The Center for Cyberspace Research at the Air Force Institute of Technology has been awarded a renewal grant in the amount of $2.1 M to continue its successful Scholarship for Service fellowship program that recruits and educates talented civilians to work for federal, state, or local governments on cyber security issues.

The objective of the Scholarship for Service program is to increase the number of qualified students entering the fields of cyber operations and computer security and to increase the capacity of the United States higher education enterprise to continue to produce professionals in these fields to meet the needs of our increasingly technological society. Those selected for this competitive fellowship attend AFIT all expenses paid for two years and earn a Master’s degree in Cyber Operations. Students also receive a stipend of $25K a year for living expenses. After graduation, the student works as a civilian for a federal, state, or local government agency for two years.

AFIT is a National Security Agency and Department of Homeland Security designated Center of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance Education and Research. Since 1995 AFIT has made a significant contribution to the production of cyber professionals through our graduate educational program and research. “We have a unique ability to develop cyber professionals with a thorough understanding of the special requirements of government cyber operations,” says Dr. Raines, Director of the Center for Cyberspace Research. The Associate Director of the Center for Cyberspace Research, Dr. Baldwin, states that “While the job market for Computer Science graduates is on the decline, cyber security, which includes computer and network security, is a huge growth market.”