EARN YOUR SECURITY MANAGEMENT DEGREE AT SC!

Total Credit Hours: 124

Transfer Credits: Up to 94

With the dynamic security challenges of the 21st Century, the need for security professionals with expertise in all aspects of security management and operational administration are in high demand! The Southwestern College online security management program prepares learners for a wide range of careers with courses including project management, homeland security, and emergency planning. Virtual classrooms are led by security management experts who bring real-life experience and scenarios to the curriculum. Learners experience flexible courses offered completely online every six weeks to ensure earning their degree faster and on their time!

• Engage in applied projects to further develop the skills required to maintain the security functions within an organization
• Curriculum features enhanced content and real-world application
• Stack with the Emergency Management and Business Continuity Certificate or the Cybercrime Investigation Certificate build additional credentials
• Discover more reasons to choose SC!

Recently ranked by U.S. News and World Report for its online bachelor’s degree programs, Southwestern College offers quality online degrees to adult learners. With courses taught by expert faculty and access to a variety of student resources, SC learners are provided with the tools and flexibility needed to succeed in their education while preparing for professional advancement.

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CAREER OUTLOOK

Projected Job Growth (BLS): 6%

Average Salary (PayScale): $82k

Graduates of the online Security Management program at Southwestern College will be prepared for a variety of careers, including:

• Air Marshal
• Security guard
• Emergency management director
• CIA officer
• Computer forensics investigator
• FBI agent

STUDENT SUCCESS STORIES

“My experience at SC has been phenomenal. What I liked most about it is the experience has been geared to the working adult and the older adult. The hours are flexible, the instructors are just awesome, and people are there to help you – literally hold your hand and walk you through the process.”
Donna, 2015 Graduate

FACULTY

Visit our faculty page to view current Security Management instructors.

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PROGRAM OUTCOMES

Students enrolled in the online Security Management program at Southwestern College can expect to:

• Recognize the historical development of security, the management function, the fundamentals of defense, homeland security strategy, critical infrastructure sectors and protection, and the coordination and communication between government and criminal justice agencies and private entities.
• Construct a physical protection plan that demonstrates knowledge of physical security design concepts, and the roles of policies, communication, metrics within the security function, and the ability to effectively assess risk.
• Produce an information security systems protection plan proposal that demonstrates the ability to effectively assess information security risks and mitigate that risk with appropriate use of organizational policies and procedures, human resources, and information systems and technologies. 
• Assess the security function from a loss and crime prevention perspective, along with countermeasures and strategies, emerging contemporary technologies, privacy,  and management issues.
• Analyze legal issues and criminal justice concepts, such as the law of arrest, search and seizure, detention, surveillance, and related legal and ethical consequences that affect security professionals and organizations.
• Evaluate disaster and emergency planning, preparedness, mitigation, response, business continuity and recovery concepts and practices.
• Appraise the histories, motivations, groups, types, tactics and trends of terrorism involved in international, domestic and cyber terrorism.

RELATED PROGRAMS

Cybercrime Investigation Certificate
Organizational Communication Certificate
Emergency Management and Business Continuity Certificate
Criminal Justice

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SECURITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM DETAILS

Security professionals enable private and public organizations to strengthen existing security measures and develop policies and procedures to ensure a safe and secure working environment, as well as prevent or mitigate organizational losses. The Security Management major is designed for those pursuing employment opportunities or advancement in managerial roles in private or government security. With specific emphasis on the integration of contemporary security practices and administration, information security, ethics, continuity, risk management, investigations, and industry best practices, this degree offers the knowledge required to enter into this dynamic and competitive field. Those completing the Security Management program are prepared for a diverse group of Security Management and related industry jobs in physical security, loss prevention and investigations, information and homeland security, emergency management, and crime prevention. Related courses are supported by resources from FEMA’s Emergency Management Higher Education (EM Hi-Ed) Program. Our security management program is aligned with academic and industry wide technical competencies illustrated in American Society for Industrial Security (ASIS’s) Enterprise Security Model.

Admission Requirements

1. Applicants must be graduates of an accredited high school or have completed a GED®
2. Minimum GPA of 2.0

Core Major Requirements

SMGT310: Introduction to Security: Operations & Management

The course includes a detailed review of the representative duties of the professionals engaged in private and public security. It focuses on the latest trends, challenges, issues and diverse roles of the 21st Century security industry. This includes essential functions, legal issues, threats, the security function, and fundamentals of security within the all-hazards methodology. The course also incorporates security leadership and managerial principles and an overview of the historical development of security.

SMGT322: Physical Security Systems

This course examines Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles, risk assessment, security surveys, barriers, locks, lighting, alarms, entry control, closed circuit television, and digital recording systems. Learners will also analyze the overall process of physical protection system design and integration.

SMGT332: Corporate Risk Management

The risks to businesses today are wide ranging in scope, including but not limited to, natural and man-made disasters, terrorism and crime. Learners will discuss in depth the theories and practical applications of risk analysis. Learners will also examine a holistic approach to risk management identifying the many internal and external risks facing today’s enterprises and mitigation strategies. Learners will also analyze the effectiveness of security programs via metrics and business continuity principles.

SMGT341: Principles of Information Security

This course introduces learners to the fundamentals of information security management to prepare them to be able to plan, implement, and maintain the information security function within an organization. Learners will examine the technical components of information security and security planning, legal and ethical issues, and impact of emerging issues surrounding information security. They will explore various strategies to identify, assess, and mitigate information security risks within an organization. Learners will also be introduced to security technology, intrusion detection, cryptography, and physical security.

SMGT350: Homeland Security: All-Hazards

This course introduces learners to a diverse group of topics and issues within the homeland security enterprise. Topics include, but are not limited to, historical perspectives of homeland security, all-hazards methodology, critical infrastructure sectors and protection, weapons of mass destruction, emergency planning and response strategies, national security, civil liberties, legislation, and public management. Learners will also examine the essential coordination and communication between government agencies and private entities.

OMGT444: Project Management

Project management is applicable to all types of service and manufacturing settings where a specialized task, job, or venture has been presented. Learners study project management as a general practice and method, as well as its application within the context of the specific task, job, or venture and the environment in which the project is realized. Learners apply project management practices and methods within the context of various projects. Emphasis is given to the role of human resources and communication in a project’s success. While not a certification preparation course, this course provides foundational knowledge that will be useful if a learner chooses to take project management certification preparation courses.

SMGT440: Loss and Crime Prevention, and Investigations

The course examines the security function and issues from a loss prevention and crime prevention perspective. Learners will also learn investigative methods and examine the relationship between security and law enforcement. It specifically illustrates how to avoid or mitigate losses with diverse philosophies from both disciplines. This includes community‐oriented policing, workplace violence, internal theft controls, executive protection, retail security and investigations, designing crime risk management systems, and various personnel and asset protection strategies.

SMGT450: Legal and Ethical Aspects of Security

This course provides a thorough overview of the legal issues and concepts, regulatory and ethical standards that security professionals must be familiar with while operating in public or private organizations. A review of legal rights available to security officers, corporations, partnerships, and individually owned businesses for the protection of their property from theft by employees, customers and others is covered. In addition, the role of policies and procedures, contracts, outsourcing, laws of arrest, search and seizure, detention, surveillance, and legal consequences are also examined.

SMGT462: Emergency Planning

The course provides a practical process of disaster response planning and mitigation for security professionals working in both public and private organizations. Learners will explore the National Incident Management System (NIMS), and assess emergency management best practices, along with an analysis of the phases of emergency management. In addition, a review of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is covered, as well as an examination of the roles, responsibilities, and interrelationship between FEMA, state and local emergency management systems, and other critical partners.

ISM431: Enterprise Security

This course teaches learners how to apply an information security management plan to an organization’s enterprise systems. This includes integrating physical and digital security technologies into an enterprise security system that meets the requirements of an organizational information security plan and its policies.

SMGT472: Contemporary Issues in Security Management

This course will incorporate emerging issues and trends within the security management discipline. The ability to critically analyze emerging issues and trends is a key function of the security enterprise. Learners will research and analyze topics to include, but are not limited to geographic information science, privacy issues, social media, governance, globalization, policy, social responsibility and personnel management issues.

SMGT480: Understanding Terrorism: Tactics and Trends

This course reviews the events, ideas, motivations, and histories that result in terrorist acts. In addition, it examines the theories that help explain the volatile behavior surrounding international and domestic terrorism, as well as domestic extremist groups in the United States. Learners will also discuss current terrorist tactics and strategies, the use of social networks, and internet surveillance. In addition, learners will apply a focused analysis of the terrorists, emerging organizations, counterterrorism, asymmetric warfare, and cyberterrorism.

CAPS495: Senior Capstone

Learners engage in two projects that assess their achievements and preparation for pursuit of professional aspirations in their major field. Through application and assessment, learners examine the knowledge and skills gained throughout the program, achievement of the program outcomes, and their preparation as followers and leaders in their chosen professional field.
Prerequisites: The capstone should take place within the last 9 hours of a learner’s program.

General Education Requirements*

Basic Skills

CORE110: Information Literacy

This course is designed to provide learners with the skills that are fundamental to becoming an information‐literate professional who can locate, evaluate, organize and communicate information. The abundance and rapid flow of data requires skill development in the understanding of information resources, accessing information sources, determining the credibility of Internet information, logically organizing sources and finally presenting the information professionally.

ENGL101: Composition 1

This course helps learners develop writing skills that are transferable to any academic or workplace writing task. The course guides learners through the process of planning, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading academic and workplace writing. Learners will develop skills necessary to craft coherent sentences and paragraphs, to edit editing their writing for proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation. They will learn about narrative structure and techniques as well as the elements of successful argumentation and persuasive discourse. This course also guides learners through every stage of the research process. Learners will develop a research plan, conduct research, organize and draft a research paper, and then revise, edit, and proofread that research paper.

ENGL102: Composition 2

This course builds on the thinking and writing skills introduced in Composition 1. Learners will write critical, argumentative essays based on their interpretations of nonfictional texts, including literary, film, and cultural texts, and in doing so, will recognize the role of rhetoric in the writing situation as they craft persuasive discourse. In doing so, they will learn methods of questioning, analyzing, and evaluating their own beliefs as well as the perceptions and perspectives of others. These methods of critical thinking are intended to improve the quality and organization of learners’ writing for any purpose, including academic and workplace purposes. In addition to writing essays, learners will develop more advanced research strategies, as well greater proficiency in APA style.
Prerequisite: ENGL101

COM125: Speech

This course helps learners majoring in any discipline strengthen communication skills essential for success in academics and the workplace. Learners will focus on listening, evaluating, and delivering spoken discourse based on audience and purpose. Learners will evaluate why some people are more effective than others as public speakers, analyze speeches and audiences, study ethical considerations for speakers, research and organize findings on a topic, and present findings before an audience, and learn techniques for identifying and reducing speech anxiety.

MASC110 Statistics & Probability or MASC115 College Algebra

MASC110 Statistics & Probability, or MASC115 College Algebra, or more advanced college credit bearing mathematics course requiring college algebra or higher as a prerequisite.

Ethical Reasoning

HUM201: Ethics

Ethics introduces learners to moral philosophy, the branch of philosophy that questions what is good and bad. The course surveys a number of important ethical theories—ethical relativism, objectivism, egoism, altruism, utilitarianism, duty‐based moral theory, natural law, natural rights, and virtue ethics—as they examine reasons why certain actions are morally right or wrong. Learners will apply ethical theories in the evaluation and analysis of current controversial issues, question ethical matters from a variety of angles, and acquire new tools to assist them in making ethically sound, well‐informed decisions throughout their lives.

Disciplinary Perspectives

Natural Science (3 or more credit hours)
Social Science (3 or more credit hours)
Humanities (3 or more credit hours)
The Arts (3 or more credit hours)
Other Cultures (3 or more credit hours)

Capstone

CAPS495 Senior Capstone

Senior capstone or major capstone course.

*Most general education requirements are waived for students with an AA, AS, or AAS degree. Speak to your admissions counselor for details.

Graduation Requirements

1. Complete all foundation and major courses with an overall GPA of 2.0
2. Complete a minimum of 124 credit hours, with at least 60 hours at a bachelor’s degree-granting institution
3. Complete at least 30 credit hours with a C average or above from Southwestern College

All degree requirements are subject to change. Please see Southwestern College Professional Studies Catalog for the most current degree requirements.