Cybersecurity is the first line of defense against the threats to an organization's network, programs and data. It is designed to ensure confidentiality, integrity and availability of data. Cybersecurity remains to be one of the most critical issues affecting individuals and organizations today.
A degree in cybersecurity prepares students with skills to monitor, mitigate and prevent online threats. Students will learn the fundamentals of information security, networking, server fundamentals, operating systems such as Microsoft and Linux, programming skills, computer forensics, ethical hacking and analyzing network traffic.
This program gives students a good core foundation in cybersecurity, a field with immense career growth potential. The program provides extracurricular activities such as JJC Cyber Wolves Cybersecurity club and participating in the National Cyber League (NCL) competition. The NCL competition provides a virtual training environment for college students to develop, practice and validate their cybersecurity skills. Through NCL, JJC students get experience in areas such as:
• Open-source intelligence
• Cryptography
• Password cracking
• Log analysis
• Network traffic analysis
• Scanning & Reconnaissance
• Forensics
• Web application exploitation
• Enumeration
JJC students participated in the NCL Spring 2024 competition. JJC's Spring 2024 power rankings were 20th nationally from more than 500 colleges/universities, sixth in the central region and third in Illinois. Schools are ranked based on their top team performance, their top student's individual performance, and the combined individual performance of their students.
Did You Know...
JJC's cybersecurity program has a partnership with Lewis University, making it easier than ever for you to transfer! Take three years of coursework at JJC and one year of coursework at Lewis to earn your bachelor's degree. Take a look at our transfer guide below.
Transfer Guide to Lewis University
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 28 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations.
The program does not require students to bring a laptop to class, but they may. A computer will be useful outside of the classroom to complete assignments or to gain more exposure to the topics taught.
The following are minimum specifications for the desktop/laptop computer a student should purchase. The brand, model, shape, size and color are up to the student to decide. Carefully consider service and support options as desktop/laptop maintenance is the student's responsibility. A Microsoft Windows-based system is highly recommended. A large percentage of cybersecurity applications require the Windows operating system. These applications will not run natively on macOS. Chromebooks do not meet the operating system and hardware requirements to run the Cybersecurity program applications.
Below is a list of vendors that provides discounts for students:
| Description | Recommended | Minimum Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| Operating System | Windows 10 or 11 Pro 64-bit | Windows 10 or 11 Home 64-bit |
| Processor Type | 64-bit Intel Core i5 or i7 or AMD Ryzen equivalent | 64-bit Intel Core i5 or AMD Ryzen equivalent |
| Memory (RAM) | 16 GB | 8 GB - 12 GB |
| Hard Drive | 1 TB SSD | 515 GB SSD |
| USB | At least 2 USB ports | At least 2 USB ports |
| Networks | Wired and WiFi | WiFi only |
“JJC’s Cybersecurity program enables its students to compete with their university-level peers while still appreciating the benefits that come with a community college experience. I pivoted into the program from another field of study without any technical knowledge at all and was exposed to network and server fundamentals, ethical hacking, digital forensics, risk management and more alongside a general computer science education that left me feeling confident about stepping into the tech industry. Through the JJC Cyber Wolves club, I was also able to participate in the National Cyber League competition and interact with guest speakers who held senior roles in Cybersecurity. This helped me to figure out what future paths might be best for me. I landed my first IT role over the summer after graduating with my AAS, and I can say with certainty that my time spent both in the program and the club was a major factor in being able to make the transition so quickly. Professor Stan has made the course assignments easy to follow and work with. The adjunct instructors brought their field-related experiences to the courses and could often relate the material to real-world examples or even their own roles outside of JJC. Professor Stan and the adjuncts always demonstrated an awareness of security culture and emotional intelligence. I highly recommend considering the JJC Cybersecurity program for anyone looking to start their journey!”
- Simon Verzak, JJC Spring 2024 Graduate
Cybersecurity AAS
