Navigating the Complexities: A Guide to American National Security Studies

The study of American national security has evolved significantly, expanding from traditional military concerns to encompass a wide array of interconnected global challenges. Educational institutions now offer diverse courses and programs designed to equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to navigate this complex landscape. This article explores the multifaceted nature of American national security studies, highlighting various academic approaches and key areas of focus.

Academic Pathways in National Security

Several universities offer structured curricula in security studies. For example, at the undergraduate level, students can major in public policy while building a curriculum emphasizing security studies. The Rutgers-Camden National Security Studies Certificate Program (NSSCP) provides students with an opportunity to develop their understanding of 21st-century national security threats. All students enrolled in the NSSCP must complete a total of five courses (15 credits) among those listed to earn the certificate. This Political Science degree track will prepare students for the study and practice of intelligence and national security.

Undergraduate Studies

Undergraduate students interested in national security can pursue a major in public policy with a focus on security studies. The University of Akron's Department of Political Science offers a Political Science degree track designed to prepare students for careers in intelligence and national security. Admission to this program requires meeting specific academic criteria, including minimum grade point averages in overall university work and political science coursework. The curriculum includes general education requirements, such as diversity courses, and breadth of knowledge requirements.

A sample plan of study for a political science major with a focus on national security includes coursework in:

Government and Politics in the United States
World Politics & Government
Introduction to Political Research
Introduction to Political Thought
Comparative Politics

The plan also incorporates track core electives, humanities, natural science, and foreign language requirements.

Read also: Equitable Future Through Research

Graduate Studies

For those seeking advanced knowledge, Master's programs like the Master of International Development Policy (MIDP) offer opportunities to specialize in security-related topics. MIDP students have the flexibility to customize their curriculum to include masters-level security-related courses. Students can enroll in classes at the 500 level and above, including the courses from the MPP National Security Studies concentration.

Key Themes and Challenges in National Security Studies

Modern national security studies address a wide range of threats and challenges, reflecting the growing diversity of security concerns faced by the United States.

Traditional and Emerging Threats

The Rutgers-Camden National Security Studies Certificate Program (NSSCP) emphasizes and reflects the growing diversity of security challenges faced by the United States, including traditional great power competition between states, nuclear proliferation, global warming, pandemic disease, cyber security, humanitarian crises, the challenges posed by failed and failing states, among others.

The Evolution of National Security Concerns

Historically, American national security concerns centered around the challenges of the Cold War; primarily, containing the Soviet Union and the spread of Marxism-Leninism. Over time, the national security agenda broadened to include not only military issues, but also economic, cyber, energy, and climate issues as well.

Integrating Diverse Elements of National Power

The Reserve Components National Security Course (RCNSC) exposes students to a variety of national security-focused tools and concepts that transcend traditional military education and training. The course is designed to allow maximum participation through guided seminars and promoting critical thinking in an environment that values diversity of experience over rank or position. Students experience a whole-of-government approach to addressing national security issues on the world stage and are especially challenged to increase their understanding of the information, economic, and diplomatic elements of national power. The exercise provides an experience in national decision making that identifies and applied the instruments of national power in support of national interest.

Strategic Thinking and Practical Application

A critical component of national security education involves developing strategic thinking skills and applying them to real-world scenarios.

Developing Strategic Options

Through a series of cases, students address these issues as if they were professionals at the National Security Council working for the President or an assistant to the Secretary of State or Defense. In response to specific assignments, students write Strategic Options Memos that require analyzing the challenge, assessing the current strategy, and identifying alternative strategies for protecting and advancing national interests. Assignments require strategic thinking: analyzing dynamics of issues, formulating key judgements, and developing feasible strategies.

Navigating the Modern Information Landscape

In the real world of Washington today, this means thinking clearly about what the US is attempting to achieve in the world in the midst of a swirl of a government whose deliberations are often discombobulated by leaks, press reports, tweets, and fake news. A sub-theme of the course explores ways in which pervasive press coverage intrudes, sometimes informing, sometimes distorting, national security decision making. In addition, the course will include several related side bars where we will discuss Applied History, “behind the veil” at a major newspaper, strategy (as taught at the Naval War College), intelligence analysis, and basic numeracy.

Project Kyiv: A Capstone Exercise

Project Kyiv, a capstone exercise which organizes students into small groups to analyze a real-life strategic challenge and present a diagnosis and recommendation about it to a review panel.

National Security Management Programs

Executive education programs in National Security Management (NSM) cater to senior executives transitioning to policy challenges at a national scale.

Read also: Understanding Political Dynamics

Course Structure and Content

The program's flagship is a course in National Security Management (NSM). national security affairs.The course is geared to the needs of senior executives who are navigating the transition from enterprise leadership to the management of policy challenges at a national scale and scope. Classroom time involves a mix of keynote addresses, case studies, lectures and practical exercises addressing a range of the most important topics that comprise a rounded primer in national security affairs. Its 60 hours of instruction are delivered over seven weeks in a hybrid format that is organized into two phases.

Phase I: Foundational Knowledge

The first 20 hours are delivered online in weekly four-hour sessions over five weeks. The objective of Phase I is to instill knowledge of the building blocks of national security affairs:

Tectonics: global trends that shape the national security landscape.
Strategy: the theory of grand strategy and its expression in national security strategies.
Hard Power: the military, kinetic instruments of national power.
Soft Power: the diplomatic, economic and information instruments of power.
Technology: how advanced technologies give impetus to the dynamics of national security.

Phase II: Practical Application

The 40-hour balance of the course is delivered over seven successive days in-person, on campus at Syracuse University. The objective of Phase II is to explore the application of knowledge to solving practical challenges of national security leadership and policymaking:

In the Arena: first-hand accounts of distinguished national security leaders.

Core Competencies and Skills

Several courses emphasize the development of core competencies essential for success in the field of national security.

Understanding Military and Homeland Defense

The course reviews the missions and strategies of the organizations, how each area of security works together with the other aspects of government, and the integration of intelligence capabilities across the spectrum of government actions.

Analytical and Research Skills

Essay assignments require students to conduct research and analysis on specific topics related to national security. The student will write a 1,500-2,000-word research-based paper in current APA format that focuses on a topic related to the course readings and other assigned resources for the module theme. The paper must include at least 5-7 scholarly sources in addition to the course textbooks and the Bible.

Reflection and Critical Thinking

Quiz: Research and Reflection Paper: Topic Selection - The student will choose a topic related to the content of the course and submit the topic along with a 1-3-sentence description that includes a rationale for the topic’s relevance. Research and Reflection Paper: Annotated Bibliography - The student will complete an Annotated Bibliography of 7-8 scholarly resources. These resources must include at least 2 books in addition to journal/periodical articles. Annotations must not exceed 100 words and they must provide a brief rationale explaining how the resource is relevant to the focus of the research paper. Research and Reflection Paper: Final Submission - The student will write a 2,000-2,500-word research paper in current APA format focusing on the pre-selected topic approved by the instructor. The paper must include 7-8 scholarly references that includes at least two books as well as journal/periodical articles.

tags: #politics #of #american #national #security #course