"We have had an information security bachelor degree program at the top of our R&D list for some time," explained ESI chairman and chief executive officer Rene R. Champagne.

"With the country's economic infrastructure and overall business continuity so dependent on information systems, the security of data and electronic communications channels is critical. The terrorist attacks and the increasing number of computer viruses and worms have made Americans very aware of the vulnerability of the e-commerce infrastructure. We expedited the development of this program in response to these market demands," he said.

In keeping with ESI's significant position among the nation's technology educators, the Information Systems Security program will emphasize application of the technologies used to secure computer systems. Core technical courses will include the study of computer security architecture, firewalls, user authentication methods and security techniques for both Windows and UNIX platforms. Other areas of instruction include risk management, intruder detection, hacker techniques, incident handling and recovery, system forensics investigation and the auditing of e-commerce systems and IT infrastructures.

ESI developed the Information Systems Security program with the assistance of two key educational companies. The Knowledge Solutions Business unit of NIIT, a global IT services and training company, helped ESI to create the instructional design and the technical content.

"NIIT has one of the largest and most experienced technical content development groups in the world, which enabled them to respond very rapidly to our content design," Champagne said. "Their depth of resources and breadth of experience helped us to significantly reduce our usual curriculum development time."

"We share ITT Educational Services' vision for the need for qualified Information Systems Security professionals and are proud of our association with ESI in the design and development of this program. This program has strategic significance and appeal for global corporations and signifies ESI's vision and leadership in responding to market needs," said NIIT's President and CEO, Vijay Thadani.

"The instructional design expertise of NIIT's Knowledge Solutions Business and the practical implementation experience of NIIT's Software Services Business, will come together to create a truly distinctive program," added Thadani.

The technical content of the program was designed to include information that can assist ITT Technical Institute students to prepare for professional certification, which may enhance their employment opportunities.

"The IT industry has tended to assign security applications by area of specialization, such as database, network and web," explained Sunand Bhattacharya, ESI's national director of curriculum development. "We believe going forward that security specialists may be asked to work on teams with these other area specialists. As these individual applications become more integrated into enterprise systems, security specialists can converse with multiple security applications and techniques. Our program is designed to teach security fundamentals in this more integrated manner."

Pearson Education, the global educational content company that is working with ITT/ESI on its online Technical Project Management for Electronic Commerce program, is also assisting ESI with the educational content for the "soft skill" courses included in the Information Systems Security program, including the courses in ethics and technology, written analysis and research methods, among others. Pearson also will help ESI manage the planned online version of the Information Systems Security program that ESI intends to offer in the latter half of 2002.

Initially the Information Systems Security program will be offered only to graduates of an ITT Technical Institute associate's degree program. However, the company expects in the future to offer it to other students who qualify for admission. The in-class version of the program will be offered at multiple ITT Technical Institutes once the appropriate regulatory and accreditation authorizations are obtained.

About ITT Educational Services, Inc.

ESI is a leading private college system offering career-focused degree programs in fields of technology to approximately 31,000 students. ESI operates 70 ITT Technical Institutes in 28 states. Visit www.itt-tech.edu for information on ESI's colleges, or www.ittesi.com for information about the company.

About NIIT

NIIT, a leading global IT solutions corporation, operates in 38 countries with regional headquarters in USA, Europe, ASEAN and Japan. NIIT has evolved from a predominantly education company to an IT solutions corporation with equally balanced software and training revenues. The Knowledge Solutions Business (KSB) of NIIT provides end-to-end e-Learning and Knowledge Solutions. KSB's competencies in the areas of custom content, custom technology solutions and custom enterprise knowledge solutions give it an edge as a unifier that delivers complete learning offerings. NIIT's Knowledge Solutions Business was assessed at Level 5 of the SEI-CMM quality framework in June 2001, the world's first content development facility to be so assessed. NIIT is ranked among the Top 15 IT Training market leaders as per IDC ranking for the year 2000. NIIT was awarded "The Outsourcing Contract of the Year" award by the Financial Times publication, The Banker, UK in December 2001. For further details on NIIT, contact webmaster@niit.com or visit www.niitusa.com .

About Pearson Education

With offices in 33 countries, Pearson Education is the world's leading education business. Its brands include Addison Wesley, Allyn & Bacon, Benjamin Cummings, Longman, Prentice Hall, Pearson Learning, Scott Foresman, and NCS Pearson. Pearson Education is the global leader in online learning with over 1,800 textbook companion Web sites, NCS Learn, the InformIT portal for technology professionals, and Pearson's Learning Network, the award-winning learning portal for parents, teachers, and children. Pearson Education is the global education business of international media group Pearson plc (NYSE: PSO). For more information, visit www.pearsoned.com .

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: business conditions and growth in the postsecondary education industry and in the general economy; changes in federal and state governmental regulations with respect to education and accreditation standards, or the interpretation or enforcement thereof, including, but not limited to, the level of government funding for, and the Company's eligibility to participate in, student financial aid programs utilized by the Company's students; the results of the investigation being conducted by the U.S. Department of Education which, if adversely determined, could cause the U.S. Department of Education to subject the Company to monetary fines or penalties or other sanctions (including a limitation, suspension or termination of the Company's ability to participate in federal student financial aid programs) that could adversely affect the Company's ability to enroll students, expand the number of its institutes and increase the number of the programs of study offered at the Company's institutes; the results of the qui tam action brought under the False Claims Act, 31 U. S.C. Section 3730, in which the Company is a defendant which, if adversely determined, could result in a demand for repayment of federal student financial aid funds, trebled under the False Claims Act, and penalties; the Company's ability to hire and retain qualified faculty; effects of any change in ownership of the Company resulting in a change in control of the Company, including, but not limited to, the consequences of such changes on the accreditation and federal and state regulation of the institutes; the Company's ability to implement its growth strategies; receptivity of students and employers to the Company's existing program offerings and new curricula; loss of lender access to the Company's students for student loans; and other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

SOURCE ITT Educational Services, Inc.

CONTACT:
Nancy Brown, National Director, Corporate Relations of ITT Educational Services, Inc., +1-317-594-4260, or Nbrown@ittesi.com
URL: http://www.itt-tech.edu

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