Nonprofits work with sensitive information every day, from donor records to community data. This certificate is designed to help staff build policies, practices, and habits that protect data and keep communities safe.
Participants can take courses on incident response, secure data storage, account and device protection, and safe online use. Paired with leadership-focused courses on privacy and organizational strategy, the certificate prepares you to address both immediate threats and long-term resilience.
This certificate is built for nonprofit staff who want to strengthen their organization’s security in ways that are practical, mission-aligned, and equitable. Whether you’re new to cybersecurity or shaping organization-wide policies, you’ll gain the knowledge and tools to take action.
Certificate requirements
To complete this certificate, you must complete 12 one-hour courses and a final assignment – all of which can be completed at your own pace. You can take up to one year to complete the certificate from your enrollment date.
- 6 cybersecurity courses
- 2 leadership courses
- 5 courses from any category
- 1 final assignment
Sample certificate paths
Earning a certificate with NTEN means you can select the courses that best match your learning goals and subject matter interests. With all that choice, each participant’s combination of courses looks different, but here are a few examples of what a certificate path in Cybersecurity for Nonprofits could look like.
Communications Manager working in refugee and immigrant support
Cybersecurity courses:
- Practical security for accounts and devices
- Safe internet and social media use
- Cybersecurity incident response
- Data minimization and retention
- Secure data storage
- Proactive monitoring and threat response
Leadership courses:
- Constituent and community data privacy
- Nonprofit product management strategies
Other courses:
- Designing a multi-generational training plan
- IT planning and assessment
- Develop and implement effective cybersecurity policies
- Intro to the AI framework for an equitable world
- Fair chance hiring
Executive Director working in education reform
Cybersecurity courses:
- Develop and implement effective cybersecurity policies
- Cybersecurity landscape
- Cybersecurity incident response
- Practical security for accounts and devices
- Secure data storage
- Secure messaging and communications
Leadership courses:
- Racial equity in tech planning
- Operational strategies for smaller nonprofits
Other courses:
- Emerging tech trends and their impact for social good
- Improving accessibility in nonprofit workplaces
- Designing a multi-generational training plan
- Lead with technology roadmaps
- Introduction to multi-system integrations
Looking for more ways to learn?
Nonprofit Tech Readiness
These fully funded six-month cohorts give you an opportunity to ramp up your technology leadership and planning skills.
Learn more and applyTech Accelerate
Don't know where to begin? Take a free technology assessment for your organization to identify gaps in its tech preparedness to help chart your learning plan.
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Prefer dipping your toes in rather than embarking on a full certificate? Start by taking a single course – you can add it to your certificate progress later!
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Registering for a certificate program saves you 40% compared to registering for the same number of courses individually. Like courses, certificates are 50% off for NTEN members, which also offers other benefits, like discounted registration to the NTC.
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