The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board recently approved a new fully online Bachelor of Arts degree in security studies at The University of Texas at El Paso. The program’s first courses will begin in May 2015.
The new degree plan from UTEP’s National Security Studies Institute (NSSI) will create more opportunities for nontraditional students who want to earn a four-year degree, but are not always able to attend classes at a brick-and-mortar institution. The program is aimed toward people with military, law enforcement and homeland security jobs, but is open to anyone.
“We are offering an opportunity to our target audience that they never had before,” said Larry Valero, Ph.D., NSSI director. “Earning this degree is highly relevant to their career path. They need it to advance. I believe it will be very popular.”
Valero designed the curriculum with the needs of security and intelligence agencies and the military in mind. It offers concentrations in cyber security, homeland security, intelligence and national security, and security operations. Classes will build a solid foundation in theory and empirical thinking, a greater understanding of statistics, and enhance necessary writing skills.
The program’s curriculum will be offered through UTEP Connect, home to the University’s growing portfolio of online undergraduate and graduate degree plans and certificates. UTEP Connect is part of UTEP’s Extended University, the administrative umbrella organization that oversees the institution’s nontraditional academic offerings.
“We’re hopeful that UTEP Connect will help the NSSI recruit interested students so that as many people as possible can take advantage of this new degree,” said Michael Topp, Ph.D., associate dean for the College of Liberal Arts.
The new degree program was developed with funding from the Department of Homeland Security, Science and Technology Directorate and provided through the National Center for Border Security and Immigration at UTEP.
For more information, visit online.utep.edu.