What is Cyber Security Engineering?

Cyber security engineering incorporates designing, constructing, and maintaining systems that avail security in information. A cyber security engineer does play an important role in organizations to secure their premises or networks from intrusion into its systems, data or networks by malicious software, hacking and phishing among other numerous cyber-attacks. In addition, with the rampant and progressive integration of technology and Internet use into business operations, the need for solid security systems has become a key factor.

Cyber security engineers work behind the scenes all day and night to develop systems that are not susceptible to easy attacks. The effort varies from establishing firewalls to encryption and intrusion detection systems—responses in case of security breaches. While the threats change with every passing day, skilled cyber security professionals are high in demand.

Structure of a BS in Cyber Security

The BS in Cyber Security is more of a technical nature; it equips students with deeper technical knowledge about how systems and data can be secured from potential cyber-attacks, rather than delving deep into the technical elements of coding, networking, cryptography, and system architecture.

Further, the students at this level of cyber security will generally spend more time in laboratory sessions running real-world exercises to achieve a level of competence in the design of secured systems, the testing of weaknesses, and the establishment of protocols for the situation of a cyber threat. The core of the curriculum is set in computer science, mathematics, and engineering.

Core Courses in a BS Program

• Network Security: Ensuring the security of computer networks from unauthorized access.
• Cryptography: Refers to both methods of securing data transmission through encryption and decryption.
• Malware Analysis: Learn how to identify, analyze, and mitigate effects produced by malicious software.
• Operating Systems: Clearly distinguish between various OSs about security implications and their protection.
• Penetration Testing: It imitates various cyber-attacks to reveal system weaknesses.

The courses help students gain the necessary designing, implementation, and maintenance skills of secure systems. Being pragmatic BS in its nature and technical, this program prepares students to enter the work environment as cyber security professionals primarily in technical jobs.

Structure of a BA in Cyber Security

On the other hand, a BA in Cyber Security is a rather general and interdisciplinary approach to the whole subject. While students are learning core concepts of security, major topics within a BA program will relate to social, ethical, and policy aspects of security. It may include fewer technical courses than a BS program and more liberal arts elective courses.

Most will also need to take at least ethics, communication, and law courses as part of related cyber security BA programs. A related cyber security program could be interesting for audiences that are interested more in business, legal, or policy aspects of cyber security, rather than in technical cyber security career paths.

Courses Core in the BA Program

• Policies on Cyber Security: Knowledge of laws and how to regulate cyber security.
• Ethical concerns: Concern for the ethical effects of decisions one makes in cyber security.
• Risk Management: Identification and minimization of risks which are associated with Cyber Security.
• Effective Communication in Cyber Security: How to communicate complex security concepts effectively to a non-technical audience.
• Cyber Security in Business: It articulates the role cyber security plays in business operations and decision-making.

The degree is supposed to professionally prepare students for the broad aspects of the discipline, including careers with either a policy-oriented, management, or compliance orientation. This is perfect for all those wanting to move into management and have a more strategic orientation to cyber security.

Differences in the BS versus BA in Cyber Security

Even with the worth of skills and knowledge passed by both programs in cyber security, there are some main differences between the two: the BS and BA degrees.

Human vs Non-Human Device

BS in Cyber Security: This program, however, would have to be more technical—based on Computer Science, Engineering, and manual skills. The student will be able to learn how systems are built, secured, coded, and tested for their weaknesses. A BS would be perfect for students who would like to work in technical positions, e.g., a security engineer or pen tester.

BA in Cyber Security: This degree is likely to be less technical and will perhaps put more of a policy, legal, and business focus on cyber security. This perhaps may suit those students who might be looking at aspects related to management, compliance, or policy-making, where very deep technical knowledge is not too relevant to an organization.

Course Structure

BS: The structure of the BS degree is much more rigid, putting a big emphasis on math, computer science, and technical laboratories. There are far fewer electives; most of the classes pertain directly to cyber security.

BA: The BA degree is more flexible, with more electives that would allow many other areas of study outside of cyber security. That would appeal to a student looking for a generalist but maybe wanting a specialist's education.

Career Profiles

BS Graduates: Most of their jobs revolve around technical areas in security engineering, network administration, and other similar penetration testing activities. Arguably, the BS course prepares the personnel to handle deep levels of technicality that come with such jobs.

BA Graduates: Most employed in the nontechnical fields of policy analysts, compliance officers, and risk management specialists. The above requires general knowledge in the area of cyber security but not precisely the technical skills housed in the BS program.

BS vs BA Cyber Security Engineering Careers

This will help in the differences in job opportunities one can apply to after graduating in cyber security. Here is what BS and BA graduates are expected to fetch once they leave campus:

Career Opportunities for BS Graduates

Cyber Security Systems Engineer

Designs and constructs systems and networks in a way that ensures security; involves hands-on job tasks to prevent cyber-attacks or breaches.

Ethical Hacker-Penetration Tester

A penetration tester simulates an attack on his system to identify different vulnerabilities. This task requires a lot of knowledge with technicality and the ability to think like a hacker.

Network Administrator

A person responsible for managing and caring about the security of the organizational network. A network administrator works to keep it running and patch any vulnerability.

Incident Response Specialist

Investigation and damage control, in case of any cyber incident, is to be done by an incident response specialist. He should be a quick thinker and must be well-versed in cyber threats.

Career Opportunities Available for BA Graduates

Cybersecurity Policy Analyst

The policy analysts work on the development and implementation of cyber security policy within an organization or government agency. The position is not as technical but requires a focus on the laws and regulations.

Risk Manager

They exist to identify potential cyber threats and attempt to reduce the associated risks early rather than later. Much more by necessity in technical-team interactions, they are certainly no more technical.

Chief Compliance Officer

The officer ensures that the organization concerned obeys all the required regulations concerning cyber security. It calls for adequate knowledge of laws and business practices.

Which is better: BS or BA in Cyber Security?

Choosing the BS over the BA in cyber security is dependent on where your goals are leading in your career and your strengths.

Choose a BS if:

• You love working with technologies and like a technical, hands-on job.
• You are familiar with math, coding, and computer science.

This can be the job of a security engineer, network administrator, or penetration tester.

Choose a BA if:

• You are interested in the business, policy, and legal aspects of cyber security.
• You prefer a more general education, having more electives and fewer technical classes.

You would like to become involved in management, policy-making, or compliance.

This can be best noted in the BS and BA programs, where skills learned should align with one's career goals. Thus, the question of choice varies with personal objectives.

Growth Potential

BS Cybersecurity

However, the job is technical, so the starting salary rate for a bachelor's graduate in cybersecurity is higher. On average, a BS graduate might enjoy salaries ranging from $80,000 to $120,000 a year depending on the candidate's experience and location. With more experience, a BS graduate can rise through the ranks and thus manage better-perishing jobs, such as being senior security engineers or even IT managers, commanding starting salaries upwards of $120,000 to $150,000 or above.

BA Cybersecurity

While BA graduate salaries may start a little lower than those of their BS counterparts, they may always catch up later, especially when they can rise to leadership and executive positions whose retribution levels are equally competitive. BA graduates in these roles, as managers in these fields, could conceivably make anything between $70,000 and $100,000 annually - or even more if it's senior-level management.

Conclusion

Whether one follows a BS or a BA in cybersecurity depends on personal interest, strength, and career goals: the BS degree would be proper for students who show eagerness to take up the technical position and enjoy hands-on problem-solving, but the BA would focus more on general business and policy area students with an interest in cybersecurity. The two degrees would prove very employable in the rising sector, where the demand for cyber experts with both technical and non-technical knowledge is at an all-time high.