Best Online Bachelor’s of Homeland Security Degree Programs for 2023

Best Online Bachelor’s of Homeland Security Degree Programs for 2023

Find top-ranked online bachelor’s in homeland security degree programs to prepare students to keep the nation and its people safe in the areas of cybersecurity, information technology, immigration, travel security, and emergency management.

Top 10 Online Bachelor's Degrees in Homeland Security

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Frequently Asked Questions About Homeland Security Degrees

A bachelor’s degree in homeland security is an ideal degree for those with an interest in defending the public safety and securing America against both internal and external threats.

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Students will gain skills in risk management, ethical decision-making, and communication that they can apply in real-world situations.

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Subject matter varies by program, but students will likely take courses in national security, emergency planning, counterterrorism, infrastructure protection, and disaster management. Many programs also require a homeland security capstone.

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Online and on-campus programs are available, and most students will complete this 120-degree undergraduate program in four years.

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Graduates will work to keep the nation and its people safe in the areas of cybersecurity, information technology, immigration, travel security, and emergency management.

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Learn more about how to major in criminal justice.

Best Online Bachelor's in Homeland Security Degree Programs
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25 Best Online Bachelor’s in Homeland Security Degree Programs

  1. Tuition + fees

    $9K

    Acceptance

    97%

    Graduation

    57%

    Student body

    19K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1045/20

    Online Degrees

    BA/BS in Homeland Security Studies
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  2. #2

    University of New Haven

    West Haven , CT

    Tuition + fees

    $43K

    Acceptance

    94%

    Graduation

    66%

    Student body

    7K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1135/25

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4 years
    • Format: Online
  3. Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $9K

    Acceptance

    65%

    Graduation

    38%

    Student body

    4K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1160/22

    Online Degrees

    BSEM in Homeland Security and Emergency Management

    Concentrations

    • Cybersecurity and Information Technology Management
    • Emergency Management
    • Emergency Medical and Public Health Management
    • Fire Administration
    • Homeland Security
    • Law Enforcement Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  4. Tuition + fees

    $9K

    Acceptance

    63%

    Graduation

    23%

    Student body

    5K

    Median SAT/ACT

    965/18

    Online Degrees

    BS in Emergency Management & Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 121
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  5. Tuition + fees

    $10K

    Acceptance

    98%

    Graduation

    48%

    Student body

    12K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1060/22

    Online Degrees

    BA in Homeland Security

    Concentrations

    • Disaster management
    • Intelligence studies
    • Security operations
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  6. Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $9K

    Acceptance

    91%

    Graduation

    48%

    Student body

    11K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1135/23

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4 years
    • Format: Online
  7. #7

    Mercer University

    Macon , GA

    Tuition + fees

    $39K

    Acceptance

    75%

    Graduation

    74%

    Student body

    7K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1260/28

    Online Degrees

    BS in Emergency Services

    Concentrations

    • Homeland Security & Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 48 months
    • Format: Online
  8. #8

    St. Petersburg College

    St. Petersburg , FL

    Tuition + fees

    $3K

    Graduation

    36%

    Student body

    17K

    Online Degrees

    BAS in Public Safety Administration

    Concentrations

    • Emergency Management and Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  9. #9

    National University

    La Jolla , CA

    Tuition + fees

    $13K

    Acceptance

    55%

    Graduation

    47%

    Student body

    25K

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 180
    • Completion time: 4.5-5.5 years
    • Format: Online
  10. #11

    Mercy College

    Dobbs Ferry , NY

    Tuition + fees

    $21K

    Acceptance

    86%

    Graduation

    50%

    Student body

    8K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1020/22

    Online Degrees

    BS in Corporate and Homeland Security Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  11. #12

    Austin Peay State University

    Clarksville , TN

    Tuition + fees

    $8K

    Acceptance

    93%

    Graduation

    42%

    Student body

    8K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1053/21

    Online Degrees

    BS in Social Science

    Concentrations

    • Criminal Justice - Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 48 months
    • Format: Online
  12. Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $15K

    Acceptance

    92%

    Graduation

    39%

    Student body

    102K

    Online Degrees

    BS in Criminal Justice

    Concentrations

    • Corrections
    • Criminology
    • Homeland Security and Counterterrorism
    • Human Services and Advocacy
    • Police Administration and Operations
    • Substance Abuse
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4 years
    • Format: Online
  13. #15

    Keiser University

    Fort Lauderdale , FL

    Tuition + fees

    $22K

    Acceptance

    96%

    Graduation

    67%

    Student body

    29K

    Online Degrees

    BA in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  14. #16

    Jacksonville State University

    Jacksonville , AL

    Tuition + fees

    $11K

    Acceptance

    76%

    Graduation

    50%

    Student body

    8K

    Median SAT/ACT

    955/21

    Online Degrees

    BS in Emergency Management with a Minor in Public Safety Telecommunications, Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  15. #17

    Utica University

    Utica , NY

    Tuition + fees

    $24K

    Acceptance

    89%

    Graduation

    60%

    Student body

    4K

    Online Degrees

    BS in Criminal Justice

    Concentrations

    • Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  16. #18

    University of Akron

    Akron , OH
    Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $12K

    Acceptance

    85%

    Graduation

    60%

    Student body

    14K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1110/22

    Online Degrees

    BS in Emergency Management and Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4 years
    • Format: Online
  17. #19

    Saint Leo University

    Saint Leo , FL

    Tuition + fees

    $26K

    Acceptance

    71%

    Graduation

    46%

    Student body

    9K

    Online Degrees

    BA in Criminal Justice

    Concentrations

    • Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  18. Tuition + fees

    $9K

    Acceptance

    95%

    Graduation

    38%

    Student body

    3K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1025/20

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 122
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  19. #21

    Elon University

    Elon , NC

    Tuition + fees

    $39K

    Acceptance

    78%

    Graduation

    83%

    Student body

    8K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1230/27

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  20. #22

    Idaho State University

    Pocatello , ID
    Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $8K

    Graduation

    39%

    Student body

    9K

    Online Degrees

    BS in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4 years
    • Format: Online
  21. #23

    Campbell University

    Buies Creek , NC
    Other Rankings

    Tuition + fees

    $38K

    Acceptance

    87%

    Graduation

    56%

    Student body

    4K

    Median SAT/ACT

    1110/22

    Online Degrees

    BAS in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 124
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
    BS in Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 124
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
  22. #24

    Excelsior University

    Albany , NY

    Student body

    5K

    Online Degrees

    BS in Criminal Justice

    Concentrations

    • Homeland Security
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
    BS in Homeland Security and Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: 4-5 years
    • Format: Online
  23. Tuition + fees

    $6K

    Acceptance

    63%

    Graduation

    35%

    Student body

    6K

    Online Degrees

    BAS in Homeland Security/Emergency Management
    • Required Credits: 120
    • Completion time: None Reported
    • Format: Online
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Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require a time of adjustment. Although you’ll typically learn the same material and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, going online will require greater independence and responsibility than going in person. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, for harnessing the online educational technology that you’ll need to use, and for completing the course requirements, such as listening to lectures, learning lessons, reading texts, and handing in assignments. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take the initiative in building relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.

No. The only part of online education that’s easier than campus-based education is ease of access: all you need is a computer and an internet connection for online education. But even this seeming advantage of online education can be misleading: what’s easier, studying online with your computer and internet connection from your home where you need to cook, clean, pay rent, and maintain a job? Or studying on campus in a dorm where all your living needs are handled by the school, and college staff are there to help you every step of the way?

If you take the commute to campus out of the equation, campus-based education is easier. All the support structures available on campus for students, especially with real people to help you in person, are not there online. The demands on you as an online student will largely be the same as for your campus-based counterpart, but without the same helps.

In general, your online courses will present the same material and test you in the same way as traditional in-person courses. In many cases, you’ll even have the same instructors as your on-campus counterparts. In fact, if you are adjusting to the experience of independent learning with remote educational technology for the first time, online college may be considerably more challenging than campus-based college. For a few insights on how to manage this new online experience, check out our 10 Tips for Adjusting to School Online.

Accreditation is especially important when it comes to online college. This is because the online education landscape is a mix of highly-reputable non-profit institutions on the one end and less-than-reputable for-profit institutions on the other end. Accreditation gives you the power to identify the more reputable actors in online education. Accreditation is a stamp of approval from an independent accrediting agency indicating that a college or university is meeting standards of quality and credibility. School-wide accreditation falls into two major categories: regional and national accreditation. Regional accreditors generally hold jurisdiction only over schools in the states comprising their region, whereas national accreditors hold jurisdiction over schools in all states. Regional accreditation is widely regarded as a more rigorous standard of quality and credibility than national accreditation.

Attending a college or university that is not regionally accredited could limit your opportunities. For students seeking an online education, we strongly recommend that they opt for regionally accredited schools. Regional accreditation ensures eligibility for federal loans and grants, ensures your college credits can be transferred between schools, and ensures that your degree credits can be accepted if you wish to earn an advanced degree. For more on this important topic, check out our What is Accreditation and Why Does It Matter? College & University Accreditation Guide.

As long as your online college degree is regionally accredited (see the previous point), you should have little difficulty transferring most of your credits or credentials to another regionally accredited undergraduate school. Every school carries its own standards and procedures for granting a transfer of credits. In many cases, you will encounter some bureaucratic haggling in which some of your credits will be transferred and others may be refused. However, provided that you have attended an online school with recognized regional accreditation, you should be in good shape in transferring your credits earned online.

In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript, or resumé differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.

Some employers may express the concern that because you did your degree online, you may need to transition from an online education experience to in-person workplace experience. But in an age of Covid, that concern seems much diminished. The fact is that much employment these days is remote. And collaboration increasingly happens online over Zoom. Many employers will therefore view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.

If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will be less than ideal for you (though depending on your circumstances, it may also be the only viable option).

While there is much in traditional campus-based education that can be substituted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing that can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual in-person classroom setting. As you transition to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face in getting the most out of your online classes is overcoming this difference between “real reality” and “virtual reality.” Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.

The advantages of online classes are many. Above all, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete at your own pace and on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.

Resources for Online College-Bound Students

Whether you’re just getting started on your college search, you’re looking for survival tips on your way to a bachelor’s degree, or you’re preparing for the transition into grad school, we’ve got guides, how to’s and tons of other valuable resources to keep you moving forward in your educational journey.