Cybersecurity Master’s Degree Requirements

• CSCI 159 Introduction to Cybersecurity: Intrusion, Hacking and Detection
• CSCI 155 Networks and Cloud Security
• 1 cloud computing course
• 1 application development course
• 1 compliance and controls course
• 1 risk assessment course
• 4 cybersecurity electives

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Nearly all courses can be taken online, but you are required to come to Cambridge for the precapstone course. You and your team, along with an industry partner, create the research design/protocol for your final capstone project. It is offered:

The precapstone course is offered on campus in the 3-week summer session via Harvard Summer School. The Summer School offers, for an additional fee, housing, meal plans, and a prolonged on-campus experience here at Harvard University. Learn more about campus life at Harvard.

International Students Who Need a Student Visa

To meet the on-campus requirement, you study with us in the summer for a minimum of 3 weeks. You can easily request an I-20 for the F-1 student visa through Harvard Summer School. For more details, see International Student Study Options for important visa information.

In your final online course, you complete a team-based capstone project. The capstone is taken as your sole remaining degree requirement, in the semester immediately following the precastpone.

Capstone Sequencing:

You enroll in the precapstone and capstone courses in back-to-back semesters and in your final academic year. The capstone must be taken alone as your sole remaining degree requirement.

Capstone Experience:

In the capstone, with your project team and industry partner, you execute a real-world cybersecurity project that you crafted and developed in the precapstone.

The team format allows you to strengthen your communication, collaboration, and project management competencies, which are critical skills demanded by employers.

Capstone instructors work with student teams to focus their projects on innovation (e.g., designing a new cyberattack alert system) or improvement (increasing security for online payments/confidential customer information).

Come to Cambridge for Convocation (fall) to celebrate your hard-earned admission, Harvard career fairs offered throughout the year, HES alumni networking events (here at Harvard and around the world), and, of course, Harvard University Commencement (May).

• Prior to enrolling in any degree-applicable courses, you must possess a 4-year regionally accredited US bachelor’s degree or its foreign equivalent. Foreign bachelor’s degrees must be evaluated for equivalency.
• You cannot already have or be in the process of earning a master’s degree in cyber security or a related field. Check your eligibility.
• If English is your second language, you’ll need to prove English proficiency before registering for a course. We have multiple proficiency options.

To begin the admission process, you simply register — no application required — for the following two, four-credit, graduate-level degree courses (available online).

These courses count toward your degree once you’re admitted; they are not additional courses. They are investments in your studies and help ensure success in the program.

• CSCI 159 Introduction to Cybersecurity: Intrusion, Hacking, and Detection
• CSCI 155 Networks and Cloud Security
  • You have 2 attempts in CSCI 159 and 2 attempts in CSCI 155 to earn the minimum grade of B (a withdrawal grade counts as an attempt) and the courses cannot be more than 2 years old at the time of application.

The two courses don’t need to be taken in a particular order or in the same semester, but each course must be completed with a grade of B or higher, without letting your overall Harvard cumulative GPA dip below 3.0.

During the semester of your second degree course, submit the official application to the program.

Don’t delay! You must prioritize the two degree courses for admission and apply before completing subsequent courses. By doing so, you’ll:

• Avoid the loss of credit due to expired course work or changes to admission and degree requirements.
• Ensure your enrollment in critical and timely degree-candidate-only courses.
• Avoid the delayed application fee.
• Gain access to exclusive benefits.

Eligible students who submit a complete and timely application will have 9 more courses after admission to earn the degree. Applicants can register for courses in the upcoming semester before they receive their grades and while they await their admission decision.

GPA. You need to earn a B or higher in each of the two degree courses required for admission and a B– or higher in each of the subsequent courses. In addition, your cumulative GPA cannot dip below 3.0.

Withdrawal Grades. You are allowed to receive two withdrawal (WD) grades without them affecting your GPA. Any additional WD grades count as zero in your cumulative GPA. Please note that a WD grade from a 2-credit course will count as one of your two allowed WD grades. See Academic Standing.

Repeat Courses. We advise you to review the ALM program’s strict policies about repeating courses. Generally speaking, you may not repeat a course to improve your GPA or to fulfill a degree requirement (if the minimum grade was not initially achieved). Nor can you repeat a course for graduate credit that you’ve previously completed at Harvard Extension School or Harvard Summer School at the undergraduate level.

Courses over five years old at the point of admission will not count toward the degree.

Further, you have five years to complete your degree requirements. The five-year timeline begins at the end of the term in which you complete any two degree-applicable courses, regardless of whether or not you have been admitted to a degree program.

Additionally, admission eligibility will be jeopardized if, at the point of application to the program, the five-year degree completion policy cannot be satisfied (i.e., too many courses to complete in the time remaining). Potential degree candidates must submit timely applications or they risk losing degree credit for completed course work.

When you have fulfilled all degree requirements, you will earn your Harvard University degree: Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) in Extension Studies, field: Cybersecurity. Degrees are awarded in November, March, and May, with the annual Harvard Commencement ceremony in May.

When you become an officially admitted degree candidate, you have access to a rich variety of exclusive benefits to support your academic journey. To learn more, visit degree candidate academic opportunities and privileges.