Student Success & The Northern Experience
Our two-year graduate certificate in Cybersecurity prepares you to take on exciting and challenging positions within organizations that increasingly have realized their need to secure information.
This program takes a hands-on approach through lab activities, project work, and case study analysis. You’ll learn technical skill-building on topics that include ethical hacking, network security, incident response, forensics, and cloud security.
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Course Information
2024-2025 Academic Year
Semester 1
Students will learn about to the installation, storage requirements, and features and functionality of Windows Server, including server administration.
56 Hours
Students will explore contemporary risks and threats within a Canadian context to an organization’s sensitive data and strategies to use to safeguard these assets. Successful completion of this course will prepare students for an optional CompTIA Security+ certification.
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn fundamental concepts of system administration using modern Linux operating system implementations. Successful completion of the course will prepare students for an optional CompTIA Linux+ certification.
56 Hours
Students will explore computer and communication technologies within Canada including transmission concepts, network hardware and software, and standards and protocols. The course relates these concepts to other areas of information technology and prepares students for the optional CompTIA Network+ certification.
56 Hours
In this course, students will be provided with an introduction to scripting languages, such as Python, including data types, control structures, and regular expressions in the context of cybersecurity applications.
56 Hours
Semester 2
This course introduces students to the concepts of cloud security, including security governance using cloud technologies, security principles and controls, and secure cloud architecture.
56 Hours
This course covers the management of information security risks, including assessing and analyzing threats to the organization. Students will learn how to use a risk registrar and develop and implement a risk treatment plan.
56 Hours
Students will examine the methodology used within a Canadian framework for ethical hacking using a practical application of security tools. Mitigation strategies are also covered, including countermeasures to reduce the risk of an attack.
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn the technical aspects of digital forensics, including forensic procedures, imaging, hashing, file recovery and reporting. Digital forensic software tools are also introduced so students can learn how to conduct forensic examinations for themselves.
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn how to design, implement, and administer intrusion detection and prevention systems. Various attack signatures and network traffic are analyzed to better understand threats to the organization.
56 Hours
Semester 3
The purpose of this course is for students to enhance their career planning skills and apply these skills to prepare for work placement effectively. Skills like cover letter and resume development, job search, researching, networking, letter writing and interviewing will be developed and practiced. Additionally, students will focus on ‘‘soft” skills such as self-awareness, goal setting, interpersonal communication, personal presentation, and business etiquette. Active participation will be required as students learn experientially, collaboratively, and cooperatively in class and online.
42 Hours
Students will explore the issues of Canadian law and ethics of the Internet, including regulations of online behaviour, intellectual property, hacking and ethical behaviour. Practical examples of laws concerning security breaches and corresponding responses to these reaches will be discussed.
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn about information security vulnerability assessment fundamentals, practical analyses of threat intelligence, and automation and modeling with the overall goal of implementing successful organizational security vulnerability assessment programs within a Canadian context.
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn about security incidents, how to identify and categorize them, appropriate incident responses, and how to work with security information and event management systems (SIEMs).
56 Hours
In this course, students will learn the security principles needed to secure a network including developing a network infrastructure, understanding core security concepts, managing secure access, VPN, cryptography, firewalls, web and email content security, and endpoint security.
56 Hours
This course introduces students to security operation centres (SOCs) within Canada and the various roles and responsibilities required to support these centres. Students will learn fundamental requirements of SOCs, including how to map networks, scan systems for vulnerabilities, and monitor infrastructure for signs of an attack.
56 Hours
Semester 4
In this semester, students will apply their skills in cybersecurity in a Canadian work environment or complete an applied capstone project. The applied project will enable students to work on Canadian industry-relevant challenges to further demonstrate their skills and knowledge in cybersecurity and prepare for employment.
392 Hours
Career Ready Graduates
Articulation Agreements
A number of articulation agreements have been negotiated with universities and other institutions across Canada, North America and internationally. These agreements are assessed, revised and updated on a regular basis. Please contact the program coordinator for specific details if you are interested in pursuing such an option.
- Identify cybersecurity risks based on organizational strategies to manage risk assessment processes.
- Plan and implement vulnerability and penetration testing to identify, exploit, and correct weaknesses in an organization’s infrastructure.
- Recommend security controls for the maintenance and deployment of cyber security solutions to protect systems and information.
- Implement technical measures to identify cybersecurity incidents and their potential impact to verify that appropriate protections are in place.
- Plan, implement, and evaluate cybersecurity policies and procedures to improve the effectiveness of an organizational information security program.
- Design and develop effective cybersecurity awareness and training resources for employees to reduce risk of a breach or other cyber incidents.
- Communicate cybersecurity policies and risk management expectations to internal and external stakeholders in order to support business objectives.
- Plan and conduct disaster recovery, forensic investigations, and incident responses to support organizational business continuity.
- Use project management tools to implement information security strategies within scope and within timelines.
Career Opportunities
Upon completion of the program, students will be able to efficiently manage security in an organization through the application of cybersecurity controls designed to identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover.
- Cybersecurity specialist
- Employed in IT consulting firms and IT units in the private and public sectors.
Graduates will also be prepared to attain certifications including: CompTIA Security+ and PenTest+, (ISC)² SSCP, and EC-Council’s CEH.
Explore labour market information for related careers and employment trend data from the Government of Canada Job Bank.
Admissions Information & Requirements
Admission Requirements
Ontario College Diploma, Ontario College Advanced Diploma, Degree, or equivalent in Information Technology or Computer Studies.
In addition to the admission requirements, international students must have proof of English Proficiency and meet the requirements below.
English Proficiency (we will require one of the following):
Applicants possessing degrees/diplomas from institutions where the language of instruction was not English will be required to provide test scores as evidence of their English language proficiency.
- IELTS Academic International English Language Testing System: a minimum overall score of 6.0 must be achieved with no individual band score under 6.0.
- TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) – Internet Based Test (iBT) overall minimum score of 80+
- PTE (Pearson Test of English) Academic – Graduate Diploma: 60+
All educational documents must be submitted in English and will be dependent on the country of citizenship.
For more information, please contact admissions@northern.on.ca.
Tuition, Fees & Payments
The tuition and fees information is typically updated yearly for the upcoming Academic Year in May. The amounts are for the full academic year.
Amounts may be based on last years tuition and fees and are subject to change.
If you are a current student, please refer to your Student Account or see a Student Services Clerk for the most up-to-date information.
Tuition
International: $14,813.46
Ancillary Fees
Ancillary fees are paid in full for the entire academic year in the first semester.
The Convocation and Official Documentation Fee (GRA) of $100.00 only applies for the first year of each program.
Please see Detailed Ancillary Fees for more information.
| Ancillary Fees by Campus | Domestic | International |
| Timmins (PC) | $945.50 | $1,558.00 |
Find Your True North.
At Northern College, you’re a part of a community.
From your teachers to support staff and administrators, we are all here to help you get an education and make some lasting connections along the way.
Your success is incredibly important to you, so we provide student supports to help you achieve your goals. From study assistance and accessibility services to mental health supports and financial aid, we’ve got you covered.
Each of Northern’s campuses boasts exercise facilities, a gym, cafeteria, study areas and a library – places that you can go to help keep you focused as you work your way through your studies. The communities we call home are incredible places, filled with amazing people and things to do.
Does Northern College sound like a good fit for you?
Here’s how to take your first steps on your new exciting and rewarding career path.