New Mexico State University launches new bachelor's degree in cybersecurity

LAS CRUCES - A new bachelor of science degree will be offered at New Mexico State University after regents voted to approve an interdisciplinary program in cybersecurity on Friday.

The degree program is designed to train students in theoretical and practical aspects of cybersecurity, with coursework in computer science, communications, engineering, information systems and criminal justice.

According to the administration's degree plan, the degree would prepare students to enter a lucrative professional field that is projected to demand six million qualified workers worldwide by 2020. Alternatively, the degree would provide opportunities for further research and advanced degrees.

Chancellor Dan Arvizu said holders of the degrees would be much in demand, even locally. He cited personnel needs at New Mexico's research laboratories, including Sandia National Laboratories and Los Alamos National Laboratory. Opportunities for internship and employment would also give students a head start on important certifications in the field, he said. 

“What we provide here is an education for students, many of them from under-served and diverse backgrounds … with the opportunity to have a security clearance,” the chancellor said.

Benefits anticipated for NMSU include an opportunity to be the first university in the state to offer the degree and help reverse a decline in enrollment in recent years. Additionally, the degree plan addresses research funding, which has also declined, with a program expected to open the university for more publications and grant proposals.

Regents expressed concern that the degree's projected enrollment was too low, with 10 incoming students anticipated in each of the first two years, and gradual increases amounting to 50 students projected for the program's sixth year. 

Regent Jerean Hutchinson said the degree program looks good, but as to projected enrollment, she asked, "Why not 100?" She asked further questions about how the new degree would be marketed and whether internships would be required to complete the degree. 

President John Floros expressed caution about the potential for requiring unpaid internships and potentially "telling employers, you take that student (for) free and treat that student as somebody that has to be there to help." Also, requiring internships entails formal responsibilities for faculty members, he said. 

Hutchinson countered that internships are not necessarily unpaid, and that given the stated need for qualified workers in network and information security, companies would be inclined "to help and support an internship that gives (students) a great background and development." 

In the back and forth with regents, Floros argued for a measured roll-out of the degree to allow for adjustments at the beginning, saying, "I would like to take a first step before we jump, make sure the courses we’ve developed are actually appropriate and providing the right students, and then ramp it up quickly."

Chairwoman Debra Hicks countered, "You've got to jump!" 

The vote to approve the degree was unanimous. 

Algernon D'Ammassa can be reached at 575-541-5451, adammassa@lcsun-news.com or @AlgernonActor on Twitter.

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