300 | Graduate Courses

Information Assurance
(Interdepartmental Graduate Major)
Supervisory Committee: D. Jacobson (Chair),
C. Bergman, J. Davis, A. Ho, J. McCormick,
P. Premkumar, J. Wong.

Work is offered for the degree Master of Science with a major in Information Assurance under a cooperative arrangement with various departments including Electrical and Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Political Science, Logistics, Operations, and Management Information Systems, Mathematics, Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering. Students graduating from the major will help to fill the need for well-educated system security specialists in the government, private sector, and academia. The program objectives identified as being critical to the accomplishment of this mission are: (1) Impart and enhance knowledge about information infrastructure security; (2) Expand and develop ability to engineer complex systems; (3) Instill and nurture social awareness, and the ability to function in a team; (4) Instill and nurture a sense of ethics; and (5) Develop an understanding of strategic and policy issues.
Students interested in the interdepartmental major apply and are admitted to both a home department (the department that is most closely aligned with the student's research interest and background) and to the program. The home department sets the admission standards, course requirements, and thesis standards.

The program is broadly based and uses courses in the various departments. The program will consist of 24 course credits with 6 credits of research work for a Master of Science with thesis. A non-thesis Master of Science will consist of 27 credits of courses and 3 credits of creative component. The courses are divided into three categories: core, electives, and thesis research.
A student's Program of Study Committee, in consultation with the student, determines the elective courses to be taken and the acceptability of transfer credits. The major professor will be selected from the discipline where the student is admitted (home department).

The basic prerequisite for admission to this program is a baccalaureate degree in engineering, mathematics, computer science, management information systems, political science, or closely related field. The GRE or GMAT examination may be required based on the standards of the home department. If the GRE or GMAT is not required it will be considered in admissions decisions if offered. Potential students with baccalaureate degrees in the physical sciences, statistics, or other related fields will be considered on an individual basis, possibly with provisional admission. The degree awarded is a Master of Science in Information Assurance.
For additional information students should contact the chair of the Supervisory Committee, 2419 Coover Hall, ISU, Ames, Iowa 50011, or www.issl.iastate.edu/ infas.html

Courses Primarily for Undergraduate Students
InfAs 396. Information Assurance Summer Internship. Cr. R. SS. Prereq: Permission of department. Summer professional work period. Offered on a satisfactory-fail grading basis only.

Courses Primarily for Graduate Students
InfAs 530. Advanced Protocols and Network Security. (Same as Cpr E 530.) See Computer Engineering.

InfAs 531. Information System Security. (Same as Cpr E 531.) See Computer Engineering.

InfAs 532. Information Warfare. (Same as Cpr E 532.) See Computer Engineering.

InfAs 533. Cryptography. (Same as Math 533.) See Mathematics.

InfAs 534. Legal and Ethical Issues in Information Assurance. (Same as Cpr E 534.) See Computer Engineering.

InfAs 538. Leadership, Team and Community. (1-0) Cr. R. Prereq: Permission of Instructor. Building community within the Information Assurance program and making connections to the field of study and to the university. Structured support in networking with faculty, peers, mentors, practicing professionals, and the larger community at large. Springboard to lives of leadership characterized by high ethic, concern, service, and care. Offered on a satisfactory-fail grading basis only.

InfAs 592. Seminar in Information Assurance. Cr. 1 to 3 each time elected. Prereq: Permission of instructor. Projects or seminar in Information Assurance.

InfAs 697. Information Assurance Summer Internship. Cr. R. Prereq: Permission of department, graduate classification. One semester and one summer maximum per academic year professional work period. Offered on a satisfactory-fail grading basis only.