security Engineering, BS program.
For more detailed information on coursework and timeline requirements, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.
Degree Conferral
Students must apply to graduate the semester before they expect to complete all BS requirements. In addition, at the beginning of the student’s final undergraduate semester, students must complete a Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form. At the completion of all MS requirements, a master’s degree is conferred.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Digital Forensics, Accelerated MS
Overview
Highly-qualified students in the Cyber Security Engineering, BS have the option of obtaining an accelerated Digital Forensics, MS.
For more detailed information, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.
Admission Requirements
Students in the Cyber Security Engineering, BS program may apply for this option if they have earned 60 undergraduate credits with an overall GPA of at least 3.25. Criteria for admission are identical to criteria for admission to the Digital Forensics, MS program.
Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits and course-specific prerequisites.
Accelerated Option Requirements
Students must complete all credits that satisfy requirements for the BS and MS programs, with 6 credits overlapping.
Students register for two Digital Forensics core courses (6 credits) in place of two of the three required technical electives, as part of the undergraduate degree requirements. Specifically, students must take:
DFOR 510 Digital Forensics Analysis
DFOR 660 Network Forensics
Note: Students complete all Digital Forensics, MS core courses and apply the two courses from the above list toward the Digital Forensics, MS requirements.
Degree Conferral
Students must apply the semester before they expect to complete the BS requirements to have the BS degree conferred. In addition, at the beginning of the student’s final undergraduate semester, students must complete a Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form that is submitted to the Office of the University Registrar and the CEC Graduate Admissions Office. At the completion of MS requirements, a master’s degree is conferred.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Operations Research, Accelerated MS
Overview
Highly-qualified undergraduates may be admitted to the bachelor's/accelerated master's program and obtain a Cyber Security Engineering, BS and an Operations Research, MS in an accelerated time-frame after satisfactory completion of a minimum of 144 credits.
Admitted students are able to use up to 12 graduate credits in partial satisfaction of requirements for the undergraduate degree. Upon completion and conferral of the bachelor's degree and with satisfactory performance (grade of 'B' or better) in each of the graduate courses, students are given advanced standing in the master's program.
See AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees for policies related to this program.
Students in an accelerated degree program must fulfill all university requirements for the master's degree. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.
BAM Pathway Admission Requirements
Applicants to all graduate programs at George Mason University must meet the admission standards and application requirements for graduate study as specified in Graduate Admissions Policies and Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS students will be considered for admission into the BAM Pathway after completion of a minimum of 60 credits with an overall GPA of at least 3.3, and completion of all MATH and PHYS requirements. Students must additionally complete MATH 203 Linear Algebra prior to applying for the graduate program.
Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits and course-specific pre-requisites.
Accelerated Master's Admission Requirements
The criteria for admission are identical to criteria for admission to the Operations Research, MS program. Students already admitted in the BAM Pathway will be admitted to the Operations Research, MS program, if they have met the following criteria, as verified on the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form:
- An overall GPA of at least 3.3
- Successfully meeting Mason’s requirements for undergraduate degree conferral (graduation) and completing the application for graduation.
Accelerated Pathway Requirements
To maintain the integrity and quality of both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs, undergraduate students interested in taking graduate courses must choose from the following:
Advanced Standing course: Students must complete all credits that satisfy requirements for both the BS and MS programs. Up to four courses (12 credits) of approved master’s level courses taken as part of the undergraduate degree may be applied to the graduate degree. The courses selected for this purpose must be approved by the academic advisors of both the BS and MS programs and by the SEOR department chair. For the BS programs that allow undergraduate electives from the department of system engineering and operations research, the students may choose the graduate version of such elective courses to replace the corresponding undergraduate courses.
- Students selecting up to two courses (6 credits) of approved master’s level courses may select from the combined Cyber Security Engineering course list and Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list given below.
- Students selecting up to three or four courses (9 or 12 credits) of approved master’s level courses may select at most two courses from the Cyber Security Engineering course list and select the remaining courses from the Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list given below. Students are highly recommended to select courses marked as core courses because it applies to the master’s degree regardless of the graduate-level concentration chosen in the Operations Research, MS. The undergraduate version of these courses, if any, may not be applied toward the Operations Research, MS. Credit may not be received for both the undergraduate and graduate version of these courses.
- Some of the courses in the Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list applies only to certain concentrations in the Operations Research, MS program.
- Students must pay attention to the prerequisites required for a course, and the master's degree concentration that the course may satisfy.
Select at most two from the following Cyber Security Engineering courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Fundamentals of Operating Systems | ||
| Hardware and Cyber Physical Systems |
Select the remaining from the following Systems Engineering and Operations Research courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Network Analysis | ||
| Technologies and Security for Cryptocurrencies and Financial Transactions | ||
| Analytics for Financial Engineering and Econometrics | ||
| Operations Research: Deterministic Optimization (Core) | ||
| Operations Research: Stochastic Models (Core) | ||
| Applied Predictive Analytics (Core) | ||
| Financial Systems Engineering I: Introduction to Options, Futures, and Derivatives |
While still in undergraduate status, a maximum of 6 additional graduate credits may be taken as reserve graduate credit and applied to the master's program. Reserve graduate credits do not apply to the undergraduate degree.
For more detailed information on coursework and timeline requirements, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees.
Degree Conferral
Students must apply the semester before they expect to complete the BS requirements to have the BS degree conferred. In addition, at the beginning of the student's final undergraduate semester, students must complete a Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Transition form. At the completion of MS requirements, a master's degree is conferred.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS/Systems Engineering, Accelerated MS
Overview
Highly-qualified undergraduates may be admitted to the bachelor's/accelerated master's program and obtain a Cyber Security Engineering, BS and a Systems Engineering, MS in an accelerated time-frame after satisfactory completion of a minimum of 144 credits.
Admitted students are able to use up to 12 graduate credits in partial satisfaction of requirements for the undergraduate degree. Upon completion and conferral of the bachelor's degree and with satisfactory performance (grade of 'B' or better) in each of the graduate courses, students are given advanced standing in the master's program.
See AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees for policies related to this program.
Students in an accelerated degree program must fulfill all university requirements for the master's degree. For policies governing all graduate degrees, see AP.6 Graduate Policies.
BAM Pathway Admission Requirements
Applicants to all graduate programs at George Mason University must meet the admission standards and application requirements for graduate study as specified in Graduate Admissions Policies and Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degree policies.
Cyber Security Engineering, BS students will be considered for admission into the BAM Pathway after completion of a minimum of 60 credits with an overall GPA of at least 3.3, and completion of all MATH and PHYS requirements.
Students who are accepted into the BAM Pathway will be allowed to register for graduate level courses after successful completion of a minimum of 75 undergraduate credits and course-specific pre-requisites.
Accelerated Master's Admission Requirements
The criteria for admission are identical to criteria for admission to the Systems Engineering, MS program. Students already admitted in the BAM Pathway will be admitted to the Systems Engineering, MS program, if they have met the following criteria, as verified on the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s Transition form:
- An overall GPA of at least 3.3
- Successfully meeting Mason’s requirements for undergraduate degree conferral (graduation) and completing the application for graduation.
Accelerated Pathway Requirements
To maintain the integrity and quality of both the undergraduate and graduate degree programs, undergraduate students interested in taking graduate courses must choose from the following:
Advanced Standing course: Students must complete all credits that satisfy requirements for both the BS and MS programs. Up to four courses (12 credits) of approved master’s level courses taken as part of the undergraduate degree may be applied to the graduate degree. The courses selected for this purpose must be approved by the academic advisors of both the BS and MS programs and by the SEOR department chair. For the BS programs that allow undergraduate electives from the department of system engineering and operations research, the students may choose the graduate version of such elective courses to replace the corresponding undergraduate courses.
- Students selecting up to two courses (6 credits) of approved master’s level courses may select from the combined Cyber Security Engineering course list and Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list given below.
- Students selecting up to three or four courses (9 or 12 credits) of approved master’s level courses may select at most two courses from the Cyber Security Engineering course list and select the remaining courses from the Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list given below. Students are highly recommended to select courses marked as core courses because it applies to the master’s degree regardless of the graduate-level concentration chosen in the Systems Engineering, MS program. The undergraduate version of these courses, if any, may not be applied toward the Systems Engineering, MS. Credit may not be received for both the undergraduate and graduate version of these courses.
- Except for the courses marked as core, any course chosen from either course list can be used to satisfy SYST 505 Systems Engineering Principles core requirement in the Systems Engineering, MS program.
- Some of the courses in the Systems Engineering and Operations Research course list applies only to certain concentrations in the Systems Engineering, MS program.
- Students must pay attention to the prerequisites required for a course, and the master's degree concentration that the course may satisfy.
Select at most two from the following Cyber Security Engineering courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Fundamentals of Operating Systems | ||
| Hardware and Cyber Physical Systems |
Select the remaining from the following Systems Engineering and Operations Research courses:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Systems Definition and Cost Modeling (Core) | ||
| Systems Thinking | ||
| System Engineering Design (Core) | ||
| Systems Engineering Management I (Core) | ||
| Decision Support Systems Engineering | ||
| Decision and Risk Analysis | ||
| Analytics for Financial Engineering and Econometrics | ||
| Technologies and Security for Cryptocurrencies and Financial Transactions | ||
| Introduction to Air Traffic Control | ||
| Evidence-Based Systems Engineering | ||
| Applied Predictive Analytics | ||
| Heterogeneous Data Fusion | ||
| Financial Systems Engineering I: Introduction to Options, Futures, and Derivatives |
While still in undergraduate status, a maximum of 6 additional graduate credits may be taken as reserve graduate credit and applied to the master's program. Reserve graduate credits do not apply to the undergraduate degree.
For more detailed information on coursework and timeline requirements, see AP.6.7 Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Degrees.
Degree Conferral
Students must apply the semester before they expect to complete the BS requirements to have the BS degree conferred. In addition, at the beginning of the student's final undergraduate semester, students must complete a Bachelor's/Accelerated Master's Transition form. At the completion of MS requirements, a master's degree is conferred.