Information Assurance and Cyber Security Degrees in Missouri

Cyber security is big business in state of Missouri, particularly in Kansas City and St. Louis. The two cities were named 28th and 36th in the nation for “Top Cities for Tech talent” by CBRE. A high number of engineering, health and defense companies in these cities has translated to come of the nation’s greatest number of cyber security jobs, and the state government has developed a number of endeavors to support the industry. Chief among these is the Midwest Cyber Center, established in St. Louis in 2016, which provides training boot camps, scholarships, internships, startup incubator and corporate/university partnerships. Besides being a popular place to work in cyber security, Missouri is an excellent destination for the study of the field as well. No less than 14 schools in the state award degrees in cyber security.

Missouri Cyber Security Jobs

There are currently some 2,880 people employed in cyber security jobs in Missouri, and number which has climbed steadily for several years. St. Louis is 10th amongst American cities for the highest number of cyber security professionals. Here, many are employed with defense contractor, Vencore, or Eagle Ray, an IT management company. Kansas City is another hub for careers in cyber security. Here, big corporations such as H&R Block and DST Systems are headquartered and hire cyber security professionals to protect sensitive health and financial data. Good salaries in cyber security careers combined with a low cost of living earned this city 17th place in Smart Asset’s ranking of “Top 10 Best American Cities to Work in Tech.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a mean wage of $87,140 for cyber security analyst. While this is 10% lower than the national mean salary for cyber security careers, keep in mind that the cost of living is 10% lower in Missouri than the nation at large.

Cyber Security Degrees in Missouri

Associate’s Degrees in cyber security are available from two Missouri-based institutes. Saint Louis Community College offers an Associate’s degree in Applied Science in Cyber Security, and St Charles Community College
awards Associate of Applied Science degrees in both Cyber Security and Network Security.

Bachelor’s Degrees in cyber security are offered by a total of six schools in the state. One such school, the University of Missouri-St Louis, is recognized by the NSA as a “National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Security” (CAE).

Master’s Degrees in cyber security are available through five schools in Missouri, including a fully-online Master of Science in Cyber Security from Maryville University.

Certificates and Doctoral Degrees in cyber security are offered by a number of universities in the state. A total of six schools award certificates in cyber security. Two of these are designated as CAEs by the NSA: Missouri University of Science and Technology, and University of Missouri-St Louis. The University of Missouri-Columbia, also a CAE, offers a Ph.D. in Computer Science with a Focus in Information Assurance.

Cyber Security Resources in Missouri

Cyber Security Degree Providers in Missouri

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.