Iowa State launches cybersecurity certificate to boost skills, build state's workforce
Iowa, so far in 2025, has had 3,506 job postings for cybersecurity positions.
And, according to data compiled by cyberseek.org, the state only has enough cybersecurity workers to meet 73% of employer demand.
Iowa State University is offering a new, online undergraduate certificate in cybersecurity to help strengthen the skills of workers and build the state’s workforce. The program’s first students will begin studies this fall. Program and application information are now available online.
“There is a need,” said Doug Jacobson, Iowa State’s Sunil and Sujata Gaitonde Professor in Cybersecurity, a University Professor in electrical and computer engineering, director of the university’s Center for Cybersecurity Innovation and Outreach and director of the undergraduate certificate program. “It can be hard to get people. This program provides a way to take the current workforce and move them up and potentially bring in those with two-year degrees.”
The program is designed for current cybersecurity or information technology workers who have earned a two-year associate’s degree. The certificate requires 21 total credits (a two-credit course generally takes about eight weeks) and can be completed in one to two years.
