The Graduate Catalog is the official listing of the policies governing graduate education at the College of Information and Cyberspace.
This Catalog documents policies and procedures set by the Graduate School, and is updated each academic year to reflect changes and updates to policy. Information on admissions policies, academic policies (including degree requirements), registration policies, and financial aid and student support policies are contained in the Catalog. Abstracts and information on academic degree and certificate programs, a list of graduate-level courses by program, and a roster of graduate faculty members are also included in each edition of the Catalog.
The College of Information and Cyberspace (CIC) offers a wide spectrum of cyberspace informed educational activities, services, and programs to prepare leaders to play critical roles in national security. Whether in pursuit of the Master of Science degree, Certificate, or a graduate level course for professional development— CIC students bring diverse perspectives to contribute to a rich and dynamic learning environment. They are motivated to learn and share knowledge, experience, and best practices. Our students are encouraged to become better leaders and decision-makers and to master the tools of lifelong learning. Students, graduates, employers, leaders, and practitioners create a global learning community to foster innovation and creativity.
Introduction to the College of Information and Cyberspace
CIC Departments
Joint Professional Military Education (JPME II) The JPME II prepares joint warfighters to be strategic leaders through a joint senior level course of study in the use of the Information instrument of power and the Cyberspace domain. The Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) is a ten-month in resident program that fulfills the educational requirements for Joint Qualification L-II. A fundamental strength of the CIC JPME II program is its joint, interagency, and multinational approach to studying the information environment and cyberspace. Students and faculty are drawn from across the U.S. armed forces, from U.S. civilian departments and from agencies concerned with national security policy
Cyber Security (CS) The CS Department focuses on developing the skills and the desired leadership attributes necessary to be an effective strategic leader in the Cyberspace Domain. The Department does this through the Cyber-Leadership Certificate Program which focuses on the strategic leadership attributes and knowledge necessary to integrate and conduct cyberspace operations to achieve national security objectives. Additionally, the CS Department focuses on government strategic leadership as it relates to information assurance, cyber security, and the role of information operations and cyberspace operations in the planning and execution of national and military strategies. The Cybersecurity (Cyber-S) Chief Information Security Officer Certificate Program and Cybersecurity M.S. concentration consist of courses that emphasize cybersecurity issues and fundamental approaches to the protection of the nation’s information infrastructure.
Chief Information Officer (CIO)
The CIO Department focuses on the strategic-level concepts and practices necessary for successfully leading the digital workforce and managing an organization’s information resources to conduct the business of government and achieve the mission. This perspective, based on the Clinger-Cohen Act (CCA) of 1996 and subsequent related legislation, includes delivering courses which address innovation and policy, strategic planning and budgeting, performance measurement, digital process improvement, and portfolio management. Together, these and other courses form the CIC’s CIO Program. The department works closely with other departments to prepare CIC graduates for leadership positions in the offices of CIOs across DOD and the Federal Government. The CIO Department also leads and delivers the CIO concentration in the Master of Science in Government Information Leadership Program and, in addition, manages and delivers the CIO Certificate Program.
Information, Communications, & Technology (ICT)
The ICT Department sponsors the IT Program Management (ITPM) certificate and its concentration in the Master of Science (M.S.) degree program. ICT courses focus on developing students for successful application of program management leadership skills, policies, best practices, and tools to acquire and manage an enterprise’s information systems, software, and services. Additionally, ICT courses examine IT program management, and related aspects of acquisition. The Data Analytics and Visualization (DAV) is an emerging program, examines the need for information superiority and decision making through data and big data concepts, and data analytics to support National Security and mission needs of Joint Warfighters and Operations, the Department of Defense, U.S. government, civilian agencies, the international community, and the private sector.
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Academy
The CFO Academy is sponsored by the DOD Comptroller and endorsed by the Federal CFO Council. The Academy offers graduate-level courses (such as risk management and internal controls, federal financial information sharing, and the federal budget) and educational services for middle- to senior-level personnel in the government financial management community to prepare them to create and lead 21st Century government organizations. The CFO Academy sponsors the CFO Leadership Certificate and concentration in the Master of Science Degree Program.
Course Formats
NDU CIC courses are offered to domestic and international students through our blended (eResident) model, distributed learning (DL), seminars for our Senior Service College cohort, as well as the CIO Leadership Development Program. See the NDU CIC Schedule of courses for beginning and ending dates of courses. The Blackboard Course Management System (Bb) supports the virtual classroom environment for all students and faculty around the world. Online library resources are available via web access through the Student Resources Portal in Bb where students can access the library as long as they are active students at the NDU CIC. The College regularly pilots new technologies to enhance the teaching and learning process and provides students and their organizations with flexible learning options to accommodate their location, work schedule, and learning preferences.
Accreditation The National Defense University is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE), 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, (267) 284-5000. MSCHE is an institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and Council for Higher Education Accreditation.
Disclaimer
Every effort has been made to ensure this NDU CIC Catalog and Student Handbook is accurate. However, all policies, procedures, and academic schedules are subject to change at any time and without prior notification by the CIC Chancellor or the University administration. The NDU CIC reserves the right to publish and revise an electronic version of the Handbook. This updated version is posted on the CIC website at: http://cic.ndu.edu. The online version will take precedence over the printed copy. The Handbook published for the current academic year supersedes all previous versions. Any corrections or suggestions for improvement of the CIC Student Handbook should be directly communicated to the Office of the Dean at CICdean@ndu.edu.
Graduate Programs
For details on all course click HERE
Chief Information Officer Leadership Development Program (CIO LDP)
PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS IS A 14-WEEK, FULL-TIME RESIDENT PROGRAM AT THE NDU CAMPUS. THE CIO CERTIFICATE PROGRAM AND THE AIR FORCE CIO/CYBER 400 COURSE ARE DIFFERENT PROGRAMS.
The Chief Information Officer Leadership Development Program (CIO LDP, or LDP for short) is the CIC’s flagship resident program for rising senior-level managers and leaders responsible for promoting and attaining national and international security goals through the strategic use of information and information technology as identified in the CIO competencies. The CIO LDP is administered in an intensive and highly interactive fourteen week forum. The student centered educational experience emphasizes developing leadership skills and abilities while learning CIO content through completion of six courses. The leadership skills and abilities are put into practice and the learned knowledge is employed as students participate in a domestic field study. The domestic field study examines how private and public sector organizations implement CIO competencies. CIO LDP students form a learning community that fosters multiple perspectives on a wide range of issues. The CIO LDP curriculum provides participants with the Chief Information Officer certificate and the CIO-LDP diploma as well as course work applicable toward the Master of Science in Government Information Leadership (CIO Concentration).
Government Information Leadership Master of Science Degree Program
The Master of Science in Government Information Leadership (GIL) Degree Program is a selective program that addresses the educational needs of defense and government leaders who seek to lead complex and diverse 21st Century organizations. Participants from across defense and other federal, state, and local government organizations create a learning community hallmarked by partnerships, information sharing, and network synergies.
Goals of the Degree Program
Successful graduates of the Master of Science in Government Information Leadership will be able to:
§ Employ information and information technology for strategic advantage
§ Evaluate the role, challenges, and opportunities of their organizations within the context of cyber, homeland, national, and global security
§ Apply critical, strategic, ethical, and innovative thinking to achieve results-oriented organizational goals
§ Collaborate across boundaries to leverage talent, resources, and opportunities to achieve mission outcomes and stretch vision
§ Create resilient, adaptable, agile, and productive government organizations focused on national security in the Information Age
§ Lead Information Age government organizations
§ Commit to lifelong development of self and others as reflective learners
§ Communicate at the strategic level demonstrating command of the topic, logical organization, compelling argument, and excellence in English grammar and syntax.
Curriculum and Degree Concentrations
The 36 credit curriculum of the GIL Degree offers a combination of information management, technology, and leadership intensive courses in a collaborative and interactive environment. Students select the concentration area, which correspond to the College’s certificate programs, at the time of admission. Concentration areas include:
§ Chief Financial Officer Leadership (CFO)
§ Chief Information Officer (CIO)
§ Cyber Leadership (Cyber-L)
§ Cyber Security (Cyber-S)
§ Information Technology Program Management (ITPM)
Chief Financial Officer Program
The U.S. Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Council, in conjunction with the DOD Comptroller, launched the CFO Academy in the summer of 2008 at the NDU CIC. The CFO Academy offers graduate-level courses and services for middle- to senior- level personnel in the government financial management community to prepare them to create and lead 21st Century government organizations. All CFO Academy programs support and comply with DoD Comptroller’s Financial Management Competencies. The primary educational programs offered by the CFO Academy are the CFO Leadership certificate and the CFO concentration in the Government Information Leadership Master of Science degree program. The CFO Leadership program is noted for a strategic leadership curriculum that is dynamic and relevant to the evolving needs of the government financial management community, including personnel who work in accounting and finance, budget formulation and execution, cost analysis, auditing, and resource management. It focuses on current and future challenges and opportunities facing government financial professionals. The program highlights the changing role of CFOs as organizational leaders of 21st century government. Successful CFO Graduates will be able to:
§ Lead within and across organizational boundaries by leveraging financial resources, information, technology, human resources, and for strategic advantage;
§ Balance continuity and change in the development, implementation, and evaluation of financial management strategies, policies, and financial systems while meeting legislative and executive mandates;
§ Lead at the enterprise level by linking critical decisions regarding resources, people, processes, and technologies to mission performance, information assurance, and financial systems security requirements;
§ Commit to lifelong learning and leadership development of self and others;
§ Synthesize theory and best practices from government, private sector, and not-for-profits to achieve the organization’s mission; and
§ Network with defense, federal, international, and private industry partners Communicate at the strategic level demonstrating command of the topic, logical organization, compelling argument, and excellence in English grammar and syntax
Government Information Leadership M.S. CFO Concentration (12 Courses)
Foundation (Required) OCL (6321) - Organizational Culture for Strategic Leaders NCS (6329) – National Security and Cyber Power Strategy (Previously CYS) CAP (6700) - Capstone
Strategic Finance Core (Required) BCP (6606) - White House, Congress, and the Budget CFF (6601) - Changing World of the CFOF FFR (6607) - The Future of Federal Financial Information Sharing RIA (6608) - Risk Management, Internal Controls, and Auditing for Leaders
Leadership - Choose Two AII (6203) - Information Assurance and Critical Infrastructure Protection ARC (6412) - Enterprise Architectures for Leaders DMG (6323) - Decision Making for Government Leaders IPL (6411) - Information Technology Program Leadership LDC (6301) - Leadership for the Information Age MAC (6512) - Multi-Agency Information-Enabled Collaboration
Management - Choose Two COO (6504) - Continuity of Operations ITP (6416) - Information Technology Project Management PFM (6315) - Capital Planning and Portfolio Management PRI (6333) - Strategies for Process Improvement SPB (6328) - Strategic Performance and Budget Management
Technology - Choose One DMS (6414) - Data Management Strategies and Technologies: A Managerial Perspective SEC (6201) - Cyber Security for Information Leaders WGV (6435) - Web-Enabled Government: Facilitating Collaboration and Transparency
Chief Information Officer Program
The NDU CIC CIO Program is the recognized leader in graduate education for Federal leaders and agency personnel. It directly aligns with the Federal CIO Council-defined CIO competencies and addresses the Clinger-Cohen Act and other relevant legislation mandates as well as the current administration’s interpretations and implementations of these legislative actions.
Successful CIO graduates will be able to:
§ Lead within and across federal organizational boundaries by leveraging information, information technology, human, and financial resources to link critical decisions regarding resources, people, processes, and technologies to mission performance and information assurance
§ Balance continuity and change in the development, implementation, and evaluation of government information resources and management strategies and policies while meeting legislative and executive mandates
§ Build viable networks across defense, federal, global, and private sector partners
§ Commit to lifelong learning and leadership development of self and others
CIO Program graduates earn a certificate signed by the DOD CIO and the NDU CIC Chancellor that recognizes they have earned an education in the Federal CIO competencies. The CIO certificate program is organized around subject areas directly related to CIO competencies identified by the Federal CIO Council. Selected courses allow students to tailor their CIO program of study to meet their organization’s needs and priorities. Additionally, the CIO certificate is a concentration in the Government Information Leadership Master of Science Degree.Courses are based on each CIO competency. Students work with their supervisors and the CIC’s Academic Advisor to tailor their program to fit their professional and/or organizational needs within the guidelines set by the CIO Council.
Government Information Leadership M.S. CIO Concentration (12 Courses)
Foundation (Required) OCL (6321) - Organizational Culture for Strategic Leaders NCS (6329) – National Security and Cyber Power Strategy (Previously CYS) CAP (6700) – Capstone
Core (Required) CIO (6303) - CIO2.0 Roles and Responsibilities SPB (6328) - Strategic Performance and Budget Management ITA (6415) - Strategic Information Technology Acquisition PFM (6315) - Capital Planning and Portfolio Management
Leadership/Management - Take Three ARC (6412) - Enterprise Architectures for Leaders DMG (6323) - Decision Making for Government Leaders IPL (6411) - Information Technology Program Leadership ITP (6416) - Information Technology Project Management LDC (6301) - Leadership for the Information Age MAC (6512) - Multi-Agency Information-Enabled Collaboration PRI (6333) - Strategies for Process Improvement
Technology - Take One EIT (6442) - Emerging Technologies DMS (6414) - Data Management Strategies and Technologies: A Managerial Perspective GEN (6205) - Global Enterprise Networking and Telecommunications WGV (6435) - Web-Enabled Government: Facilitating Collaboration and Transparency
Security - Take One ESS (6206) - Enterprise Information Security and Risk Management SEC (6201) - Cyber Security for Information Leaders AII (6203) - Information Assurance and Critical Infrastructure Protection COO (6504) - Continuity of Operations SAC (6444) - Strategies for Assuring Cyber Supply Chain Security TCC (6215) - Terrorism and Crime in Cyberspace
Cyber Leadership Program
The NDU CIC Cyber Leadership (Cyber-L) program focuses on developing the skills and desired leadership attributes necessary to be an effective strategic leader in the cyberspace domain. The program achieves this through a rigorous curriculum that enhances the understanding of all aspects of cyberspace and how to best integrate cyberspace with the other elements of national power to achieve the nation’s strategic objective.
The Cyber Leadership (Cyber-L) program prepares graduates to:
§ Apply principles of strategic leadership, including innovative and critical thinking, decision-making, and ethical conduct to achieve results-oriented organizational goals
§ Develop strategies to improve resilient, adaptable, agile, and productive government organizations focused on national security in the information age
§ Analyze the critical aspects of the human-made terrain that underpins information and cyberspace operations to include the technology, law, and policy that supports that terrain
§ Evaluate collaboration strategies across organizational and cyberspace boundaries to leverage talent, resources, information technology, and opportunities to achieve mission success
§ Produce strategic-level oral, written, and visual communication
Government Information Leadership M.S. Cyber-Leadership Concentration (12 Courses) (No longer accepting applications)
Core (Required) CYI (6232) - Cyber Intelligence IPC (6228) - International Perspective on Cyberspace MAC (6512) - Multi-Agency Information-Enabled Collaboration CBL (6204) - Cyberlaw
Core Elective - Take One SAC (6444) - Strategies for Assuring Cyber Supply Chain Security CIP (6230) - Critical Infrastructure Protection
Leadership - Take Two ARC (6412) - Enterprise Architectures for Leaders DMG (6323) - Decision Making for Government Leaders LDC (6301) - Leadership for the Information Age
Technology - Take One EIT (6442) - Emerging Technologies GEN (6205) - Global Enterprise Networking and Telecommunications SEC (6201) - Cyber Security for Information Leaders WGV (6435) - Web-Enabled Government: Facilitating Collaboration and Transparency
Management - Take One COO (6504) - Continuity of Operations PFM (6315) - Capital Planning and Portfolio Management TCC (6215) - Terrorism and Crime in Cyberspace
Cyber Security Program
The Cyber-S program is a source of graduate-level information security education for those serving as the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), Senior Agency Information Security Officers (SAISO), their staffs, and cyber security managers. This program provides advanced education to respond to the requirements set forth in the Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) and requirements for secure use of national security information systems set by the Committee for National Security Systems (CNSS).
The Cyber Security (Cyber-S) program prepares graduates to:
§ Apply principles of strategic leadership, critical thinking and ethical conduct in the development of cyber-security - strategies, plans, policies, procedures, and technologies.
§ Develop strategies to programs that provide cyber security, security awareness training, risk analysis, certification and accreditation, security incident management, continuity of operations, and disaster recovery
§ Evaluate how people, processes, information, and technology support critical cyber mission decisions to share information in a secure environment
§ Analyze the critical aspects of laws, policies, and operations that underpin an enterprise Information Assurance program
Government Information Leadership M.S. Cyber-Security Concentration (12 Courses)
Core (Required) AII (6203) - Information Assurance and Critical Infrastructure Protection ESS (6206) - Enterprise Information Security and Risk Management SEC (6201) - Cyber Security for Information Leaders ATO (6209) - Approval to Operate: Information System Certification and Accreditation
Core Elective - Take One CBL (6204) - Cyberlaw CIP (6230) - Critical Infrastructure Protection
Leadership - Take One DMG (6323) - Decision Making for Government Leaders IPL (6411) - Information Technology Program Leadership LDC (6301) - Leadership for the Information Age MAC (6512) - Multi-Agency Information-Enabled Collaboration
Technology - Take Two EIT (6442) - Emerging Technologies GEN (6205) - Global Enterprise Networking and Telecommunications WGV (6435) - Web-Enabled Government: Facilitating Collaboration and Transparency
Management - Take One COO (6504) - Continuity of Operations ITP (6416) - Information Technology Project Management IPC (6228) - International Perspective on Cyberspace TCC (6215) - Terrorism and Crime in Cyberspace
IT Program Management Program
Information Technology Program Management (ITPM) is a certificate and a concentration in the Government Information Leadership Master of Science Degree Program. The ITPM program is designed to meet the ever-increasing call for program managers across the federal government. The ITPM certificate is designed to assist agencies in complying with Office of Management and Budget (OMB) direction. The OMB requires that project managers qualified in accordance with CIO Council guidance manage all major information technology projects. The ITPM certificate requires successful completion of a graduate level curriculum to satisfy competencies established by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Interpretive Guidance for Project Management Positions and the CIO Council Clinger-Cohen Core Competencies. The certificate complements general project management training and the ANSI-recognized Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge. It also provides formal educational credit, one of the qualifications required for award of the PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) certificate.
Government Information Leadership M.S. ITPM Concentration (12 Courses)
Foundation (Required) OCL (6321) - Organizational Culture for Strategic Leaders CYS (6326) - Cyberspace Strategies CAP (6700) – Capstone
Core (Required) ITP (6416) - Information Technology Project Management ITA (6415) - Strategic Information Technology Acquisition IPL (6411) - Information Technology Program Leadership EIT (6442) - Emerging Technologies PFM (6315) - Capital Planning and Portfolio Management DMS (6414) - Data Management Strategies and Technologies: A Managerial Perspective
Leadership - Take One ARC (6412) - Enterprise Architectures for Leaders DMG (6323) - Decision Making for Government Leaders LDC (6301) - Leadership for the Information Age MAC (6512) - Multi-Agency Information-Enabled Collaboration
Technology - Take One DMS (6414) - Data Management Strategies and Technologies: A Managerial Perspective GEN (6205) - Global Enterprise Networking and Telecommunications SEC (6201) - Cyber Security for Information Leaders WGV (6435) - Web-Enabled Government: Facilitating Collaboration and Transparency
Management - Take One COO (6504) - Continuity of Operations ESS (6206) - Enterprise Information Security and Risk Management PRI (6333) - Strategies for Process Improvement SPB (6328) - Strategic Performance and Budget Management TCC (6215) - Terrorism and Crime in Cyberspace
Joint Professional Military Education
The NDU CIC provides a JPME Phase II curriculum that produces national security leaders and advisors who develop the strategies and the necessary doctrine to successfully leverage information and cyberspace operations within the broader national security framework.
The NDU CIC’s JPME curriculum focuses on the information/cyberspace instrument of national security. It provides graduate-level education to senior military and civilian leaders with an emphasis on the military, government, and private sector dimensions of information/cyberspace as a critical component of national security strategy. The CIC program concentrates on developing the habits of mind, conceptual foundations, and cognitive faculties graduates will need at their highest level of strategic responsibility.
Students in the Cyberspace Strategy Program will be able to:
§ Apply a perspective that is Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational (JIIM)
§ Demonstrate an expertise in strategic leadership, creative and critical thinking, and decision-making, combined with a thorough understanding and commitment to ethical conduct and exemplary leadership
§ Evaluate and apply the lessons of history with special focus on the impact of information access and dissemination
§ Evaluate the dynamics of international relations and the formulation of the information/cyberspace aspects of foreign policy
§ Apply the JIIM perspectives for the employment of information/cyberspace instruments
§ Evaluate the man-made terrain that underpins information and cyberspace operations
§ Evaluate how actions in cyberspace can at once be both strategic and tactical
§ Assess the health and strategic direction of the information/cyberspace industrial base
§ Evaluate the IT/cyber acquisition processes, resource policies, resource management, and operational contract support
Student Criteria:
Selection for this program is highly competitive and is done through a potential student's Senior Service College (SSC) selection process.
Students for the NDU CIC JPME must be in the grade of 0-5 and 0-6 who have already received credit for completing a CJCS-accredited program of JPME Phase I or received equivalent JPME Phase I credit as articulated in CJCSI 1800.01E. Civilian students are equivalent to GS-15 and SES-1. The desired mix of seminar students includes military officers from all three Military Departments, the U.S. Coast Guard, international officers, DoD civilians, Federal Agency civilians, and the private sector. The curriculum is designed for students who currently serve in, have an interest in, or may have the need to develop strategy with those who serve in the information/cyberspace domain. A successful student does not need technical expertise, but must possess the intellectual curiosity that makes them receptive to new ideas and new approaches to understanding national security.