Global Security Leadership Online (MA)

Program Description

The Master of Arts in global security leadership. is a fully online, interdisciplinary program designed to equip students for leadership roles in national security, intelligence, homeland protection, and private sector organizations. The program is designed to meet the need for early to mid-career education and advanced degrees required for promotion in government and commercial national security organizations. The program is designed to be completed in one year, but students could take longer. The program consists of 30 credit hours beyond a bachelor’s degree, including 6 hours of core classes, 21 hours of elective courses, and one applied graduate project.

As an academic discipline, global security studies focuses on the study of
various parts of the national security system, including regional security,
strategy development, cyber security policy, and intelligence operations. Global
security studies explores the multifaceted challenges to international peace and
security, encompassing both traditional hard power threats and nontraditional
issues like cyber, climate change, and pandemics. It analyzes these issues
through the lenses of international relations, political science, economics, and
history to develop strategies for prevention, mitigation, and response.

The M.A. in Global Security Leadership will offer four concentrations, allowing students to tailor their studies to align with their professional goals. Students may earn a concentration if they complete 12 hours of elective work from one of the following concentrations.  
1) The Global and Regional Security concentration examines critical issues surrounding near-peer competitors and regional conflict fault lines.  
2) The Intelligence Operations concentration explores the role of intelligence in national security policy, the impact of emerging technologies on intelligence collection and analysis, and the challenges facing the intelligence community. 
3) The Strategy Development concentration develops the skills needed to assess national security challenges, craft policy solutions, and effectively communicate them to senior decision-makers. 
4) The Cybersecurity Policy and Planning concentration focuses on evolving cyber threats and how a nation can best build a whole-of-government approach to counter those threats.  
Graduates of our Program will be able to
1) Articulate how nations translate their security goals into strategy.
2) Appraise governmental policy planning and execution.
3) Design policy proposals tailored to professional goals.
4) Develop institutional leadership skills.
5) Communicate and disseminate information to intended audiences.

The M.A. in Global Security Leadership is a 30-credit program. All students must
complete 6 hours of core courses, 21 hours of electives, and 3 hours of an
applied graduate project. Students may also earn a concentration in any of four
areas by completing 12 credit hours of elective courses.