Bates Technical College Prepares Cyber Students for Leadership

Bates Technical College: A Unique Gem in Cybersecurity Education

 Bates Technical College in Tacoma is poised to make a groundbreaking contribution to cybersecurity workforce training. Their new Bachelor of Applied Science in Computer Information Security and IT Project Management is set to launch in Fall 2025.

A Bachelor's Degree Unlike Any Other

Modeled after the University of Washington’s master’s degree in Cybersecurity and Leadership, this new bachelor’s program blends technical and managerial skills. For example, students learn to build a disaster recovery plan AND practice executing it.

Project Management is a key focus area as are governance, legal compliance, business continuity and compliance auditing. Graduates will be prepared for mid-level IT and cybersecurity management roles, enabling them to rise into leadership positions.

Deep Technical Training for Future Managers

While focusing on project management, the courses remain deeply technical, providing students with hands-on experience in:

• Incident Response and Disaster Recovery Planning
• Cloud and Container Security
• Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC)
• Emerging Technologies and Ethical AI Management

 Disaster recovery and incident response courses include live drills and lab simulations, preparing graduates to lead technical teams during crisis events.

The degree culminates in a practicum internship course, where students gain real-world experience with regional employers.

Associates Degrees & Certificates

Joseph Kauer, Program Manager, reminds us that Bates is first and foremost a technical college. 

“We are dedicated to the hands-on approach," Kauer says. "Everything for the students is done by the students. They build PCs, run wires, load software, configure domain services, and build virtualization stacks. And when they break it, they must fix it.”

Bates continues offering the following 2-year degree and certificate programs alongside the new bachelor’s degree:

• Associate of Applied Science: Cybersecurity
• Associate of Applied Science Transfer: Cybersecurity (Connecting to 4-year degrees at Highline and Western WA University.)
• Certificate of Competency: Network System Support
• Certificate of Training: Computer Support

Coursework includes ethical hacking, Cisco networking and routing, AWS, cloud, disaster recovery, SQL fundamentals, and information security. Graduates are prepared for entry level jobs in technical support and cybersecurity. 

Learn more here: https://www.batestech.edu/programs/cyber-security/

Accessible, High-Quality, Affordable

Bates’ commitment to practical, workforce-ready training empowers students to enter the field with confidence. Grants and scholarships are available to help those with limited financial resources gain the skills needed to succeed. We are excited for successful graduates to continue filling critical roles in cybersecurity in Washington state.