The Graduate Certificate in Homeland Defense is for students who have an interest in and a desire to prepare for jobs related to homeland security and homeland defense. As employment opportunities expand in the private sector and at all levels of the public sector, alumni of this program will be well-positioned to serve as administrators, executives, analysts, and consultants in the growing homeland security/homeland defense field. The homeland defense courses have been offered to military, DOD employees, and defense contractors since August 2003. Beginning in the fall of 2004, the program became available to interested community members.

Entrance into this program requires a Bachelor's degree, and all courses must be completed with a grade of B- or better in order to earn the certificate.

Graduate Certificate in Homeland Defense Brochure

A Graduate Certificate in Homeland Defense consists of four required classes. These courses are designed to be taken in the order in which they appear below. For descriptions of courses see UCCS Academic Catalog

PAD/CJ 5950: Introduction to Homeland Defense
PAD/CJ 5951: Interagency Relationships in Homeland Security and Homeland Defense
PAD/CJ 5957: Understanding the Threat
PAD/CJ 5952: Protection of Critical Infrastructure

These courses also may be used as electives toward the Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree or the Master of Criminal Justice (MCJ) degree at the UCCS School of Public Affairs.

To enroll in the certificate program, all students must:
•submit a one-page certificate application and official transcripts to the School of Public Affairs

Students not currently admitted to the MPA or MCJ degree program must also:
•submit a brief application and a $25 processing fee to the UCCS admissions office to be admitted as a nondegree student
•submit official transcripts to the School of Public Affairs

Gainful Employment Disclosures:
The U.S. Department of Education requires us to provide the following information about each of our certificates.

Program Costs:
The total investment in the Graduate Certificate program will vary depending on a student's residency status (Colorado resident vs. non-resident) and delivery mode (on campus vs. online). Tuition and fees for the Graduate Certificate program are the same as listed here.

In general the total tuition and fees for a four (4) course certificate will be between $6898 and $12,592. Textbooks required for the certificate program typically cost between $100-$150 per course or $400-$600 for the program.

Related Occupations:
Related occupations for each certificate are listed below. Click the links below to view occupational profiles.

Management:
Emergency Management Directors                           

On-Time Completion & Median Loan Debt:

As these are newly-approved programs the on-time completion rates and median student loan debt of program graduates are not yet available.