UMBC Receives $1M NSF Grant for its SFS Cybersecurity Program

NSF awarded UMBC a third grant to continue its Scholarship for Service (SFS) cybersecurity scholarship program directed by CSEE professors Alan T. Sherman (PI) and Roberto Yus (CoPI). The three-year award will support five new scholars majoring in a computing program at the undergraduate or graduate level. Scholars receive tuition, fees, and a stipend for professional expenses. In return, they must work for a government agency for a semester or summer in each year of support. Scholars must be US citizens or permanent residents. Prospective scholars may apply by noon, September 12, 2025, via Scholarship Retriever.

CSEE faculty Sherman (PI) and Richard Forno (CoPI) have directed UMBC’s SFS program since 2012, bringing over 12 million dollars to support cybersecurity at UMBC, including funds for scholarships and research activities of Sherman’s Cyber Defense Lab (CDL). UMBC has graduated over 100 SFS scholars, placing UMBC fifth in the nation for the number of SFS graduates. UMBC SFS scholars engage in research and hands-on learning. Each January, they participate in a collaborative research project to analyze the security of some aspect of the UMBC network. In 2025, the scholars analyzed the security and privacy of a prototype of the new myUMBC search that integrates ChatGPT.

Reflecting the growing importance of AI and changing government funding priorities, the new undergraduate SFS scholars will be required to take four AI courses in addition to completing the cybersecurity track course requirements.

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