Mathematics and Computer Science
Mission Statement
UW-Superior's Mathematics and Computer Science Department provides majors and minors in Computer Science, Mathematics, and Mathematics Education. The programs provide a core of fundamental courses along with an array of electives that enable students to pursue special interests. Using this versatile, highly regarded program, students can choose a major, minor, certification or associates degree that prepares them for a career or graduate study in Computer Science, Mathematics, Information Technology and Systems, Engineering or Mathematics Education.
Faculty and Staff
Dr. Serguei Bezroukov - Professor
Mr. Jerad Devries - Lecturer
Ms. Heather Kahler - Teaching Professor
Mr. Hossain Khoroosi - Lecturer
Dr. Timothy Pervenecki - Teaching Assistant Professor
Ms. Kristin Riesgraf (Asleson) - Teaching Professor
Dr. Steven Rosenberg - Professor
Dr. Chad Scott - Professor
Dr. Joshua Stangle - Associate Professor
Dr. Fnu Surina - Assistant Professor
Dr. Jonathan Totushek - Professor, Department Chair
Degrees
Course Descriptions
Computer Science
CSCI 681 Special Topics 1.00
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CSCI 690 Computer Science Capstone Internship 1.00
Students work in an approved position to gain experience in solving real problems using computer science, write a report, and present the results to the entire department. Students may receive salaried appointments with cooperating companies. Taken during senior year.
Typically Offered:
- On-campus: Select Semesters
- Online: Select Semesters
Cybersecurity
CYB 700 Fundamentals of Cybersecurity 3.00
This course introduces fundamental concepts and design principles in cybersecurity. Students will understand what needs protection and why it is essential. Topics include CIA (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability), threats, attacks, defense, secure design principles, access control and password management, security policies, critical controls, incident-handling and contingency planning, risk assessment and management.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 701 IT and Operating System Security 3.00
This course introduces students to fundamental concepts of modern computing environments and their security implications. Students will explore information technology components including computer hardware, networks, and operating systems while developing practical knowledge of endpoint protection, vulnerability management, and security controls. Emphasis is placed on both technical understanding and security awareness.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Fall, Spring, & Summer
CYB 703 Network Security 3.00
This course offers the basic knowledge of architectures, cyber threats, vulnerabilities, and defensive techniques for securing networks. The course addresses firewall functionalities, configurations, and managements. Different Architectures of VPNs for securing communication assets are presented with various implementation considerations. Students learn essentials of network analysis tools, monitoring, and policy development.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Fall, Spring, & Summer
CYB 705 CyberCrime 3.00
This course explores the landscape of cyberspace, focusing on cyber threats, actors, and attacks. Students will examine privacy issues, legal frameworks, and protective measures at individual, organizational, and governmental levels. Topics include cyber crime, cyber-stalking, and the effectiveness of cybersecurity strategies in preventing digital abuse and criminal activity.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 707 Cybersecurity Program Planning and Management 3.00
Instruction on the process used to develop and maintain appropriate security levels for an organization with a focus on implementing a comprehensive security program, a documented set of security policies, procedures, guidelines, and standards. Topics include security planning, strategies, controls, and metrics for measuring the effectiveness.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 700
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 710 Introductory Cryptography 3.00
This course introduces the fundamentals of applied cryptography, including a survey of relevant mathematical concepts and elementary number theory, encryption and decryption, symmetric and asymmetric systems, block ciphers, hash functions, common attacks, digital signatures, key exchange, message authentication, public key cryptography, and implementation of cryptographic systems.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 715 IT Security Risk Management 3.00
Master risk management processes by focusing on risk assessment methodologies to perform comprehensive security risk analyses. Categorize and evaluate technological, individual, and enterprise risks, effectively communicate these risks, and recommend appropriate responses. Understand how risk relates to system security policies to develop system-specific security programs by choosing optimal methodologies.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 720 Cybersecurity Ethics and Communication 3.00
This course is a study of the ways that communication, ethics, and cybersecurity intersect in relation to employment. In addition to ethical frameworks, students will learn to present technical information to audiences with varying goals and technical needs. Presentations and projects will emulate professional scenarios in cybersecurity.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 725 Computer Forensics 3.00
This course provides instruction on the investigative and forensics processes of digital evidence with a focus on identifying indicators of compromise, the use of common forensics tools, and the preservation of forensics tools. Topics include forensics iconology, and the analysis of disk, memory, chip-off, mobile device, and OS artifacts.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 701
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 730 Computer Criminology 3.00
A primer on modern criminology with specific attention to the aspects of technology that facilitate criminal behaviors. Topics include computer crime laws, criminological theories of computer crime, court room and evidentiary procedure, idiographic and nomothetic digital profiling, computer crime victimology, habit/authorship attribution, stylometry, and case linkage analysis.
CYB 735 Network Forensics 3.00
Covers protocol analysis, identification of malicious behavior in systems, and forensic investigations through event log aggregation, correlation and analysis. Students will analyze clips of network protocol analysis to discern methods of attacks and malicious activities. Reviews wired and wireless protocols and cover their associated attacks, with case studies involving protocol analysis, log analysis, and other tools.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 703
CYB 740 Incident Response and Remediation 3.00
Addresses how to set up an incident response system in an organization and the phases of an IR: Preparation, Identification, Notification, Containment, and Eradication of the threat actors, and Recovery and Reporting to prevent future incidents. Students will learn about the use of IDS and forensics, dealing with false alarms and the remediation process to minimize business impact, plan business continuity, and work with law enforcement, auditors, insurance, and compliance.
CYB 745 Secure Operating Systems 3.00
Covers operating systems security infrastructure. Topics include, for a given operating system (Windows/Linux), updates and patches, access controls and account management, configuration management, hardening and securing services, and the use of scripting languages to automate security management. Additional topics may include auditing and forensics, virtualization and cloud computing.
CYB 750 Offensive Security 3.00
This course includes active defenses such as penetration testing, log management, hacking, threat management and system posturing. Students completing this course will have an understanding of, and the ability to preemptively secure computer and network resources by utilizing information about threats, actors and attack vectors and the ethics behind using this data.
CYB 755 Security Administration 3.00
Covers the policy and governance aspects of security. Topics include application of security policies, standards, procedures and guidelines to administration of IT and communications, assessment of compliance including contractual, legal, industry standard, privacy and regulatory requirements, and implementation of security audits and assessment of security performance and security policy efficacy.
CYB 760 Leadership & Teams 3.00
Focuses on leadership best practices and the interpersonal processes and structural characteristics that influence the effectiveness of teams. Emphasis will be placed on leadership models, principles of team building, group dynamics, problem solving, and crisis management in cybersecurity issues. Course will include case studies of modern security incidents.
CYB 765 Security Program Management 3.00
This course is an introduction to cybersecurity program management and compliance. Students will explore the development, implementation, and evaluation of security programs taking relevant legal and regulatory requirements into account. Topics include security policies, incident response, federal regulations, and emerging security challenges in today's digital landscape.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 700
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 770 Security Architecture 3.00
Focuses on security architectures for the protection of information systems and data. Master identifying potential vulnerabilities in system architectures and design robust, secure architectures tailored to specific applications. Topics include common enterprise and security architectures, secure cloud computing, virtualization platforms, and the application of industry standards like the Zero Trust model.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 703
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 775 Advanced Cryptography 3.00
An in-depth study of modern cryptography. Topics include public key and private key cryptography, types of attacks, cryptanalysis, perfect secrecy, hashing, digital signatures, virtual private networks, and quantum key cryptography. Topics from number theory and discrete probability necessary for understanding current cryptosystems and their security will be covered.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 710
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 780 Software Security 3.00
that could be exploited by malicious actors. The unit focuses on the examination of software structure and behavior, either by directly reviewing code or observing its execution in controlled environments such that vulnerabilities are caught early in the development lifecycle or during regular security assessments. The objective is to integrate security into the entire software development process, minimizing risks and enhancing the overall resilience of software systems against cyber threats.
Typically Offered:
- Online: Select Semesters
CYB 785 Cyber-Physical Sys. Security 3.00
Covers the fundamentals and techniques to design and implement cyber-physical systems. Topics include the architecture of cyber-physical systems, exploiting software vulnerabilities, secure coding, microservices security, cloud services security, reverse engineering, security assessment of cyber-physical systems, and data analytics for security.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 775
CYB 789 Cybersecurity Pre-capstone 1.00
Prepares student for capstone experience. Draws on skills learned, students will submit a written project proposal - with organization, timeline, learning objectives, and specific deliverables identified – for faculty approval. This course is a pre-requisite for the capstone course.
Prerequisites:
Typically Offered:
- Online: Fall & Spring
CYB 790 Cybersecurity Capstone 3.00
Students present project identified in Capstone Preparation and submit a written report plus oral presentation to both faculty and host organization. Students will be assessed on clarity and content of written report and presentation.
Prerequisites:
- Successful completion of CYB 789
Information Technology Management
ITM 700 Communications for IT Professionals 3.00
This course focuses on developing organizational communication skills for IT professionals. Topics include crucial conversations, evidence-based decision making, and change management strategies for organizational transformation. This course also emphasizes the development of organizational and interpersonal communication skills relating to cultural sensitivity, diversity, and ethical issues in the IT field.
ITM 705 Leading the IT Function 3.00
Focusing on the application of management and leadership theories, students will explore their own personal assets and liabilities to become an effective leader and change agent in a complex adaptive system. Students will be introduced to strategic planning processes, as well as IT governance and ethical considerations.
ITM 710 Finance for IT Managers 3.00
Frame financial decisions within general and project accounting principles. Topics include; pro forma financial statements, time value of money, cash flows and equivalence, depreciation, net present value, rate of return, and ratio analysis. Prepare budgets that prioritize projects within constraints, address uncertainty and intangibles, and integrate with project scheduling.
ITM 715 Data Science 3.00
Addresses issues for developing, managing and supporting data-driven decision-making in the organization. Topics include data analytics, data warehousing, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, as well as the ethical collection, use and application of data.
ITM 720 Cloud Computing and Enterprise Applications 3.00
Leverage cloud services to streamline computing resources, deploy enterprise applications, improve user access and system reliability, and utilize advanced computing capabilities. Discuss implementation of innovative technologies. Examines the services available, along with deployment strategies, evaluation criteria, economic justification, and manageability.
ITM 725 Enterprise Security 3.00
Explores technical, administrative, ethical and physical aspects of IT security. Investigates various threats within IT and fraud. Applied information classification to the design of information, network and physical security. Evaluates the business processes of risk, business continuity, audit, and the risk within software development.
ITM 730 Agile and Traditional IT Project Management 3.00
Examines project management concepts as applied to IT projects; covers traditional PMBOK techniques such as project identification, selection, procurement, and cost /schedule preparation and monitoring. Introduces agile IT project management concepts including Scrum and Extreme Programming. Requires students to apply these concepts to group projects.
ITM 735 Business Analysis and System Development 3.00
This course focuses on the importance, role, and techniques of the business analysis function in the modern IT organization. This course is organized around the six knowledge areas and associated techniques of the Business Analysis Body of Knowledge (BABOK) specified by the International Institute of Business Analysis.
ITM 740 IT Operations 3.00
This course explores best practices and techniques for managing IT infrastructure and operational environments in support of the organization's strategic goals in the development and deployment of applications and services. Coverage includes network infrastructure; servers and devices; computer operations; service management; facilities; help desk services, DevOps, process automation and governance frameworks.
ITM 754 Capstone Preparation 1.00
Students select their capstone project, create a plan, define deliverables, secure approval and complete setup of their development environment. Students review concepts necessary for completion of the capstone including Agile project management, systems analysis and communicating with technical and non-technical audiences. Additional topics may be included.
ITM 755 Capstone 3.00
In this course, students complete the projects approved in the Capstone Preparation course. This course includes the management, development and delivery of an information technology project to a client or employer, including regular communication of status to both technical and non-technical audiences
Prerequisites:
- Admission to the MS Information Technology Management program and ITM 754
Mathematics
MATH 681 Special Topics 1.00
In-depth study of specialized current topics in mathematical sciences. May be repeated when topics are different.
Contact Information
Mathematics and Computer Science Department
University of Wisconsin - Superior
Swenson Hall 3030
Belknap and Catlin Ave.
P.O. Box 2000
Superior, WI 54880
Phone: 715-394-8028
Email: mcs-ada@uwsuper.edu