Best Homeland Security Degrees 2021

The four-year homeland security degree from Anderson University in Anderson, South Carolina, prepares students for careers with government agencies of all levels, nongovernmental organizations, and emergency services systems. The 122-credit bachelor of arts in homeland security and emergency services explores issues like the nature of terrorism, disaster response and recovery, and homeland security decision-making at the local, state, and federal level.

The program includes university core, major core, cognate, and general elective requirements. Students take classes like incident management and planning for emergencies, strategic planning for homeland security and emergency preparedness, and the social dimensions of a disaster. The curriculum includes a senior seminar in criminal justice in the final semester of study. The program requires a grade of C or better in all required major courses.

Applicants need a high school or GED diploma and must submit transcripts. Graduates qualify for entry-level positions in the homeland security and emergency services field.

A Christian liberal arts college established in 1866, Roberts Wesleyan College in Rochester, New York, offers a homeland security degree that prepares students for careers using data and intelligence to anticipate and prevent terrorism and other crime. Major highlights of the homeland security and applied intelligence program include internships with private companies and local law enforcement and real-world faculty expertise in counterterrorism.

The interdisciplinary curriculum includes a broad liberal arts education with courses in criminal justice, communications, computer science, psychology, history, and art. Students take major courses like introduction to intelligence, terrorism policy and law, and introduction to forensic science and lab.

The 124-credit bachelor of science includes 60-64 major requirements and 60-64 liberal arts requirements. Students learn to effectively communicate with diverse cultures. Graduates pursue careers as police officers, intelligence analysts, special agents, and crime analysts.

The largest school in the Florida college system, Miami Dade College serves more than 165,000 students each year and offers more than 300 programs of study. MDC offers one of the best homeland security degrees: a workforce-driven BAS in public safety management with an emergency management track.

The degree prepares students for careers like emergency management planner, city emergency manager safety officer, and emergency management specialist.

The 120-credit bachelor of applied science includes general education and major requirements. The program accepts students who already hold an associate degree (60 credits) and allows them to complete the bachelor of applied science in two years. The curriculum explores the theories and practices for reducing hazards and vulnerabilities in communities.

Core courses include emergency planning and security, integrated emergency management planning systems, and domestic and international terrorism. Students gain critical thinking, communication, research, and analytical skills.

The field experience-focused homeland security degree from Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Michigan, leads to careers like border patrol agent, immigration and customs inspector, and special agent. The curriculum explores issues like corrections, cybercrime, surveillance, terrorism and homeland security, and critical incident analysis.

OU's BA in criminal justice with a concentration in homeland security requires general education, major core, major elective, and interdisciplinary coursework. Students also must complete a criminal justice internship and capstone in their senior year. Required core classes include introduction to methods of social research, criminological theory, and police and society. To graduate, students must hold an overall 2.0 GPA and a minimum 2.3 GPA in the major.

Admission requirements include a cumulative 3.2 GPA, SAT or ACT scores, and college preparatory classes taken in high school. The university may admit students with a 2.5-3.1 GPA on a case-by-case basis. OU does not require letters of recommendation.

Future emergency managers can pursue an accredited bachelor of science in emergency management from the emergency services department at Idaho State University in Pocatello, Idaho. The program provides a comprehensive overview of the social, political, economic, and business contexts of emergency management. Graduates pursue emergency management roles with a variety of industries and government agencies at all levels.

ISU's emergency management program follows the higher education guidelines set by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The curriculum explores issues like incident command systems, critical infrastructure issues, organizational leadership, and public health preparedness.

Emergency management majors take classes like advanced disaster response recovery, terrorism in emergency management, and business and industry crisis management. Students also must complete an emergency management capstone. Highly qualified faculty members provide instruction, drawing from years of experience in the emergency management field. Applicants to the program must submit high school or GED transcripts and official SAT or ACT scores.

The L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, offers one of the top homeland security degrees in the country. VCU's 120-credit BA in homeland security and emergency preparedness requires general education, major, and elective coursework. Students must earn a cumulative 2.0 GPA to graduate.

Students take courses like the intelligence community and the intelligence process, risk and vulnerability assessment, and legal and constitutional issues in homeland security and emergency preparedness. The curriculum also explores issues like forensic criminology, criminal procedure, incident investigation and analysis, and cybersecurity. Students gain analytical, communication, policy analysis, research, and evaluation skills.

Homeland security and emergency preparedness majors can graduate with honors by meeting specified GPA requirements. The bachelor's program prepares students for careers related to emergency and disaster preparedness and response. Graduates also pursue further education in law enforcement, government, policy planning, law, or international affairs.

Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond began offering one of the first undergraduate homeland security degrees in the U.S. in 2007. Before that, the school offered disaster preparedness and security management programs. EKU's multidisciplinary homeland security bachelor of science includes specializations in intelligence studies, disaster management, and security operations/management. Students can pursue internships and study-abroad opportunities through the center for career and co-op.

Students learn to protect life and property by securing critical infrastructure, using security technologies, and responding to natural and human-caused disasters. The multidisciplinary curriculum requires core classes like critical problem analysis, cyber and physical security, and disaster preparedness and response. The 120-credit BS requires general education, major, and elective coursework. Homeland security majors can add a minor in corporate security operations or or emergency management and disaster resilience.

Graduates find careers in emergency and disaster management, U.S. military services, law enforcement, and the U.S. intelligence community.

The BS in homeland security degree from the University of New Hampshire at Manchester explores topics such as data breaches, bioterrorism, and natural disasters. The 128-credit bachelor's requires an overall 2.0 GPA in major courses. Potential career paths include critical infrastructure protection, cybersecurity and information security, risk management, and law enforcement.

Required core classes include professional skills in homeland security, exercise design and evaluation in homeland security, a homeland security capstone, and intelligence systems and structures in homeland security. Students can add a second major, up to two minors, or complete additional electives. The program offers a three-week summer study-abroad opportunity in the U.K. that explores security studies and history.

Homeland security majors may also complete internships with organizations like the American Red Cross, the New Hampshire Department of Corrections, or New York Port Authority. Students can earn the homeland security BS and an accelerated master's in cybersecurity policy and risk management in five years.

Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, offers a four-year BS in criminal justice - homeland security degree that prepares students for careers in law enforcement. One of the best homeland security degrees, the 124-credit bachelor's degree includes general education, a criminal justice major, and homeland security concentration coursework.

Students take classes like introduction to terrorism and homeland security, critical infrastructure protection, and introduction to state and local governments. Graduation requirements include a cumulative 2.0 GPA or higher, a minimum 2.0 GPA in the major, and completion of at least 24 upper-division major credits.

LSSU makes admission decisions after evaluating high school diploma or GED transcripts, SAT or ACT scores, and the applicant's high school course curriculum. LSSU participates in the Michigan Transfer Agreement, which enables students from Michigan community colleges to easily transfer to four-year programs at state universities.

The homeland security degree from the University of New Haven in West Haven, Connecticut, prepares students to help the country prevent, respond to, and recover from threats related to cybersecurity, terrorism, and natural disasters.

The BS in homeland security and emergency management offers full-time and part-time options. The curriculum includes classes like emergency scene operations, scientific methods in national security, and infrastructure protection. Students can customize the degree through their choice of free electives.

Graduates pursue diverse careers at the local, state, and federal levels protecting the public. Students get access to the university's nationally known center for career development, which offers help with issues like job shadowing, networking, interviews, and salary negotiation. Admission requirements include high school or GED transcripts, a personal essay, at least one academic letter of recommendation, and official SAT or ACT scores.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy in Buzzards Bay offers a BS in emergency management that provides a well-rounded liberal arts education. The curriculum includes general education coursework and classes like national security in emergency management, public health issues in emergency management, and IT in emergency management and operations.

Emergency management majors complete at least two co-op work projects and one experiential learning trip with Habitat for Humanity over winter break in freshman year. These learning opportunities give students relevant professional experience in the field before they graduate. The degree requires an emergency management capstone in the final semester of the four-year program.

The program prepares students for careers in emergency management and disaster-related roles in local, state, and federal government agencies. Other potential employers include organizations like the American Red Cross, CVS Health, and Beth Israel Medical Center. The degree also provides a suitable foundation for graduate study in emergency management and related fields.

The University of New Hampshire in Durham offers a flexible four-year BS in homeland security degree. The program explores issues like data security, national security intelligence, global climate change, and community resilience. Students gain communication, analytical, strategic, and technical skills. Potential careers include critical infrastructure protection, emergency management, and law enforcement at the local, state, and federal levels.

The 128-credit bachelor's includes classes like fundamentals of corporate security, political violence and terrorism, and homeland security law and policy. All major courses require a grade of C- or better. The program combines classroom work with experiential learning opportunities, including internships and a capstone project. Subject matter experts teach in the homeland security program, drawing from years of experience throughout the nation.

Homeland security majors often pursue minors in corporate security, cybersecurity, global studies, or terrorism studies. Students can combine the homeland security BS with a dual degree, two minors, a double major, or an associate degree.

Future homeland security professionals can earn a BS in criminal justice - intelligence and national security from the school of arts and sciences at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of only three of its kind in the U.S., the program prepares students for entry-level work in homeland security. The curriculum explores issues like international terrorism, the ethics of spying, intelligence tradecraft techniques, and interrogation techniques.

The program gives students the opportunity to learn from and network with professionals from local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies. Many faculty members hold extensive experience protecting the U.S. and confronting global terrorism. The 120-credit degree requires core courses like evolution of intelligence, critical thinking for analysts, and emergency planning and security.

Intelligence and national security majors can complete an 18-credit minor in a field of their choice. Intelligence and national security majors gain skills in strategic thinking, communication, and ethical behavior.

One of the best homeland security degrees, the BS in homeland security from Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas, offers face-to-face and web-based courses. The curriculum explores topics like crisis management, government restructuring through disaster preparedness, and terrorism. Sul Ross' homeland security and criminal justice department offers multiple departmental scholarships for homeland security majors.

The 120-credit bachelor's degree provides a solid foundation in the theory and practice of homeland security and prepares graduates for diverse careers in the criminal justice field. Required courses include legal aspects of law enforcement, introduction to cybercrime, and research methods for criminal justice. Students must earn a grade of C or better in all major coursework.

Homeland security majors in their junior and senior years can complete an internship with a local law enforcement agency to gain real-world experience in the field. Internships cannot take place at the student's place of employment.

Students looking for management-focused homeland security degrees in Florida should consider the bachelor of applied science in public safety management from Florida State College at Jacksonville. The program trains students to take management and leadership roles in public safety agencies. The curriculum focuses on homeland security, constitutional law, criminal justice, emergency management, and fire science. The accelerated program takes 18-24 months to complete and accepts applications year-round.

The 120-credit bachelor's degree includes core classes like national incident management, emergency planning and response, and management theory and practices. Students personalize their program by choosing electives that reflect their career goals and academic interests. Elective coursework covers issues like business writing, organizational behavior, and public safety management. Students must earn a grade of C or better in all upper-division major classes to graduate.

Florida State College at Jacksonville is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.