UNM was chosen as a site for an FBI-sponsored forensics lab.
Agent Darrin Jones said UNM's Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory will be operational in the next two years.
The University has yet to decide where the lab will be built, he said.
Jones said the lab will help law enforcement investigate crimes involving digital media, such as cyberterrorism, child pornography and Internet fraud.
He said the FBI chose the University because of its proximity to Sandia and Los Alamos National Laboratories, and UNM is planning to integrate the facility into its curriculum.
Alessandro Seazzu, director of Anderson Schools of Management Center for Information Assurance Research and Education, said UNM students will use the lab for hands-on education and experience, using FBI computer systems and conducting state-of-the-art forensic work.
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Seazzu said the lab will provide students with internship opportunities and real-world work experience.
The FBI will provide funding, training and equipment so that the lab will be a full-service digital forensics lab and training center.
Mike Carr, director of Information Assurance, said as the plans are finalized, other agencies will work out financial plans to keep the facility up and running.
Criminology major Aaron Shirley said he is glad the crime lab is coming to UNM.
"There's always going to be crime, and if that technology further advances our state, I think it's a privilege and advantage for me," he said.
Accounting professor Rich Brody said the lab is not only a benefit for UNM students - it's an opportunity for the University to attract prospective students.
"The benefits for our students are huge in terms of having direct access to the training that's available through this lab," he said.
Students will have the opportunity to network and meet scientists and technicians working in the labs, he said.
"They are going have a foot in the door with these agencies because the training is so specialized," he said.
