Master of Cybersecurity Leadership and Cyberpreneurship

This course covers the foundational aspects of cybersecurity, focusing on risk assessment, identifying cyberattacks, and implementing defenses. Students learn how to analyze systems for vulnerabilities, design security policies, and apply real-life case studies to understand why security systems fail. The course equips students with the skills to manage cybersecurity at an organizational level.

This course provides an in-depth look at privacy legislation, ethical theories, and risk mitigation strategies. It covers security architecture, incident detection, and governance frameworks essential for managing information risk. Students will develop skills to create and maintain an information security program that aligns with organizational objectives while ensuring compliance with legal and ethical standards.

This course focuses on the fundamentals of financial and managerial accounting, emphasizing the importance of fiscal responsibility in management roles. Students will explore corporate finance concepts essential for decision-making and governance within an organization. Understanding these principles helps managers contribute to corporate goals, vision, and overall financial health.

This course merges entrepreneurship with cybersecurity, guiding students through the process of launching new ventures in cybersecurity-dependent markets. Students will learn how to identify market opportunities, create a startup plan, assess risks, and navigate ethical considerations. The course aims to develop the skills needed to succeed in launching and managing cybersecurity businesses.

This course examines leadership’s role in managing organizational change. It explores how leaders build trust, loyalty, and inspire high-performance teams to achieve strategic change. Students will study various leadership techniques and apply them to real-world scenarios involving organizational transformation.

Students in this course will gain a comprehensive understanding of project management principles, systems, and tools. The course emphasizes the techniques most frequently used by project managers within organizations, focusing on professional ethics and the importance of leading teams to successful project completion. The course prepares students for roles managing projects within cybersecurity and beyond.

In this project-based course, students apply the principles of cybersecurity management to a real-world problem. They will complete a major research project that involves reasoning about a specific aspect of information security management. This hands-on experience allows students to work with industry partners or former employers to tackle cybersecurity challenges.

This two-semester course offers a multidisciplinary forum for discussion of topics related to cybersecurity. The seminar fosters professional skills development (academic and industry), promotes collaboration between industry experts and graduate students, facilitates mentoring and project development, and contributes to the transfer of knowledge between industry and academia.

Applicants must meet the following minimum admission requirements:

• A four-year honours degree (or equivalent) with a minimum B- or 70% average;
• A minimum of 3 years of professional experience. Applicants should clearly demonstrate the relevance of their work experience in the statement of intent and resume submitted with their application. 
• Statement of Interest: Applicants must outline their interest in their field of study and state their objectives for undertaking a Master’s program in their Statement. Please ensure that your Statement of Interest includes:
  • Your business/managerial/cybersecurity related experiences and competencies.
  • Your core values and greatest strengths as a business leader with a focus on cybersecurity.
  • Your areas that require development as a business leader with a focus on cybersecurity.
    There is no minimum/maximum length for the SOI.

Students whose first language is not English are required to submit an English Proficiency Test result with their application.

GMAT/GRE score is not required. 

Applications open October 15 and will be accepted on a rolling basis.

*We strongly encourage International applicants to apply a minimum of 6-9 months in advance of the start of the program to allow time for application processing and to ensure study permits can be obtained in time for admission. Please see the Office of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies Recommendations for International Applicants for suggested application timeline.

Of note, we are not able to provide a pre-assessment to confirm the admission requirements nor to evaluate admissions documents. Please review the attached document for more details about the program admissions requirements such as admission documents and FAQs.

Once an applicant file is complete, it moves forward for consideration with our Admissions Committees.  

To accommodate working professionals, the program will offer a two-year part-time pathway. The mode of delivery does not change for part-time students. There is no designated pathway to completion as none of the courses have prerequisites—they can be taken in any order, enabling maximum flexibility for professional students. Part-time students may take one or two courses in each semester and should complete the program within 24 months.

For information on the fee structure for full-time and part-time tuition, please visit Guelph Graduate Fees.

More information on Cost of Living in Guelph can be found here: Cost of Living While Studying at Guelph.

Many courses are delivered in a hybrid format, offering both synchronous and asynchronous learning options. This flexibility is ideal for international students who may need to balance time zone differences or other commitments while pursuing their education. This program is also ideally structured for working professionals seeking to advance their formal training and career opportunities in cybersecurity.

The entry requirements are set to ensure sufficient depth in areas of computer sciences and cybersecurity so that incoming students are prepared to succeed in the program, however, we recognize that professionals may be in related but indirect careers to cybersecurity. You can use the Statement of Interest in your application to explain why you believe that your prior coursework and/or work experiences have adequately prepared you to meet the eligibility requirements. The Admission Selection Committee will assess your eligibility once a complete application is received.

No. You do not need to identify a supervisor. A faculty supervisor is not a program requirement for the MCLC program.

GMAT/GRE: Not required for this program.

WES Reports: Not required for this program.

Yes, part-time study is an option. Registering as a part-time student may impact the eligibility for international students to gain a post-graduate work permit upon graduation.

Yes. If your first language is not English, you will be required to submit the results of a standardized language test*. Learn more about the University's requirements here: English Language Proficiency.

*Please note: The English test may not be more than two years old at the time of admission. The proof of English proficiency requirement may be waived ONLY in exceptional circumstances. That is, applicants may be eligible for an English Waiver who have conferred a degree in an accredited university where English is the language of instruction AND in a country where English is the native language (e.g. Canada, UK, USA, Australia, etc.). Other English Waivers will NOT be accepted.

Designed with working professionals in mind, the Master of Cybersecurity Leadership and Cyberpreneurship offers flexible course delivery and program load options, including part-time and distance learning. Many courses are delivered in a hybrid format, offering both synchronous and asynchronous learning options.