The Information Networking Institute (INI)

There's still one week left to submit your application for Fall 2025! Join our community of technical leaders throughout industry, government agencies and the startup space. Submit your application by 11:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday, January 15.

👉 Learn more about the application process: https://loom.ly/7WrFCfY

Our faculty explore niche subjects through special topics courses. These courses can be taken as electives in many of our programs. Here are the special topics courses available this semester!

Special Topics: Insights into Technology Innovation through Competition

INI Professor of the Practice (at) Quinn Jacobson will explore the history of technology's winners and losers that influenced the platforms we all use today. Students will critically analyze historical and current technologies to identify system architecture trade-offs and design principles, better understand the business and market influences on a product's success and appreciate the history of the tech industry.

Special Topics: Generative AI and Large Language Model

INI Assistant Teaching Professor (at) Mohamed Farag is leading students on an exploration of the core concepts of generative AI and Large Language Models. Learn how to leverage these emerging technologies to use them to your advantage.

Special Topics: Competitive Embedded System Design and Exploitation

INI Associate Teaching Professor (at) Patrick Tague teaches students to design an embedded system prototype that can defend itself during a semester-long project. Students will help build a prototype and then explore, analyze and exploit the designs of other competitors in a Capture the Flag–style competition.

Special Topics: Technical Entrepreneur Coaching Hub (TECH)

INI Professor of the Practice Quinn Jacobson and Associate Professor of the Practice (at) Cynthia Kuo introduce engineering students to the world of startups at (at) CMU-Silicon Valley in a course designed to give students the foundation and confidence to launch their own ventures in the future. The course takes students from business basics to the ex*****on of technical founder skills necessary for anyone entering the role.

🎇 Happy new year! We can't wait to start the new semester and welcome the next cohort of students.

As we get ready to say goodbye to 2024, we wanted to look back and share some the highlights from throughout the year!

Our Masters of Science in Information Security (MSIS) program was named #1 by Fortune Education.

We graduated our first cohort of Masters of Science in Artificial Intelligence Engineering - Information Security (MSAIE-IS) students.

We launched our new Technical Entrepreneur Coaching Hub (TECH) program.

INI alumni Harshvardhan Chunawala and Hunter Wodzenski along with INI students helped to launch the Iris Rover into space.

Carnegie Mellon University's Plaid Parliament of Pwning (PPP) secured their 8th win at DEFCON Hacking Conference .

INI alum Hao-Wei Chen was named a 2024 Tartan on the Rise.

INI alum Samuel Edoho-Eket was inducted into the National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarship for Service (SFS) Hall of Fame. He also gave the keynote speech at our 2024 diploma ceremony, celebrating our graduates.

Two of our most popular courses were Introduction to Information Security and Introduction to Computer Systems.

Thanks to all our alumni, faculty, staff and our INI community who helped make this an incredible year!

🎉 Congratulations, Nancy Doyle, and for the incredible hard work and positive energy you've given the INI! Today we celebrate Nancy's years of dedication and we wish her a happy retirement.

The INI has two outstanding student organizations that host events throughout the year.

🤝 With co-leads at both Carnegie Mellon University and CMU Silicon Valley, Women@INI (WINI) is dedicated to creating a nurturing and inspiring learning environment for all students at the INI and hosting many events from painting pumpkins for Halloween to bonding over ice cream.

⚡ Graduate Organization@INI (GOINI) is focused on student professional development and networking. Between Don't Struggle Like I Did (DSLID) sessions where returning students share advice on how to manage time and stress along with social events, GOINI is focused on building a strong professional community at the INI.

Current INI ambassador Yash Bobde shared his thoughts on our student organizations.

"Both WINI and GOINI contribute to the vibrant community at the INI. By creating welcoming and supportive environments, these organizations help students navigate the challenges of graduate school while building lasting relationships with their peers."

Do you want to hear more from current students about what it's like at the INI? Check out the Content tab on the ambassadors page: link/link in bio

Students with the Advanced study option can shape their program by choosing to develop a thesis over the course of four semesters. This semester, four students presented their thesis projects:

Ryder Daniel surveyed Endpoint threat Detection and Response (EDR) evasion techniques, trends and the taxonomy used to classify modern attacks.

Yuchen Liu investigated a new User-Defined Functions (UDF) optimization tool, PRISM, and how it can improve performance.

Dongfang Ling explored using Isomorphisms to improve zero-shot Knowledge Base Question Answering (KBQA) generalization.

Ksh*tij Rana evaluated a high-performance in-kernel traffic shaper capable of delivering throughput while effectively managing traffic across multiple applications.

Congratulations on your hard work! 💪

We celebrated the end of another successful semester with a night of fun and games! Students have been working hard on assignments and exams all semester long. What better way to unwind than to compete for high scores and bragging rights? 🏆

Congratulations to our graduating students! For those of you returning next semester, we can't wait to see you in the new year.

Students, alumni and project sponsors gathered to celebrate the culmination of INI Practicum at CMU Silicon Valley. Over the past semester, students have been working hard on industry, government and nonprofit sponsored projects, applying their skills in the professional world. At Practicum Showcase, they were able to share their successes with our community last week.

Congratulations to this year's Practicum teams!

The final deadline for Fall 2025 is January 15, 2025! If you have questions about the application process, our information sessions can help.

This month's sessions cover the additional material you need to submit and general information about the process. If you register and attend, we'll waive your application fee ($75)!

Guide to Applying - Supplemental Material (Virtual)
👉 Tuesday, December 03, 2024 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET

December Information Session (Virtual)
👉 Tuesday, December 10, 2024 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET

Learn more about our information sessions and register: https://loom.ly/7WrFCfY

Yesterday, we celebrated our annual WINI Thanksgiving Potluck! Students, faculty and staff gathered as a community to share food and family traditions as we get ready to celebrate the holiday season.

Through StuCos (Student-Taught Courses), Carnegie Mellon University students have the opportunity to stretch their teaching muscles and lead a course of their own.

In Spring 2025, Master of Science in Information Security (MSIS) student Rohan Viswanathan is sharing his expertise in Capture-the-Flag (CTF) competitions. His course, Introduction to CTFs, covers the fundamentals of CTFs and helps interested students dive in.

What makes CTFs so valuable? Viswanathan has a few reasons:

"CTFs make learning easier by breaking down complicated topics into bite-sized chunks to allow competitors to learn little by little. Since the topics covered in these competitions are relatively general, they can be applied to several roles within cybersecurity.

"The best part is that CTFs are usually team-based, meaning collaboration is not only allowed but encouraged. This gives people a chance to work in a team setting and play off of everyone's strengths which is extremely valuable in industry."

Ready to join us? Kick-start your career in information networking, cybersecurity, AI engineering or IoT with a degree from the INI.

📆 The priority deadline for Fall 2025 is December 1 at 11:59 p.m. ET. If you apply by the priority deadline, you will be part of an early review process and may receive your admission decision earlier. Since many external scholarship programs have earlier deadlines, we encourage students interested in these opportunities to apply by the priority deadline.

Learn more about the application process: https://loom.ly/7WrFCfY

Do you have a question about what it's like to be a student at the INI? Join current INI students as they share their experiences and answer your questions at the INI Ambassadors panel.

Whether you're curious about course details, campus life, internship experiences or hackathons, our Ambassadors are ready to answer your questions! Join us to chat live with our Student Ambassadors. They will be answering some frequently asked questions in addition to taking questions from those in the audience!

INI Ambassadors Panel

Friday, November 22
12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. ET
Register here: https://loom.ly/VVQXwYY

With so many options, what motivates our students to choose their fields? We asked Taylor McCampbell, a current Masters of Science in Information Security and National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarship for Service (SFS) student, why he chose information security.

This is what he told us:

I chose to study cybersecurity due to the depth of knowledge needed to be a security professional and because the problems that we are tasked to solve affect everyone.

Whether designing secure banking software, monitoring threats targeting critical infrastructure and services or helping to develop the cybersecurity workforce, I truly believe we are contributing to something bigger than ourselves.

Further, because technology is so interwoven in our lives, I find it rewarding to understand its limitations and work to encourage cautious and responsible use of technology in my local community.

Sponsors for Practicum projects come from the field. From industry and government agencies to non-profit organizations. Post Road Foundation is a non-profit working to modernize the electric grid for rural and urban communities nationwide. Students will help test system vulnerabilities through red teaming exercises.

Participating in Practicum projects gives students a chance to explore different areas of research and technical roles. Our students work with experts to apply the skills they've mastered through their coursework to help tackle complex problems.

Up close, cybersecurity is full of technical challenges, problem solving and thinking like a hacker. But to INI Associate Professor of the Practice Cynthia Kuo, cybersecurity is ultimately about serving the public good.

"Cybersecurity is about trust, and just like building a brick house, everyone works on a small brick, one small piece. Together we can work to build a safer, more secure digital home."

Kuo, who designed the first iteration of safe browsing to block known, dangerous websites, shared her perspective on cybersecurity for good last month at Executive Women's Forum on Information Security, Risk Management & Privacy (EWF)'s 2024 conference.

Do you have a question about our application or are you wondering which degree program is right for you? We're here to help!

This month is full of information sessions hosted by our admissions team covering topics from essay writing to general information. If you register and attend, we'll waive your application fee ($75)!

Guide to Applying - Skills and Competencies (Virtual)
👉 Thursday, November 07, 2024 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET

November Information Session (Virtual)
👉 Tuesday, November 12, 2024 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET

November Guide to Applying (Virtual)
👉 Tuesday, November 19, 2024 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. ET

Learn more about our information sessions and register: https://loom.ly/HUOxseE