PTC earns prestigious National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE)
PTC has been named a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE), the first primarily two-year college in Western Pennsylvania to earn this designation. This is awarded jointly through the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and demonstrates that our Information Systems and Technology (IST) degree programs are validated by the highest security agencies in the nation. Currently, less than seven percent of all U.S. degree-granting post-secondary institutions have earned this designation.
“While graduates from PTC’s Information Technology programs have continuously been sought after by our industry employer partners as a result of the reputation of the program and the school as a whole, obtaining CAE-CD (Cyber Defense) accreditation will draw the attention of an even broader employer base and validates the high standard of education our students are exposed to,” stated Dr. John Scarpino, Academic Chair for PTC’s School of Information Systems and Technology.
Our IST associate degree students can choose between the Network Administration or Network Security and Computer Forensics concentrations. All graduates of either concentration complete the required courses to achieve CAE-CDE designation. We also offer a bachelor’s degree in Information Systems and Technology with four concentrations. Currently, government agencies are only recruiting employees from colleges with the designation and this is expected to become a standard expectation for all security employers in the near future.
The Occupational Outlook Handbook from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics states, “Employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 32 percent from 2018 to 2028, much faster than the average for all occupations. Demand for information security analysts is expected to be very high, as these analysts will be needed to create innovative solutions to prevent hackers from stealing critical information or causing problems for computer networks.”
PTC shares the National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education designation with three other Pittsburgh-area education institutions: Carnegie Mellon University, Robert Morris University, and University of Pittsburgh. Nine additional Pennsylvania colleges have also obtained the designation.
“Pittsburgh Technical College is committed to setting a higher standard in education for all programs that we offer. Obtaining such high recognition at a national level not only validates what we do every day, but also puts a spotlight on our student-centered culture, our efforts to align workforce demand and curriculum focus, and our commitment to career success,” added PTC’s president and CEO, Dr. Alicia B. Harvey-Smith.
Learn more about our Information Systems and Technology programs.