South Earns National Designation for Cybersecurity Research

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Posted on April 16, 2024

Lance Crawford

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In a major acknowledgement of its cyber research capabilities, the University of South Alabama School of Computing has been awarded a designation as a Center of Academic Excellence in Research by the National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security.

“The designation places the School of Computing in an elite pool of just over 80 institutions across the nation that are CAE-R designated,” said Dr. Todd McDonald, director of the Center for Forensics, Information Technology and Security in the School of Computing. “The recognition shows how our Ph.D. in computing provides tremendous opportunities for students and faculty to explore many cybersecurity topics. It also helps show our maturity and growth over the last decade, especially as the University is currently considering ways in which we can reach Carnegie R1 status.” 

According to the National Security Agency, the purpose of the designation program is to support and further build the cadre of experts to address challenges resulting from the onslaught of ever-evolving cyberattacks as well as allow the U.S. government to engage research experts to solve the most challenging cybersecurity problems confronting our nation. 

The selection criteria for the award includes administrative support and institutional commitment, strength of doctoral programs, research productivity in cybersecurity publications and professional and scholarly service in the cybersecurity research community. 

“One of my goals when I became dean was to become a Center for Academic Excellence in Research as soon as we met the criteria. It is a testament to our programs, dedicated faculty and amazing graduate students who were able to make this a reality this year,” said Dr. Todd Andel, dean, School of Computing. 

The School of Computing has grown its cybersecurity research capabilities considerably over the last decade. The doctorate in computing degree program provides students with a broad range of current cybersecurity concepts through core coursework, and the master’s program in computer science and cybersecurity both contain key tracks in cyber topics. 

Notable growth and accomplishments in the graduate programs within the last five years include:  

• 16 of 24 Ph.D. graduate student dissertations directly related to cybersecurity. 
• 25 master’s graduates doing thesis research directly related to cybersecurity. 
• Over $25 million in external funding for cybersecurity related research. 
• 67 distinct peer-reviewed publications related to cybersecurity. 
• 13 tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty involved with cybersecurity research. 
• Three active research groups incorporating cybersecurity and digital forensics.

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