Online Information Assurance Degree Programs

As the eternal battle between software developers and hackers rages on, information assurance professionals stand in the middle. One part programmer, one part detective, information assurance pros are the police of the technology realm. Government and business entities of all sizes court students with these degrees to be the champion protectors of critical networks and data.

Information Assurance Career Options

Despite the fact that information assurance is almost an almost 50-year old discipline, the recent surge of technology has created a new industry that's more responsive to cyber threats, data fraud, and intellectual theft. According to the SANS Institute, information assurance careers are separated in four distinct categories of responsibilities:

• Security administration: understanding threats to information and resources, identifying security best practices, and developing a diverse protection strategy
• Management: effective communication, time, cost, quality, procurement, and risk management of IT projects and application development
• Auditing: information security principles as they apply to developing best practice audit checklists; performing risk assessments and audits
• Software security: write secure code and recognize security shortcomings in existing code; deal with programming errors that lead to most security problems

Information Assurance Salaries and Job Outlook

Students with information assurance degrees are really computer scientists at heart and practice. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that this industry is poised for serious growth in the coming decade. Computer scientists and database administrators held about 542,000 jobs in 2006, including 58,000 professionals who were self-employed. Looking to the future, the industry is projected to increase by 37 percent through 2016. That's much faster than national average, with an estimated 200,000 jobs to be added to the economy.

According to the BLS, individuals working in the information industry earned the following median salaries in 2007:

• Network analysts: $68,220
• Computer scientists: $97,970
• Computer specialists: $71,510

Some of the top employing industries include:

• Colleges and universities
• Federal government
• Computer and systems design companies

Information Assurance Degrees and Coursework

Information assurance degrees exist at the bachelor's and master's level. Those students wishing to earn career training beyond the master's level typically should complete a doctorate in an applicable subject area, such as information systems or computer science. Science journal lists the following curriculum that is typical for most information assurance degrees:

• Training and awareness
• Using independent security evaluations
• Detecting security breaches
• Establishing effective security configurations
• Hiring, management, and firing
• Maintaining software
• System administration
• Responding intelligently

Online Career Training Options

The inherent technological component of this career training program lends itself easily to a distance learning format. Because information assurance graduates should show a high level of technical competence, many elect to complete their studies online.

However, if you perform better with some in-person interaction, there are hybrid programs that combine the best of on-campus and online into one seamless curriculum.

• Technology
• Information Systems