Best Online Associate in Cybersecurity

Badge for BEST ONLINE ASSOCIATE'S IN CYBERSECURITY

By Dr. Winston Ewert and Dr. James Barham

Published: Jun 23, 2021
Updated: Nov 22, 2023

Find top-ranked online associate in cybersecurity degree programs to help students continue their education and apply their credits toward a bachelor’s degree, or they can enter the workforce as network administrators, cybersecurity analysts, or computer forensics specialists.

Top 10 Online Associate in Cybersecurity Degrees

University of Alaska Fairbanks
Roger Williams University
St. Petersburg College
Central Texas College
Kirtland Community College
Anne Arundel Community College
Community College of Baltimore County
LeTourneau University
Hinds Community College
Saint Leo University

University of Alaska Fairbanks
Anne Arundel Community College
Hawaii Pacific University
Roger Williams University
Saint Leo University
St. Petersburg College
Northern Virginia Community College
LeTourneau University
Montreat College
Pima Community College

Davenport University 99%
Roger Williams University 91%
Hawaii Pacific University 87%
Saint Leo University 80%
Montreat College 68%
LeTourneau University 49%

Coastline Community College 30 to 1
Northern Virginia Community College 28 to 1
Volunteer State Community College 24 to 1
Virginia Western Community College 23 to 1
Cerro Coso Community College 23 to 1
St. Petersburg College 22 to 1
Nash Community College 20 to 1
Pima Community College 19 to 1
Rose State College 19 to 1
Saint Leo University 18 to 1

Roger Williams University $40,962
LeTourneau University $34,470
Hawaii Pacific University $31,940
Montreat College $30,525
Saint Leo University $27,050
Davenport University $22,244
Anne Arundel Community College $7,920
University of Alaska Fairbanks $7,659
Kirtland Community College $5,820
Community College of Baltimore County $5,784

Hawaii Pacific University $20,306
Roger Williams University $18,565
Saint Leo University $18,436
Davenport University $17,262
LeTourneau University $16,875
University of Alaska Fairbanks $11,535
Montreat College $9,963

Rose State College
Coastline Community College
Cerro Coso Community College
Nash Community College
Finger Lakes Community College
Hawaii Pacific University
Georgia Piedmont Technical College
Columbus Technical College
Pima Community College
Davenport University

Nash Community College
Cerro Coso Community College
Kirtland Community College
Columbus Technical College
Virginia Western Community College
Gwinnett Technical College
Georgia Piedmont Technical College
Volunteer State Community College
Community College of Baltimore County
Coastline Community College

LeTourneau University 49%
Montreat College 68%
Saint Leo University 80%
Hawaii Pacific University 87%
Roger Williams University 91%
Davenport University 99%

University of Alaska Fairbanks 11 to 1
Central Texas College 13 to 1
Hinds Community College 13 to 1
LeTourneau University 13 to 1
Montreat College 13 to 1
Community College of Baltimore County 14 to 1
Columbus Technical College 14 to 1
Finger Lakes Community College 14 to 1
Roger Williams University 14 to 1
Georgia Piedmont Technical College 14 to 1

Coastline Community College $1,104
Cerro Coso Community College $1,380
St. Petersburg College $1,943
Pima Community College $2,136
Columbus Technical College $2,400
Gwinnett Technical College $2,400
Georgia Piedmont Technical College $2,400
Nash Community College $2,600
Hinds Community College $3,500
Central Texas College $3,720

Montreat College $9,963
University of Alaska Fairbanks $11,535
LeTourneau University $16,875
Davenport University $17,262
Saint Leo University $18,436
Roger Williams University $18,565
Hawaii Pacific University $20,306

Key Takeaways

The associate degree in cybersecurity is an affordable way to get started on your college education. The typical associate degree will take about two years to complete.

Many community colleges and two-year schools offer both traditional and online degree programs for students pursuing their associate degree in cybersecurity.

Earning an online associate degree in cybersecurity can prepare you for a variety of entry level jobs in your field. Many students also continue into a bachelor’s degree program in cybersecurity or a related area.

Table of Contents

Featured Programs

Frequently Asked Questions About Cybersecurity Degrees

Why get an associate in cybersecurity?

The cyber security associates degree can prepare prospective students for entry level careers in cybersecurity, surveillance, law enforcement, Homeland security and more. Online associate cybersecurity degrees are a particularly popular option for working cybersecurity professionals with an interest in updating their skills or advancing in their careers.

What will I learn while getting an associate in cybersecurity?

Introductory classes will explore the technological aspects of cybersecurity, such as telecommunication, network fundamentals, information systems security, ethical hacking and how to identify potential cyber threats.

Students pursuing their cyber security associate degree at community colleges will typically take both general education courses and core courses in cybersecurity such as System administration fundamentals, security software, computer networks, computer hardware and more. Students earning their associate degrees in technical college programs may be able to bypass general education courses in favor of a more narrowly focused cyber security program.

How long does it take to get an associate in cybersecurity?

Most cybersecurity associate’s degree programs are available both online and on campus. The typical associate-level degree in cybersecurity takes about 60 credit hours, or roughly two years, to complete.

What can I do with an associate in cybersecurity?

Those who earn their associate in cybersecurity can continue their education and apply their credits toward a bachelor’s program in cybersecurity, or they can enter the workforce as network administrators, information security analysts, or computer forensics specialists.

Learn more about how to major in computer science.

How do we determine the best online cybersecurity associate degree programs?

Methodology

Pursuing your degree online doesn’t mean you need to settle for an inferior school. Today, most universities and colleges offer online degrees, and many respected schools are seeing significant growth in their numbers of online students.

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why influence — i.e., the academic impact of faculty and alumni associated with a school — gets at the heart of what is truly best in education. The combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers is the best indicator of academic excellence. For our online degree rankings, we focus on the academic influence of faculty and alumni in the specific disciplines we’re ranking.

If you are serious about finding the best online colleges, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching, and whether their graduates themselves are advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence. Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Influence, as measured by our InfluenceRanking engine, provides a ranking that is free from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

25 Best Online Associate in Cybersecurity Degree Programs

Career Outlook for Students with Cybersecurity Degree

Go to Degree Finder tool

Computer And Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance

Degree Level: Associate's

Location: The U.S. (Private Schools)
Avg. Cost of Degree*: $5,017
Avg. Expenses*: $13,664
Avg. Starting Salary*: $38,898
Avg. Salary after 4 Years*: $49,839
Avg. Cost Recoup Time**: 5 years
Job Growth: 11.36%
Number of Jobs: 1,573,500
* denotes ‘annually’
** denotes ‘at 15% of annual salary’

Career Salaries

Career	Job Growth	Avg. Salary
Computer and Information Systems Managers	15.41%	$134,192
Database Architects	10.00%	$120,910
Computer Network Architects	3.55%	$111,162
Managers, All Other	3.35%	$106,040
Information Security Analysts	31.55%	$102,130
Database Administrators	7.04%	$90,551
Project Management Specialists	6.21%	$83,516
Network and Computer Systems Administrators	2.44%	$82,905
Computer Occupations, All Other	9.72%	$79,886
Web Developers	16.90%	$72,340

Average Career Salaries

Bottom 10%	Median	Top 10%
$61,034	$98,954	$146,290

Promising Job Markets

State	Cost of Living	Avg. Salary
#2 Georgia	13% higher than average	$108,150
#3 Virginia	5% higher than average	$117,193
#4 North Carolina	11% higher than average	$105,853
#5 Texas	10% higher than average	$105,429
#6 Washington	7% higher than average	$124,389
#7 New York	5% higher than average	$121,625
#8 Delaware	2% higher than average	$118,825
#9 Ohio	14% higher than average	$97,668
#10 Illinois	7% higher than average	$104,714
#11 Minnesota	4% higher than average	$106,067
#12 Colorado	3% higher than average	$113,445
#13 Michigan	15% higher than average	$93,068
#14 Alabama	13% higher than average	$93,644
#15 Missouri	16% higher than average	$90,354
#16 New Jersey	13% higher than average	$120,978
#17 Arizona	5% higher than average	$100,039
#18 New Mexico	7% higher than average	$97,539
#19 Florida	6% higher than average	$98,353
#20 Tennessee	14% higher than average	$88,420
#21 Pennsylvania	5% higher than average	$97,685
#22 South Dakota	7% higher than average	$94,668
#23 Iowa	9% higher than average	$92,793
#24 Oklahoma	13% higher than average	$88,555
#25 South Carolina	8% higher than average	$93,780
#26 Utah	4% higher than average	$97,483
#27 Wisconsin	7% higher than average	$94,777
#28 Maryland	18% higher than average	$118,732
#29 California	26% higher than average	$126,026
#30 Kansas	9% higher than average	$90,746
#31 Kentucky	14% higher than average	$85,084
#32 West Virginia	11% higher than average	$86,006
#33 Massachusetts	24% higher than average	$119,614
#34 Connecticut	18% higher than average	$113,007
#35 Mississippi	18% higher than average	$78,418
#36 New Hampshire	13% higher than average	$106,211
#37 Rhode Island	20% higher than average	$112,099
#38 Indiana	11% higher than average	$82,896
#39 Nebraska	6% higher than average	$87,308
#40 Idaho	7% higher than average	$86,194
#41 Louisiana	9% higher than average	$83,197
#42 Arkansas	16% higher than average	$77,359
#43 Oregon	11% higher than average	$100,934
#44 North Dakota	average	$85,440
#45 Nevada	5% higher than average	$87,162
#46 Wyoming	2% higher than average	$80,980
#47 District of Columbia	49% higher than average	$122,905
#48 Montana	3% higher than average	$79,120
#49 Maine	9% higher than average	$88,864
#50 Alaska	23% higher than average	$97,396
#51 Vermont	13% higher than average	$88,412
#52 Hawaii	40% higher than average	$96,358

Top Industries

Industry	Avg. Salary
Computer and Information Systems Managers	$134,192
Database Architects	$120,910
Computer Network Architects	$111,162
Managers, All Other	$106,040
Information Security Analysts	$102,130
Database Administrators	$90,551
Project Management Specialists	$83,516
Network and Computer Systems Administrators	$82,905
Computer Occupations, All Other	$79,886
Web Developers	$72,340

Data from The Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Department of Education College Scorecard, The Department of Education NCES, and The Council for Community and Economic Research.

Online Cybersecurity Programs Looking for You

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.

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.

Do you have a question about this topic? Ask it here

Best Online Associate in Cybersecurity

Top 10 Online Associate in Cybersecurity Degrees

Key Takeaways

Featured Programs

Frequently Asked Questions About Cybersecurity Degrees

Why get an associate in cybersecurity?

What will I learn while getting an associate in cybersecurity?

How long does it take to get an associate in cybersecurity?

What can I do with an associate in cybersecurity?

25 Best Online Associate in Cybersecurity Degree Programs

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at University of Alaska Fairbanks

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Roger Williams University

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at St. Petersburg College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Central Texas College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Kirtland Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Anne Arundel Community College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Community College of Baltimore County

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at LeTourneau University

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Hinds Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Saint Leo University

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Northern Virginia Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Volunteer State Community College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Gwinnett Technical College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Montreat College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Virginia Western Community College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Davenport University

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Pima Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Columbus Technical College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Georgia Piedmont Technical College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Hawaii Pacific University

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Finger Lakes Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Nash Community College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Cerro Coso Community College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Coastline Community College

Online Degrees

Concentrations

Career Outlook for Cybersecurity degree at Rose State College

Online Degrees

Career Outlook for Students with Cybersecurity Degree

Computer And Information Systems Security/Auditing/Information Assurance

Degree Level: Associate's

Career Salaries

Average Career Salaries

Promising Job Markets

Top Industries

Online Cybersecurity Programs Looking for You

Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

What can I expect from an online college course?+

Is online college easier than campus-based college?+