Through the lens of professional practitioners of the craft and former senior officials closely involved in the world of intelligence, students will explore the role of the intelligence and security agencies in a democratic society, applying the principles of intelligence and security to cutting-edge problems.

International Security and Intelligence: 21st Century Perspectives on Intelligence and the Modern Nation-State, is delivered by Cambridge Security Initiative (CSi), in partnership with King's College London, Department of War Studies.

Program Dates

July 9-August 3, 2018

Course

In this four-week, 3-credit course, students will enroll directly with CSi. Hosted at Magdalene College, Cambridge, students will consider the claims of necessary state secrecy, the threat of nuclear proliferation, of cyber-attack, of terrorism, the problems generated by the demand for energy security, and the security aspects of climate change. Students will learn about the role of the media and the exploitation of open sources to meet modern intelligence requirements. Intelligence collection, analysis of the product, and its dissemination to customers remain at the core of the intelligence community. Counterintelligence and covert action play more opaque, but still vital roles at the heart of the national state. Understanding these perspectives, what intelligence can achieve, also its limitations, and how it helps to shape policy in the area of defense and foreign policy are major course themes.