Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity University at Albany

Overview

Play an active role in command center simulations and emergency response drills, and gain hands-on experience working with private companies, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies.

The Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security, and Cybersecurity program of University at Albany prepares you for positions in agencies such as the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Secret Service, the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the undergraduate major in Emergency Preparedness, Homeland Security and Cybersecurity, students will be able to:

• Conduct a comprehensive assessment of risks, generate an analysis of options for mitigating risks, select the most appropriate mitigating actions for each risk, develop contingency and crisis response plans, communicate the risk assessment to a variety of audiences, and evaluate risk management plans (i.e., risk management).

• Critically analyze arguments by identifying assumptions, understanding claims, evaluating evidence, and drawing a conclusion (i.e., critical thinking). 

• Recognize and formulate effective written and oral communication, giving appropriate consideration to audience, context, format, and textual evidence (i.e., communication).

• Design and implement strategic plans and creative solutions in novel and evolving circumstances (i.e., problem solving).

• Demonstrate understanding of ethical principles in general and the ability to recognize, articulate, and apply ethical principles in concrete situations related to emergency preparedness, homeland security, and cybersecurity (i.e., ethical analysis). 

• Demonstrate an understanding of diversity and the ability to assess social equity in management and policy decisions through courses that focus on topics such as race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, religion, physical ability, language, and/or social class (i.e., diversity).

• Work effectively in teams in evaluating policies, managing projects, and implementing programs as well as effectively managing conflicts, optimizing resources and meeting deadlines (i.e., teamwork and project management). 

• Comprehend of the theory and practice of homeland security and be able to analyze policy and synthesize information in five key areas: risk and vulnerability analysis, terrorism, intelligence and counter-terrorism, intergovernmental coordination, and ethics. 

• Understand the theoretical and practical principles of emergency preparedness for both natural disasters and terrorist incidents and be able to analyze key topics related to natural disasters, extreme events, emergency planning, all-hazard management, and ethics. 

• Review and understand the legal, regulatory, policy, and ethical issues related to securing cyberspace; identify and evaluate cybersecurity threats to organizations; and analyze the effectiveness of cybersecurity in an organization by performing vulnerability assessments, risk mitigation, auditing, certification and accreditation of information systems.