Full-Time Degree Programs

The ICTF Program offers students a strategic perspective on a rapidly changing global security environment. Courses address the global threat and its various manifestations including the rise of non-state armed groups, and the ends, ways and means of transnational terrorists and insurgents. The curriculum addresses the roles of power and ideology, the rise of newly empowered and politicized ideological movements, and the relationship between political objectives, strategy and all instruments of national power.

Through seminar participation, independent study, and the research and writing of a thesis, students develop strategies for working with the United States and other members of the international coalition to combat global terrorism. Ultimately, the program prepares counterterrorism professional to develop and implement security strategies for conditions of peace, crisis, and war.

This 10-month, full-time, in-residence program offered at CISA’s main campus at National Defense University, Fort McNair, leads to a 35-credit Master of Arts in Strategic Security Studies for qualified candidates.

Core Courses (9 credits)
6920 Geostrategy (3 credits)
6901 Strategic Thought (3 credits)
6929 Power, Ideology, and Legitimacy (3 credits)

Area of Concentration (9 Credits)

Counterterrorism
6975 Dynamics of Terrorism (3 credits)
6976 Dynamics of Counterterrorism (3 credits)
6990 Combating Terrorism Strategies and Policies (3 credits)

Electives (8 Credits)
Students must complete a minimum of eight credit hours and may participate in the NDU electives program, selecting from among the elective courses offered by NDU’s other colleges.

Research and Thesis (9 credits)
6942 Methods of Analysis and Argumentation (3 credits)
6943 Thesis (6 credits)*

*International Counterterrorism Fellows who do not meet the requirements for admission to the Master’s Degree program will be enrolled in 6941 Professional Research Project - a 3-credit independent study to write a counterterrorism plan for their country under the direction of a CISA faculty member. Non-degree students will earn the International Counterterrorism Fellowship Certificate.

The Master’s program is also delivered at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School (JFKSWCS) at Fort Bragg, N.C. to US Army Special Operations Forces. Over a ten-month period, students attend classes full-time at CISA’s location at SWCS to complete the rigorous 35-credit hour graduate program leading to a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Security Studies.

Master of Arts in Strategic Security Studies Fort Bragg Program Curriculum

Core Courses (9 credits)
6920 Geostrategy (3 credits)
6901 Strategic Thought (3 credits)
6929 Power, Ideology, and Legitimacy (3 credits)

Area of Concentration (9 Credits)
Students are placed in one of two Areas of Concentration:

International Security Studies (9 credits)
6903 The Origins of Conflict and War (3 credits)
6904 Warriors of the Mind: Strategic Influence in the 21st Century (3 credits)
6905 The Information and Cyber Revolutions (3 credits)

Irregular Warfare (9 credits)
6925 American Way of War (3 credits)
6980 Strategy and Policy of Irregular Warfare (3 credits)
6981 Small Wars: Irregular Warfare Lost and Found (3 credits)

Electives (8 Credits)
Students are required to complete four elective courses from CISA offerings.

Research and Thesis (9 credits)
6942 Methods of Analysis and Argumentation (3 credits)
6943 Thesis (6 credits)

South and Central Asia Program

The South and Central Asia Program developed in partnership with the Afghanistan Pakistan Hands Program administered by the Joint Staff Pakistan Afghanistan Coordination Cell seeks to develop student’s knowledge of the region (historical, cultural, political, military and economic) and understanding of the regional civilian and military processes, practices and norms.

Through seminar participation, writing and research, and courses specifically addressing the complexities associated with the Afghanistan/Pakistan region students will be prepared to evaluate how local, regional and global threats and challenges impact South and Central Asia. They will develop the skills to think critically and strategically and to apply knowledge in practice in collaborative and complex circumstances with diverse partners.

The Master of Arts Degree in Strategic Security Studies degree requires 35 credit hours of graduate-level course work. Students in the South and Central Asia Program are required to take the following courses:

Core Courses (9 credits)
6920 Geostrategy (3 credits)
6901 Strategic Thought (3 credits)
6929 Power, Ideology and Legitimacy (3 credits)

Areas of Concentration (18 credits)
Students will pursue two Areas of Concentration:

International Security Studies (9 credits)
6903 The Origins of Conflict and War (3 credits)
6904 Warriors of the Mind: Strategic Influence in the 21st Century (3 credits)
6905 The Information and Cyber Revolutions (3 credits)

Irregular Warfare (9 credits)
6925 American Way of War (3 credits)
6980 Strategy and Policy of Irregular Warfare(3 credits)
6981 Small Wars: Irregular Warfare Lost and Found (3 credits)

Research and Writing (4 credits)
6942 Methods of Analysis and Argumentation (3 credits)

Electives (4 credits)
Students will take the following two electives focusing on South and Central Asia.

6918 South Asia: From the Mogul Empire to Osama bin Laden (2 credits)
6919 Frontline of Global War: Afghanistan and Pakistan (2 credits)
6924 Afghanistan and Pakistan: Policy and Practice (1 credit)