Master of Arts in Intelligence Studies-Capstone Option

Learn basic research methods skills for addressing security and intelligence studies problems and issues. You focus on the detailed procedures for conducting qualitative case studies, which is the foundation for most basic security and intelligence research conducted in academic, government, and business circles. You become well versed in research planning, secondary data collection, and qualitative data analysis methods and how these methods relate to the larger field of social science research. You will also learn the analysis of competing hypotheses approach to research design. You are also introduced to basic social theory which supports security and intelligence research. The course prepares you for later learning intermediate and advanced security and intelligence methods.

RECOMMENDED AS SECOND PROGRAM COURSE. Strategic Intelligence is an examination of the current structure, function, capabilities, and contributions of individual U.S. national intelligence community members. Students appraise the intelligence cycle, including an overview of the intelligence planning, collection, exploitation, analysis, production, and dissemination phases. A review is also made of intelligence oversight structures and restrictions on U.S. national intelligence community activities as prescribed by federal law, executive and agency directives, and the intelligence oversight system.

This course is a study of intelligence collection and information gathering. It focuses on a variety of aspects related to how both the United States and foreign nations gather and process intelligence. The student will develop a comprehensive understanding of the role collection plays in the intelligence community, how various policies affect collection, and how different intelligence agencies monitor and collect intelligence.

This course provides an overview of intelligence analysis. This course first explores the nature of human thought processes: why we think the way we do, and the many analytical, perceptual, and cognitive errors we frequently make in conducting our own analysis. The course also provides the student a foundation from which to understand and conduct critical analysis. Once these are understood, students are then given a series of historical case studies to examine and analyze (INTL504 - Analytics I is NOT a prerequisite for this course.)

This course provides an introduction to the theory and practice of intelligence operations. The course will focus on the intelligence resources necessary to carry out the full range of intelligence operations using the tools, techniques, and resources available to intelligence agencies.

This course is a study and analysis of international threats to security. It focuses on a variety of aspects related to both U.S. and foreign threat analysis and action, including the evolution of responses to threats, perspectives on threat action since World War II, principles of threat analysis and response, and assessments of successes and failures of such actions. The student will develop a comprehensive knowledge of threat analysis, how intelligence agencies in the U.S. assess and counter international threats in order to guard U.S. global interests and protect U.S. national security from adversaries, and how various threats affect national security policy and decision-making.

The course focuses on both U.S. and foreign aspects of counterintelligence, including the history and evolution of counterintelligence, the differences between passive and active CI measures, principles and processes of counterintelligence and its relationship to covert action, the ethics of counterintelligence, and the evaluation of CI successes and an estimate of the damage caused by failures. The student will develop a comprehensive knowledge of the use and practices of counterintelligence, especially in protecting homeland security and national security interests against foreign adversaries. Additionally, the collection process and the changes for the future in the infusion of CI technology will be discussed.

This course examines Signals Intelligence focusing on the underlying technology of SIGINT and its application to various military and civilian intelligence questions at both the tactical and strategic level primarily through the use of the case study approach. Focusing primarily on communications intelligence (COMINT) and electronic intelligence (ELINT) this course will also address the lesser-known disciplines of MASINT, FISINT, etc. Collection platforms will be studied in relation to their inherent capabilities and application against various intelligence targets. The peculiar constraints on intelligence analysis in the SIGINT environment will be explored with the purpose of understanding the limitations of SIGINT and SIGINT’s role in the broader all-source intelligence analysis process. The course is held at the unclassified, open-source level.

This course provides an overview of HUMINT operations include mission-target analysis, operational planning, execution and evaluation, cover, security and communications, collection and reporting, and financial management. Students will be expected to demonstrate the ability to assess, articulate and defend the soundness of operational concepts, plans and budgets.

This course will provide the student with a solid foundation in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), powerful tools used for the collection, analysis and display of spatial data. The true link between GIS and intelligence studies is the ability to make informed decisions based on the data available, by assigning weight in terms of importance to the various datasets, and finally creating associative analyses to determine a course of action pertaining to a person, group, nation or region. This course will help the student to achieve this important objective. (Prerequisite: INTL500). Note: The ESRI course software will not run on computers using Macintosh [3 Semester Hours]

Students explore the contribution of imagery intelligence to the all-source effort, the advantages and disadvantages of imagery intelligence, the collection sensors' capabilities and limitations, and the interpretation process of the imaged subject.

The Master’s Capstone Seminar option in Intelligence Studies includes a major research paper in lieu of the final comprehensive examination, which has no credit hours. Those who elect this graduation option may reduce their electives by three semester hours to accommodate the seminar option credit. Students starting their degree program after 1 January 2009 must take INTL699 and complete a major research paper based upon a list of available subjects. The major research paper option gives students the opportunity to apply their advanced research and analytic skills to a topic of U.S .or international security interest.