Don your armour and get ready, we’re off to fight a war!
Well, maybe things aren’t that dramatic, but protecting internet-connected systems (networks! data!) is major business. Singapore recognizes this, too, and that’s why there are numerous initiatives in place to help safeguard the internet: Singapore will be contributing 30 million to the upcoming ASEAN-Singapore Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence (ASCCE), for starters, and National Cybersecurity Masterplans with key areas underlined for action and improvement (one is ending this year!)
Related Articles
With cyber attacks like WannaCry and SingHealth’s breach, cyber security is more important than ever. The ever growing digital economy and the Smart Nation Initiative will see the cybersecurity sector grow to 900 million by 2020 (projected, at an increase of 9.3% annually). There are job opportunities lying in wait. If this is a (battle)field you’re keen to explore, our list of courses you could consider is right below!
*All course fees are for 2018/19’ intakes and subject to changes depending on the school. All fees are in SGD unless otherwise stated. This is merely a list and not an endorsement of the courses listed, do conduct sufficient research to make sure a course fits your needs!
Interesting Schemes/Initiatives
- Cyber NSF Scheme (MINDEF
- Cybersecurity Entrepreneurship Hub (ICE71)
Diplomas
- Temasek Polytechnic – Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics
Curriculum: Coding principles and practices, data analytics, data structures and algorithms, network security technologies and so on.
Duration: 3 years
Course Fees: With tuition grant: $2,894.10 per academic year for Singaporean students below 40, $5,724.10 for PRs
Prospects: According to Temasek Polytechnic, grads will have good employment opportunities in the government/finance sectors as well as in consulting firms and local/MNCs. Roles you could take up include Security Penetration Tester, Security Operation Analyst, Incident/Forensic/Threat investigator as well as IT Security Auditor.
Graduates can also go on to pursue further education in higher institutions (there have been grads that secured places in universities such as Carnegie-Mellon) or go for the Earn & Learn Programme.
- Ngee Ann Polytechnic – Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics
Students taking Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics will experience studying as part of a small, tight cohort (the planned intake for 2018 was 60). The Diploma promises industry exposure through masterclasses by Information Security Professionals and internship opportunities at organisations such as Microsoft and CrimsonLogic. Students will also be exposed to the Security Development Lifecycle and be able to attain the CompTIA Security+ professional certification.
Curriculum: Take modules such as Ethical Hacking, Cryptography, Vulnerabilities 101, Network Security and Secure Software Development.
Duration: 3 years
Course Fees: With tuition grant: $2,800 per academic year for Singaporeans, $5,600 for PRs
Prospects: Possible careers for NP’s grads include becoming security analyst/engineers, digital forensics investigators, security software developers, penetration testers or malware analysts in security agencies and various IT security/solutions/consulting companies.
- Nanyang Polytechnic – Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics
Nanyang Polytechnic’s Diploma in Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics promises to equip its graduates with knowledge in phishing, encryption, steganography, digital forensics, zero-day attacks, system hardening and enterprise security. The polytechnic’s School of Information Technology was established in 1993, and the school offers overseas internship opportunities, industry exposure (>100 industry partners and >250 industry projects) and opportunities to obtain professional certifications.
Curriculum: Modules such as Design Thinking, Principles of UX Design, Software Engineering as well as Infosecurity Standards, Policies & Audit
Duration: 3 years
Course Fees: $ 1,452.15 for Semester 1 for Singaporeans, $ 2,867.15 for PRs (Semester 2 fees may vary)
Prospects: NYP Cybersecurity and Digital Forensics Graduates can go on to further study, or take up roles such as Security Engineers/Executives, Security Operation Testers, Cybersecurity Analysts, as well as Incident/Forensics/Threat Investigator in many sectors—whether private, public, or otherwise.
- Singapore Polytechnic – Specialist Diploma in Cyber Security Management
Slightly different from the other polytechnic Diplomas, Singapore Polytechnic’s Specialist Diploma in Cyber Security Management caters to working professionals in the infocomm industry that are looking to pick up specialised skills in infocomm security. The Diploma comprises of two Professional Development Certificates (in Infocomm Security and Defences as well as Security Incident Management) that have to be taken within a two year period.
Curriculum: Consists of 4 modules. They are: Infocomm Security and Network Essentials, Cyber Defence and Range Exercises, Digital Forensics and Investigation as well as Security Policy and Incident Management. Module synopses can be found here.
Duration: Course hours add up to 270.
Course Fees: $875.36 for Singaporeans below 40 and $2,334.32 for PRs. SME Training grant and Workfare support training schemes are also available for this Diploma.
Degrees
- Singapore University of Technology and Design – Information Systems Technology and Design pillar (Security Track)
SUTD promises its students a multidisciplinary and design-centric curriculum, and this is no different for its ISTD students. An ISTD grad, according to SUTD, will stand out from his/her peers through their multi-disciplinary design approach and systematic design approach. They will be able to provide computing solutions that are not only problem-driven, but also technically sound. Security Track students will take core courses in networks and security, with the option to choose from electives like Blockchain Technology and Systems Security.
Curriculum: See above
Duration: 3.5 years
Course Fees: $13,050 for Singaporeans and $18,250 for PRs with tuition grant per academic year.
Prospects: Jobs as Information Security Analysts, Security Specialists, and so on. Graduates can also go on to pursue higher education, such as SUTD’s Master of Science in Security by Design.
- Management Development Institute of Singapore – Bachelor of Science (Hons) Cybersecurity and Networks
Awarded by Teesside University, which ranked 15th in the University of the Year category of Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2018 (part of the Hotcourses Group) and achieved Silver in the Teaching Excellence Framework (2017), the degree has a 1:30 ratio for tutorials and practical classes. Lessons are taught by faculty with Masters and PhDs from schools like NUS and Curtin University of Technology.
Curriculum: Modules include Information Governance, Network Architecture, Server Administration, Information Security Management and Information Security and Cybercrime, just to name a few.
Accreditation: MDIS is EduTrust Certified. Teesside University is accredited by the British Computer Society as well as the Chartered Institute for IT Institution of Engineering and Technology.
Duration: 3 years (direct entry available), Full-time and part-time
Course Fees: $11,244.78 – 30,701.13 (full-time) for Singaporeans and $10,769.65 – 29,385.44 (part-time) for Singaporeans, $11,235.00 – $ 31,565.00 (full-time) for foreigners
Prospects: Graduates can find employment in roles like IT Security Specialist, Network Security Engineer, Security Sofrware Developer and so on.
- PSB Academy – Bachelor Of Science With Honours In Ethical Hacking And Cybersecurity
Awarded by Coventry University, which has been awarded Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework (2017) and also the top 13th university in the UK (Guardian University Guide 2019), the degree consists of 20 modules. The course brings together a computer science foundation with cybersecurity, digital forensics and hacking.
Curriculum: Modules include Digital Forensics, Systems Security, Networked System Architectures, Ethical Hacking, and so on. All learning will also be reinforced through Individual Projects.
Accreditation: PSB Academy is EduTrust certified. Coventry University is accredited by the British Computer Society (BCS).
Duration: 16-32 months, part-time and full-time available . Classes are typically held 5 times a week.
Course Fees: $23,368.00 with exemptions, $35,374.20 without exemptions
Prospects: Graduates from Coventry University’s Ethical Hacking and Cybersecurity degree have found roles in ethical hacking, penetration testing, malware and software security analysis, just to name a few capacities.
- National University of Singapore – Bachelor of Technology (Cybersecurity)
Offered in partnership by NUS’s School of Continuing and Lifelong Education (SCALE) and the School of Computing, this degree caters to working adults keen on furthering their knowledge. It aims to equip students with strong knowledge of computer science foundations and fundamentals. The degree only has one intake per year.
Curriculum: Modules such as Computer Networks and Applications, Communication for Computing Professionals, Information Security Management and so on.
Duration: 4- 4.5 years long (part-time)
Course Fees: $19,000 for Singaporeans and $35,000 for PRs after subsidy.
Short Courses
- Harvard short online course – Cybersecurity: Managing Risk in the Information Age
Offered by Harvard’s Office of the Vice Provost for Advances in Learning, in association with HarvardX, this short course is targeted at leaders, technology specialists aspiring to a leadership role, as well as security specialists desiring to upskill. The course does not focus on technical know-how, but rather “how to assess and mitigate specific vulnerabilities within an organisation’s networks, systems, and data…in order to protect…their digital assets”. The course is taught through interactive content, weekly group discussions and class-wide forums, as well as quiz assessments and assignment submissions.
Curriculum: Apart from the orientation module, there are 8 weekly modules. These are: Cybersecurity risk is business risk, Identifying the threats to an organization, Identifying important business systems and assets, The crucial role of leadership in managing cyber risk, Understanding your technology, Cyber risk and the law, Incident response and accountability as well as Designing and implementing a mitigation strategy.
Accreditation: NA
Duration: 8 weeks, 8-11 hours per week
Course Fees: USD 2,800 (approx SGD 3856)
- Kaplan – Certified Ethical Hacker Certification course
The EC Council is the world’s largest cyber security technical certification body, and Kaplan runs this preparatory course for one of their internationally recognized certifications. Students taking the course are advised to have basic knowledge in IT, and will receive a Certificate – Certified Ethical Hacker from the EC Council upon completion. (The exam will be MCQ-based)
Curriculum: Modules include an Introduction to Ethical Hacking, Malware Threats, Session Hijacking, IoT Hacking, and so on.
Accreditation: Kaplan is EduTrust certified.
Duration: 40 hours long over 5 days, consisting of 20 modules
Course Fees: Please enquire directly with Kaplan
- ST Electronics Cyber Security Centre – Cyber Security Operations Specialist course
This course was “developed by practitioners for practitioners” (cyber security professionals, network administrators, compliance managers, etc.). The goal is to teach cybersecurity concepts to course takers and getting them familiar with the functions of security products such as Wireshark, and get them response ready in the event of cyber attacks. Assessments consist of written tests (incident reports, exams) and practical performances.
Curriculum: Get introduced to network security devices, monitoring tools, attack methodologies, and have exposure to real-world cyber attack scenarios, amongst other things
Accreditation: ST Electronics Cyber Security Centre has attained the Approved Training Organisation status from WDA, and is also the first official training provider for (ISC)²’s Systems Security Certified Practitioner (SSCP®) Common Body of Knowledge (CBK®) training in Singapore.
Duration: 5 days, from 9-5:30pm
Course Fees: $4800 (pre-GST), SkillsFuture claimable
- SUTD Academy – A Primer on Cybersecurity
SUTD Academy is SUTD’s adult learning institution, and this Primer on Cybersecurity is part of their Skillsfuture Series course catalogue. Folks interested in cybersecurity but confused by the massive amount of info available online can start with this course! People with an engineering or IT background will find it easier to follow along but as long you have a basic grounding in math and programming languages, why not give this a go?
Curriculum: Basic cybersecurity concepts such as Confidentiality, web vulnerability assessments, cybersecurity issues involving cyber-physical systems
Duration: 2 days, 9am to 5pm
Course Fees: $1,926 (Skillsfuture claimable)
Masters
- Singapore Institute of Management (General Education) – Master of Science in Cyber Security and Management
Offered by the University of Warwick (79th in Times Higher Education Rankings and 54th in QS World University Ranking 2019), the Master of Science in Cyber Security and Management is fully taught by staff from the University. Lessons are a mix of interactive lectures, activities and exercises (role-play, for example) combined with on the job/in-company assignments and projects culminating in a 20,000 word dissertation.
Curriculum: Expect modules such as Cryptosystems & Data Protection, Cryptosystems & Data Protection, and Digital Forensics
Accreditation: SIM GE is Edutrust certified and is a member of the Singapore Association for Private Education (SAPE).
Duration: 18 months
Course Fees: $35,952.00
Prospects: Graduates of this programme have gone on to work in companies and organizations such as Accenture, PWC, Facebook, and CISCO, serving in capacities such as Marketing Specialists, Network Consulting Engineers, and Cyber Security Consultants.
Cybersecurity sounding like your cup of tea? Why not see where it takes you? Or read our article on Digital Forensics!
Taken a cybersecurity course and have feedback to share? Do tell us about it! We’re all ears! Do leave us a comment, or drop us an email. We’ll be waiting!
The post Suit up and defend the interwebs with the help of these 12 courses appeared first on Digital Senior.
