Online Homeland Security Degree | ASU Online Degree Description

Individuals interested in pursuing a program of study focused on homeland security policies and programs can pursue a homeland security concentration of the online Master of Arts in emergency management and homeland security (EMHS).

Resident tuition | Non-resident tuition

The homeland security concentration is a part of the Master of Arts in Emergency Management and Homeland Security is offered by the Watts College of Public Service & Community Solutions through ASU Online. The 33-credit hour program can be completed in as little as one year. This program’s graduates will be well-prepared to utilize public policy and best applicable management practices within their professional areas to develop protection, mitigation and preparedness measures to prevent and/or minimize societal impacts of natural and human-made threats and hazards. Likewise, our graduates will be able to employ necessary management and leadership skills in guiding local or national response to and recovery from any potential emergencies, disasters and other related societal threats.

The 33-credit hour program can be completed in as little as one year.

In the EMHS program, students have the option to choose one concentration:

Career options for students in this concentration include policy analytic or management positions in various government agencies or private sector firms, or various positions with public safety and security and/or emergency or crisis management responsibilities across a range of public sector agencies. The EMHS homeland security concentration is suited for those with interests in substantive focus areas such as business continuity, infrastructure protection, intelligence analysis, law enforcement, and physical security.

Students gain an essential understanding of the entire vision, mission, and principles of homeland security with an emphasis on leadership, management, use of technology and both inter-agency collaboration and cross-sector collaboration. Many homeland security-related positions reside in public sector agencies at all levels of government. But the homeland security degree also helps prepare those interested in private sector careers with functional and operational responsibilities on safety and security in private organizations that are parallel with the public sector.

ASU Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions:

#1 Homeland security degree in the country, ranked by U.S. News and World Report
Research is the forefront of all academic activities with 20 research centers for advancing research and discovery around challenges that affect us globally
Home to ASU’s most diverse student body —and the largest community of first-generation college students
#1 university in the U.S. for innovation
Named a prestigious global university

Featured Courses

CPP 510: Hazards Governance

Program Core: Examines how hazards are managed by both community- and national-level policymaking and administrative systems, with a particular focus on understanding how policies and management practices are related to risk reduction and resilience capacity promotion. Explores what governance means in practice and presents existing research, including policy reports, cases studies and quantitative analyses of community-level and national-level hazards management programs and related public policies--and how their integration is relevant to hazards governance. Emphasizes understanding the nature of public goods production processes, including how inter-sector integration (i.e. between, public, private and nonprofit organizations) and extant community vulnerability profiles matter to the specific risk reduction efforts, and what those same efforts yield in terms of aggregate community resilience outcomes.

CRJ 511: Applied Data Analysis in CJ

Program Core: Examines a variety of tools used in the analysis of criminal justice data, including GIS mapping.

CPP 520: Program Evaluation for EMHS

Program Core: Examines core concepts and techniques of program evaluation and policy analysis and applies them to specific challenges in the domains of emergency management and homeland security. Develops knowledge and expertise in the practice of evaluating public sector programs, policies and other agency actions related to hazards issues--both natural and human-made. Develops students' knowledge, skill and ability in identifying appropriate research designs for particular evaluation and policy analysis problems; in managing data and focusing reports based on project objectives; and in appropriately characterizing and presenting empirical those data gathered for program evaluation and policy research projects. Provides an opportunity to learn about conducting evaluation and policy research in a way that is relevant to solving policy and management challenges germane to emergency management and homeland security agencies.

PAF 552: Integrated Emergency Management

Program Core: Theory and practice of comprehensive emergency management. Explores scope and function of Department of Homeland Security.

CRJ 554: Homeland Security

Program Core: Presents skills necessary to develop policies, strategies, programs, and organizational structure of an all hazards/all risk homeland security program.

CPP 570: GIS for Hazards Analysis

Program Core: Course Description: Provides a basic level of familiarity with several aspects of geographic information science such as key geographic concepts and techniques related to the theory and application of geographic information systems (GIS). Covers topics such as data models, geographic coordinate system and map projections, data entry and editing, and various types of spatial analysis in both conceptual terms as well as practical application. Additionally, outlines a range of GIS-related activities in emergency management and homeland security. Exposes students to the current and potential roles of GIS in support of emergency management activities in each of the four stages of the emergency management cycle. Gives students a basic understanding of GIS and its possibilities along with the capabilities as they apply to emergency management and homeland security.

CPP 593: Applied Project

Program Culminating Experience: Preparation of a supervised applied project that is a graduation requirement in some professional majors.

CRJ 553: Terrorism and Weapons of Mass Destruction

Concentration Core: Historical evolution of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. Analyzes current theories and mitigation, preparedness, and response tactics.

CRJ 521: Seminar on the Nature of Crime

Concentration Core: Examines patterns and correlates of crime at individual, situational, and aggregate levels. Topics include defining crime, offender typographies, and criminal careers.

PAF 561: Interoperability for Emergency Managers

Concentration Core: Enables understanding of the multiple technologies and skills utilized by emergency managers to enhance successful coordination and communication between all levels of emergency managers and responders during emergency mitigation, prevention, preparedness, response and recovery operations.

Faculty

The impressive faculty in the Watts College of Public Service & Community Solutions are inspiring the next generation of public service leaders through real-world solutions to issues around child welfare, safety, city management, human trafficking and water scarcity.

Recent Faculty Highlights Include:

Fellow by the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences
Fellow of the American Psychological Association
Director inducted into the National Academy of Public Administration

Related Careers

Graduates with a Master of Arts in Homeland Security (EMHS) have career opportunities illustrated in the following list. Career examples include but are not limited to those shown in the following list. Advanced degrees or certifications may be required for academic or clinical positions.

Requirements

Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions.

Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in criminology or criminal justice, public administration or public service, sociology or social work, public safety or fire service management, parks and recreation management, applied sciences, environmental sciences or geography, public health or another closely related field from a regionally accredited institution.

Applicants must have a minimum of a 3.00 cumulative GPA (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of a student's first bachelor's degree program, or applicants must have a minimum of a 3.00 cumulative GPA (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.

All applicants are required to submit:

Graduate application and application fee
Official transcripts
Proof of English proficiency
Two letters of recommendation
A written statement, at least one page in length, which describes the applicant's educational and career goals and long-term professional development strategy
Evidence of current employment in an organization in this field or at least two years prior professional experience in this or a related field or a bachelor's degree in a related area

Additional Admission Information

An applicant whose native language is not English (regardless of current residency) must provide proof of English proficiency.

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EMHS: Homeland Security (MA)

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