Irving, TX (April 12, 2022) – The University of Dallas’ Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business has been redesignated by the National Security Agency as a Center of Academic Excellence, a designation that UD has held for the past 20 years. 

“A highly skilled cybersecurity workforce is a strategic national security advantage,” said Karen Leuschner, NSA National Center of Academic Excellence program manager, in its redesignation letter to the University of Dallas. “The United States government will continue to invest in and enhance programs that build the domestic talent pipeline, from primary to post-secondary education.”

“We are pleased to be one of only a few higher educational institutions in North Texas to offer an NSA-designated cybersecurity master’s degree, which is critical to building the pipeline of cybersecurity experts for our state and our country,” said Gupta College of Business Dean Brett Landry, Ph.D., CISSP, who is also a cybersecurity professor.

The recent redesignation follows a comprehensive review of UD’s curriculum, courses, program improvement and professional development plans by an external peer review team of cybersecurity practitioners, government representatives and academics, and is valid through the 2027 academic year.

“UD’s cybersecurity students and alumni are some of the most sought-after employees in the nation, working in executive leadership and technical security positions in government, Fortune 500 companies and many others,” said Sandra Blanke, Ph.D., CISSP, CRISC, associate professor of cybersecurity.

UD’s Master of Science in Cybersecurity is offered entirely online, and open to students across the U.S. and internationally. Students complete the master’s program in 18-24 months while working full time. Cybersecurity students work directly with their professors, complete cybersecurity labs for hands-on experience and have the opportunity through the Cyber Club, Industry Cyber Associations, Table Top Exercises and Competitions to network with cyber experts while learning critical cybersecurity skills.  

The research of UD students in the College of Business’ master’s and doctoral programs focuses on improving cybersecurity processes and procedures, reducing cyber vulnerabilities, risk management, employee mental models, cybersecurity framework, cyber controls, big data governance, cybersecurity breach cases and many other cyber-related topics. 

“With every organization needing cyber-skilled individuals and more than 600,000 position vacancies, the UD cybersecurity master’s program is an excellent career choice to engage in protecting our country’s critical infrastructure, national and organizational defense,” Blanke added.

Learn more about UD's Gupta College of Business Cybersecurity Programs.

About the Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business

The Satish & Yasmin Gupta College of Business at the University of Dallas has been perfecting graduate business education for more than 50 years, preparing its students to become principled and moral leaders who are ethical and effective decision-makers. 

Located in Irving, Texas, the college was the first in Texas to offer an AACSB-accredited Doctor of Business Administration, in addition to Master of Business Administration, Master of Science, Bachelor of Arts, and many professional education programs, making it one of the most popular choices among Dallas/Fort Worth’s business leaders. SB Hall, which opened in January 2016, houses the college, providing students with state-of-the-art technology and practical tools to prepare them for their future careers. For more information, visit udallas.edu/cob.