Hallmark Adds Two New Master Level Degrees to its Catalogue
Launched alongside Hallmark University’s new online platform are two new Master level degree programs, joining the robust MBA and MSL programs offered in the Hallmark School of Business. The addition of the Master of Science degree in Nursing Education and the Master of Science degree in Cybersecurity are the products of Hallmark University’s Program Advisory Committee (PAC). Hallmark University’s PAC consists of San Antonio business leaders working in the industries relevant to Hallmark’s degree offerings. These PAC members provide insight into current industry trends and employment needs. Both programs are now offered on Hallmark University Online and will train a new generation of skilled and knowledgeable graduates.
Master of Science in Nursing Education
In April of 2018, Hallmark University’s School of Nursing began their new Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, working on training a new generation of nurses during a nationwide shortage of qualified faculty in healthcare facilities. Training a new nursing workforce for the healthcare industry is the priority for many nursing schools across the U.S., but many have to turn program applicants away due to another issue with the industry – a shortage of nursing instructors.
“We know that there are shortages of nurses in Texas, with statistics showing there are going to be 60,000 in Texas alone by 2030,” said Dr. Gabriel Oluwakotanmi, Dean for Hallmark University’s School of Nursing. “One of the causes of this is an instructor shortage. Nursing schools don’t have enough faculty to teach, so we chose to create this program because this aspect of the shortage needs to be corrected immediately.”
Hallmark University’s new Master of Science in Nursing Education will train experienced and practicing nurses for sixteen months in the subjects of nursing theories and their applications, public health and epidemiology, and how to develop nursing curriculum and teaching projects. To practice and ensure a student’s understanding of the curriculum, they will have to teach in a nursing classroom.
“During the capstone project, they will have a practical teaching project, so they have to teach in the classroom. Students will have the actual teaching experience, and they need to do around sixty hours of actual teaching. Some schools don’t require that, but we do, they will be learning a lot in the nursing education programs that they will be taking.”
Master of Science in Cybersecurity
The importance of trained cybersecurity personnel grows with each passing day, as more businesses and governments continually hire fresh talent to curb the threat of cyber threats. In order for these businesses to effectively mitigate the risks of cyber threats, it’s crucial that an experienced and educated professional understands how to organize and lead a team of cybersecurity specialists. Hallmark University’s new Master of Science in Cybersecurity program will train these leaders, ensuring that businesses and governments will have skilled professionals leading their cybersecurity teams.
“The cybersecurity industry is geared toward government, risk management, and it is a huge issue today for all organizations,” said Paul Cooper, the Dean for the School of Information Technology. “To have leaders in place that understand not only the theoretical and conceptual ideas of cybersecurity but can apply that as a leader is a critical aspect for an organizations workforce.”
This new program has been designed by a team of instructors and faculty that have spent a majority of their careers in the field of cybersecurity, bringing their extensive career experiences and industry knowledge to assist in the creation of the new program. Courses are also designed to train students for the Certified Information Systems Security Professional certification, or CISSP. The certification is considered to be a gold standard in IT, with most of the global community recognizing the certification, including the National Security Agency and Department of Defense both holding it in high regard.
“All the courses are designed to fit into the domain of the CISSP certification, the gold standard for IT. The knowledge for this certification exists, but now we’re building leadership perspectives into the various topics. We’re applying the leadership roles into the technical aspects of the degree… and we’re providing a service to a lot of people who enter into leadership positions within the cybersecurity industry.”
Classes for both programs have begun training students to become experts in their respective fields. All courses are hosted on the new Hallmark University Online, providing an accelerated and flexible format to any individual with a busy daily schedule, regardless of their location. The utilization of an online and accelerated format results in a faster completion time as well as affordable tuition rates, making it possible for anyone who wishes to receive a higher education to do so.