Capitol Tech is forging a partnership with a well-established federal contractor, Data Systems Analysts (DSA), as the school launches new undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degree programs in critical infrastructure – a field of rapidly growing significance in the digital era.
Water, energy, transportation, healthcare and other essential services face a new set of security challenges that include theft, denial of service, and sabotage wrought by cybercriminals or other adversaries, including state-sponsored actors. Capitol Tech’s new degree programs – among the first of their kind in the nation – are being launched in response to such challenges.
On January 22, the university and DSA signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that paves the way for collaboration “in order to advance curricula and practices related to development and protection of critical infrastructure,” according to an official statement.
In addition, the agreement includes tuition discounts for DSA employees enrolled in professional services training at Capitol Tech, and the company will also recruit potential hires on campus through information sessions, workshops, and representation at the university’s career conference.
“We are excited to be working together with DSA, one of several partners that have enthusiastically volunteered to participate in the development of our programs in the critical infrastructure field,” said Dr. Bradford Sims, Capitol Tech’s president. “With its longstanding, proven expertise, DSA can help equip our students with the advanced skills and knowledge they’ll need as they work to secure essential facilities and services.”
Since its formation in 1963, DSA has delivered services and solutions that support complex and critical missions at the Department of Defense (DoD), other federal agencies, and state governments. With 400 employees operating across the United States, the company provides services in areas such as cloud computing, digital modernization, intelligent analytics, and cybersecurity.
“Our partnership with Capitol Tech offers both organizations a great opportunity to better serve customers, the academic community, the local region, and the nation,” said Paul Strasser, executive vice president at DSA. “This relationship broadens DSA’s long-standing commitment to enhance the capabilities and capacity of academic institutions to better support government agencies at all levels in accomplishing their important missions.”
“It also advances faculty and student studies of critical infrastructure protection and cybersecurity,” Strasser said. “In doing so, it increases the number and qualifications of people prepared to master the most advanced, emerging technologies and to address the most pressing national security requirements.”
“Our partnership with Capitol Tech will position DSA to more effectively attract highly skilled individuals as interns and career employees to work in these important disciplines,” he said.
Based in Laurel, Maryland, Capitol Technology University offers degree programs across a broad range of technology and business fields, including cybersecurity, business analytics, and unmanned systems. The school has been designated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the National Security Agency as a Center of Academic Excellence (Cyber-Defense).
To learn more about programs at Capitol Tech, contact admissions@captechu.edu or call 1-800-950-1992. For more information on DSA, see: www.dsainc.com.