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Requirements, Plans, and Forms - B.S. in Security and Risk Analysis

Options within the Major

Within the Security and Risk Analysis major, students must select from one of two options to further focus their studies:

This option focuses on developing a more thorough knowledge of the strategic and tactical levels of intelligence collection, analysis, and decision-making. This includes examining the foundations of decision analysis, economic theory, statistics, data mining, and knowledge management, as well as the security-specific contexts in which such knowledge is applied.

This option includes a set of courses that provides an understanding of the theories, skills, and technologies associated with network security, cyber threat defense, information warfare, and critical infrastructure protection across multiple venues.

Entrance to Major Requirements

To enter the Security and Risk Analysis major, students must meet the entrance to major requirements below based on the semester that they entered the University. Once all entrance to major requirements have been met, learn how to declare your major by using the Update Academics feature on your LionPath account.

• Enrolled in the College of IST pre-major (INFST_PMAJ) or Division of Undergraduate Studies (DUS)
• Minimum 2.70 cumulative GPA
• Earned between 40-70 cumulative credits at Penn State (excludes transfer/test/other credits)
• Completed or currently taking entrance to major courses
• A grade of C or better in each of the following courses:
  • IST 140 or CMPSC 101 or CMPSC 121
  • IST 210
  • SRA 111
  • SRA 211
  Admitted to Penn State in Summer 2018 through Spring 2023
  • Achieved a minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA. Students who have completed or are in progress with all ETM courses and have a cumulative GPA of 2.7 or higher may be considered for an exception. Please use the link below to request a review of your academic records:
    • https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/ec9e1990222f47479773fac2a6056d8f
    • IST 140 or CMPSC 101 or CMPSC 121
    • IST 210
    • SRA 111
    • SRA 211

    Suggested Academic Plans and Prerequisite Flowchart

    Suggested Academic Plans are based on a student’s semester of entry to Penn State and serve as a guide when scheduling courses. Students should work with their academic adviser and run “Academic Requirements” and “What If” reports in LionPATH to ensure that they are staying on track for graduation.

    Admitted to Penn State in Summer 2018 or After
    • SRA: Information and Cyber Security option
    • SRA: Intelligence Analysis and Modeling option
    Admitted to Penn State in Spring 2018 or Before
    • SRA: Information and Cyber Security option
    • SRA: Intelligence Analysis and Modeling option

    Prerequisite flowcharts visually represent the major's suggested academic plan including course prerequisites and sequencing. The flowcharts are intended to be used as a planning tool along with the Bulletin Suggested Academic Plan and the LionPath What-If and/or Academic Requirements reports.

    • Security and Risk Analysis (IAM): Flowchart
    • Security and Risk Analysis (ICS): Flowchart

    Support of Option Courses

    Support of option courses are meant to help students acquire knowledge in an application domain and to help them develop supplemental knowledge and competencies related to their chosen option. It is recommended that students choose courses in consultation with an academic adviser or faculty member.

    The goal of support of option coursework is to add value to the degree and educational experience by taking courses around a cohesive theme. Areas of focus could include business, manufacturing, health care, hospitality, art, telecommunications, geographic information systems, government, or anywhere else information technology is used.

    Requirements and Courses
    • IAM option
      • Select 9 credits if you were admitted to Penn State in spring 2018 or before
      • Select 15 credits if you were admitted to Penn State in summer 2018 or later
      • Three credits or more must be at the 400 level
      • Select 9 credits if you were admitted to Penn State in spring 2018 or before
      • Select 12 credits if you were admitted to Penn State in summer 2018 or later
      • Three credits or more must be at the 400 level
      • Any 400-level SRA course not already being used as a major requirement
      • Any 400-level PL SC course
      • Any 400-level PSYCH course
      • Any language sequence 1, 2, 3 if Foreign Language is not a requirement of your major (this is
      • for students that are in the Summer 2018 plan requirement term or later).
      • Any 400-level language for the 400-level Support of Option requirement

      Business
      ACCTG 211*
      ACCTG 403W*
      ACCTG 432*
      ACCTG 471*
      ACCTG 472*
      ACCTG 473*
      ACCTG 483*
      BA 303*
      BA 304*
      BA 321*
      BA 421*
      MGMT 100
      MGMT 301*
      MGMT 326*
      MIS 204
      MIS 390*
      MKTG 301*
      MKTG 480*

      Communications
      AMST 106
      AMST 106N/COMM 100N
      COMM 100
      COMM 110
      COMM 180
      COMM 208N*
      COMM 370*
      COMM 401
      COMM/STS 408*
      COMM 411*
      COMM 479*
      COMM 484*
      COMM 489
      COMM 489W*
      COMM 490*

      Computer Science
      CMPSC 131 (if not used for a major requirement)
      CMPSC 132 (if not used for a major requirement)

      Crime/Criminology
      ANTH/JST/PLSC/SOC 60
      ANTH/JST/PLSC/SOC 60N
      BBH 203
      BBH 260
      CRIM 012/SOC 12
      CRIM 406*
      CRIM 412*
      CRIM 425*
      CRIM/CRIMJ 100
      CRIM 113/CRIMJ 113
      CRIM/CRIMJ/SOC 406*
      CRIM/CRIMJ/SOC 413*
      CRIMJ/PLCS 439*
      CRIMJ 455*
      CRIMJ 462*
      CRIMJ 465*
      CRIMJ/HIST 469*
      PSYCH 100**
      PSYCH 221*
      PSYCH 256*
      PSYCH 260
      PSYCH 270*
      SOC 1
      SOC 119
      SOC 119N
      SOC 208N*
      SOC 405*
      SOC 409*
      SOC 416*
      SOC 419*
      SOC 422*
      SOC 423*
      SOC 424*
      SOC 440*
      SOC 457*
      SOC 461*
      SOC/CRIM/CRIMJ 467*
      SOC 470*

      Cybersecurity
      CYBER 100
      CYBER 262*
      CYBER 362*
      CYBER 366*
      CYBER 440*

      Data Science
      DS 200
      DS 220*
      DS 300*
      DS 402*
      DS 435*

      Economics
      ECON 102
      ECON 104
      ECON 302*
      ECON 304*
      ECON 470*
      ECON 474*

      Enterprise Technology Integration
      ETI 300W*
      ETI 435*
      ETI 461*
      ETI 463*

      Ethics
      PHIL 10
      PHIL 103*
      PHIL 105
      PHIL 119
      PHIL 12
      PHIL 125
      PHIL/STS 407*
      PHIL 418*
      PHIL/STS 233
      PHIL/STS 233Z

      Geography
      GEOG 10
      GEOG 123
      GEOG 160
      GEOG 210
      GEOG 260
      GEOG 361*
      GEOG 362*
      GEOG 363*

      Global Security
      PLSC 3
      PL SC 7
      PL SC 7N
      PLSC 17
      PLSC 17N
      PLSC 140

      Information Sciences and Technology
      IST 220 (IAM only)
      IST 230*
      IST 240*
      IST 242*
      IST 250
      IST 256*
      IST 261*
      IST 301*
      IST 302*
      IST 311*
      IST 331*
      IST 361*
      IST 389*
      IST 402*
      IST 411*
      IST 412*
      IST 413*
      IST 420*
      IST 421*
      IST 423*
      IST 425*
      IST 442*
      IST 451 (IAM only)
      IST 452* (ICS only)
      IST 453*
      IST 454 (IAM only)
      IST 456 (IAM only)
      SRA 268* (ICS only)

      International Relations/Political Science
      HIST 20
      HIST 21
      HIST 452*
      PL SC 1**
      PL SC 2*
      PL SC 14**

      Middle Eastern Studies
      ANTH 9
      ANTH 9N
      HIST 165
      HIST/J ST 181
      HIST 473
      J ST 118

      Military Studies
      AIR 151
      AIR 152
      AIR 251
      AIR 252
      AIR 351
      AIR 352
      AIR 451
      AIR 452
      ARMY 101
      ARMY 102
      ARMY 203
      ARMY 204
      ARMY 301
      ARMY 302
      ARMY 401
      ARMY 402
      ARMY 496
      NAVSC 101
      NAVSC 102
      NAVSC 103
      NAVSC 201
      NAVSC 202
      NAVSC 204
      NAVSC 301
      NAVSC 302
      NAVSC 311
      NAVSC 313
      NAVSC 322
      NAVSC 401
      NAVSC 402
      NAVSC 411