Learn how to protect data, systems and organisations
Organisations depend on digital systems and need professionals who can:
- identify threats
- protect information
- investigate incidents
- manage cyber risk.
At Macquarie University, you can study cyber security as a dedicated degree, as a specialisation within information technology, or through a business and governance pathway.
Each option develops a different balance of technical depth, broader IT capability and organisational perspective.
Which course to choose
The right pathway depends on whether you want cyber security to define your qualification, form your technical specialisation or strengthen your business expertise.
Choose the Bachelor of Cyber Security when you want to:
- make cyber security the defining focus of your qualification
- combine technical, managerial and multidisciplinary cyber security study
- explore offensive security, cyber law, cybercrime, policy, governance and human factors
- develop deeper knowledge across a wide range of cyber security areas
- apply your learning through a dedicated project or capstone experience.
Choose the Bachelor of Information Technology with a Cyber Security major when you want to:
- combine focused cyber security study with broad IT capability
- build foundations in programming, data, networking and software systems
- understand how security operates across wider technology environments
- retain flexibility to explore related areas of information technology
- apply your learning through an industry-based project.
Choose the Bachelor of Commerce with a Cyber Security Management major when you want to:
- evaluate cyber risk and support organisational decision-making
- work with governance, regulation, compliance and management frameworks
- understand the business implications of cyber threats
- combine cyber security management capability with a broader business qualification.
What you will study
Depending on the pathway you choose, your study will include technical, organisational and professional dimensions of cyber security.
Across the technical pathways, you will develop the skills to:
- identify and assess security threats and vulnerabilities
- protect systems, networks, applications and data
- investigate digital incidents using forensic methods
- apply secure development principles
- evaluate cyber security risk across technology, people and processes
- communicate threats and recommended responses to different audiences
- apply legal, ethical and professional standards.
Indicative areas and units include:
- applied cryptography
- cyber law, ethics, policy and governance
- cyber security management in practice
- data privacy and information security
- digital forensics
- fundamentals of computer science
- offensive security
- secure applications development
- web technology.
Prepare for a cyber security career
The role you enter will depend on your chosen pathway and the experience you build through projects, internships, competitions and other professional activities.
Potential graduate roles include:
- cyber risk analyst
- cyber security analyst
- digital forensics analyst
- governance, risk and compliance analyst
- graduate security consultant
- incident response analyst
- junior penetration tester
- security auditor
- security operations centre analyst
- vulnerability assessment analyst.
With experience, these pathways can progress towards senior roles in cyber security management, governance, consulting, privacy, security architecture or organisational risk.
Cyber security capability is relevant across banking, consulting, defence and government, technology and telecommunications, energy, transport, healthcare, retail and critical infrastructure.