Course
Build Your Expertise in Homeland Security Strategy
The demand for dedicated and educated professionals who are focused on securing our country has continued to grow since 9/11. With UMass Lowell's Master of Arts in Security Studies: Homeland Defense Concentration, you will gain an informed perspective on global and national affairs, while cultivating core competencies that will position you for leadership and success in this vital field.
Earn Your Master's Degree in as Little as 18 Months
Integrating a big-picture policy perspective with an understanding of human behavior, systems and intelligence analysis, this graduate program covers a range of topical issues related to the prevention of terrorist attacks and the defense of the United States, including critical infrastructure protection, regional and national security intelligence, land and maritime border protection, and the use of new technologies in homeland security practices.
Drawing on the in-depth knowledge and extensive experience of UMass Lowell's criminal justice, psychology and legal studies faculty, this multidisciplinary program will position you for a variety of career paths in local, state and federal government agencies, as well as security jobs with defense contractors, research firms and advanced technology companies.
Our faculty is comprised of top academics in the area of security studies, as well as industry experts who hold security clearances with the U.S. military and/or have worked in law enforcement or for intelligence and justice agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; and the Department of Defense.
Success Story
"The professors at UMass Lowell are experts and possess years of experience in what they teach. My intelligence class was taught by an intelligence officer, and the science and technology class was taught by a professor that used to work with a research and development company."
Dan A.
Open the Door to a variety of Opportunities
By earning a master's degree in Security Studies with a focus on homeland defense, you can increase your career opportunities and deepen your professional knowledge of a diverse range of topics including:
- homeland security and defense systems utilized in the United States since 9/11
- technical aspects, history and contemporary threat of weapons of mass destruction
- Patterns and trends of political violence in different countries around the globe
- strategies for reducing and responding to hazards posed by both manmade and natural disasters
- legitimate and illegitimate Internet commerce
- cyber-criminal methodologies and techniques
- strategies, tactics, and legal and ethical implications of intelligence collection and analysis
- best practices for designing and building a comprehensive cybersecurity program
- the role of science and technology in homeland and national security
Learn from a Leader in Terrorism and Security Studies Research
The Center for Terrorism and Security Studies (CTSS) was established at the University of Massachusetts Lowell in 2013 to bring together faculty from several colleges at UMass Lowell (and from other institutions and organizations in the Commonwealth) to work on a variety of collaborative research projects addressing the evolution, convergence and complexity of such domestic and foreign security challenges as terrorism, cybersecurity, transnational crime and weapons of mass destruction.
CTSS faculty, staff and fellows — who are internationally recognized experts in their respective fields — represent such diverse disciplines as psychology, criminology, political science, education, philosophy and computer science.
