Information Assurance and Cyber Security Degrees in Arkansas

This rural state is home to the large metropolitan city of Little Rock, a large and growing aerospace industry and the corporate offices of Wal-Mart, all of which generate cyber security jobs. In Arkansas, lower-than-average cyber security salaries are offset by the state’s low cost of living. Three Arkansas institutions grant cyber security degrees, of which two are designated by the NSA as “National Centers of Academic Excellence in Cyber Security”.

Arkansas Cyber Security Jobs

The economy of Arkansas is still driven by agriculture, yet technological sectors are on the rise. Aerospace is now the state’s number one export, and cyber security jobs at defense and commercial aircraft companies, such as Lockheed Martin, are common. Unsurprisingly, Wal-Mart is the top source of cyber-security jobs in the state by an overwhelming margin. As a result, the majority of the state’s cyber security jobs cluster around the metropolitan area of Little Rock and the Wal-Mart corporate headquarters in Bentonville. Unfortunately, cyber security salaries here lag significantly behind the national average, with an average of $65,679 reported by Indeed, and senior positions topping out around $100,000. This reflects an overall trend of lower salaries in the state, which is paralleled by an extremely low cost of living- the nation’s fifth-lowest. Thus, those with cyber security degrees who elect to work in Arkansas may find that their smaller salaries translate to higher standards of living.

Cyber Security Degrees in Arkansas

Bachelor’s Degrees in cyber security are offered by are offered by two schools: Southern Arkansas University Main Campus and University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The latter is recognized by the NSA as a “National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Security” (CAE). Both universities offer these cyber security degrees as minors within their undergraduate computer science programs.

Master’s Degrees in cyber security can be earned through Southern Arkansas University Main Campus , which offers a Cyber Security concentration in its Computer Science graduate degree program. The University of Arkansas, which is designated as a CAE by the NSA, also offers a Cyber Security concentration in both its Computer Science and Computer Engineering master’s programs.

Certificates and Doctoral Degrees in cyber security are offered by both of the state’s CAE universities. The University of Arkansas at Little Rock awards a Technical Certificate in Information Assurance. Ph.D. candidates in Computer Science or Computer Engineering at the University of Arkansas can select cyber security as concentration.

Cyber Security Resources in Arkansas

Cyber Security Degree Providers in Arkansas

Below we’ve included some of the most pertinent information for choosing a cyber security degree program. Affordability looked at the average in-state tuition rate (where applicable) and divided the range of tuition rates into five bins. Each bin contains a roughly $8,000 jump in tuition. So one $ contains schools from roughly $1,000 in in-state tuition to $9,000, $$’s contains schools from >$9,000 to $17,000, and so forth. Retention rate is one of the best predictors of undergraduate education quality. While the NSA/CAE designation marks programs deemed excellent by the NSA/CAE.