Academic Programs & Standards
Certified Academic Programs:
Florida State University (2024) - Undergraduate Certificate in U.S. Intelligence Studies
The focus on the practice and community surrounding the intelligence field in the United States has placed new importance on training analysts and decision makers. This certificate gives students in just about any program of study a way to stand out from the crowd and learn real world approaches to solving complicated problems. The concepts and methods are as relevant in business, psychology, and the arts as it is to national security.
This undergraduate certification program includes skills and knowledge appropriate for practicing analysts and those within the community as well as all those interested in intelligence training. Successful completion of the courses applied to the USIS Certificate is defined as a grade of C or higher. Students who receive grades lower than a C in any courses must repeat that course if they wish to have it apply to the certificate. S/U classes are not accepted in any of our certificates, unless the course is a Directed Individual Study (DIS) and the student has obtained approval from the department.
The Citadel (2021) - Intelligence and Security Studies BA & Intelligence and Security Studies MA
The Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Intelligence and Security Studies (ISS) is designed to meet the national security and intelligence needs of military, federal, state, and local governmental agencies, private corporations engaged in intelligence and security fields, and others who are interested in gaining greater knowledge about the field of intelligence and security studies. The BA consists of 15 courses (45 credit hours) offered by various academic units at The Citadel. In order to provide students with a broad-based liberal arts education, the major is highly interdisciplinary. Learn more: Bachelor of Arts in Intelligence and Security Studies; Bachelor of Arts in Intelligence and Security Studies (Online).
The Master of Arts (MA) degree program in Intelligence and Security Studies (ISS) prepares students to enhance national security through intelligence and homeland security leadership. Best practices for intelligence collection and analysis and national security combined with current theory, research, and experience give students the background necessary to cultivate critical thinking, concise writing, and effective briefing. By introducing applicable management principles and policy analysis, the Intelligence Studies degree program fosters the leadership skills to successfully address security and intelligence challenges facing the United States.Learn more: Master of Arts in Intelligence and Security Studies (Online).
Standards for Intelligence Education
Undergraduate and Graduate Programs
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These standards are recommended for undergraduate and graduate academic programs having "intelligence in their program titles and support competitive (business), law enforcement, homeland security and national security intelligence activities.
Standards presented below for undergraduate and graduate programs provide the general knowledge and skills recommended when institutions develop learning outcomes and assessment procedures for intelligence education programs. The extent to which each below core area is developed and emphasized in a given program should be consistent with the program and institution’s mission and objectives. For undergraduate associates degrees, certificates and minors, the below undergraduate degree general outcomes and undergraduate core area outcomes should be included to the greatest extent possible.
Undergraduate Degree General Outcomes
Satisfying undergraduate degree general outcomes indicate a program meets a minimum set of professional and intellectual standards in their curricula. Though some of the following general outcomes may be satisfied by intelligence program coursework, some may also be satisfied by the institution’s general education requirements, course test-out programs or high school AP equivalency. At the general level, intelligence education programs must demonstrate that their graduates are able to:
1) Employ knowledge of mathematics and science.
2) Identify, describe and critically evaluate applicable intelligence technologies.
3) Demonstrate the ability to professionally speak, read and orally comprehend a foreign language—as applicable.*
4) Identify professional ethics and how they apply to the intelligence field.
5) Develop general professional written and oral reports and presentations.
6) Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively in diverse groups.
7) Demonstrate intelligence knowledge, skills and abilities in a non-academic setting through an internship, cooperative or supervised experience.
8) Evaluate intelligence issues or challenges through either a capstone practicum or undergraduate thesis.
9) Appraise contemporary and emergent threats, challenges and issues to business, law enforcement, homeland security, national security and regional studies spheres—as applicable.*
10) Explain application of intelligence strategies and operations to business, law enforcement, homeland security, national security and regional studies issues—as applicable.*
* In addition to the intelligence education undergraduate general outcomes (above) and core area outcomes (below), intelligence curricula should also include substantive and theoretical instruction in the student’s intended career field. This should include courses, as applicable, in foreign languages and the areas of business, law enforcement, homeland security, national security and regional studies, as applicable to the student’s intended career field. For example, students planning careers in regional studies should have instruction in history, geography, economics, politics, cultures, foreign policy and security issues and foreign languages applicable to the region of student interest.
Undergraduate Degree Core Area (CA) Outcomes
Undergraduate core area outcomes demonstrate professional breadth of preparation as it applies to the intelligence field. Programs satisfying core area outcomes should include the following curricular areas. Suggested definitions for each academic area follow the curricular area title. Although programs can assume some latitude in how their specific curriculum integrates each of the core areas below, programs should accomplish each of the following outcomes. Depending on the program or institution, a given core area outcome may be addressed in a devoted course, a portion of a course, or in an appropriate extracurricular experience (cooperative study, internship, field experience, independent study, etc.).
CA1. Intelligence History – To identify key events, persons, successes and failures in intelligence activities, including their role and influence in history.
1) Discuss the evolution of intelligence from ancient to modern times.
2) Explain the evolution of intelligence as it applies to the academic institution’s home nation.
CA2. Intelligence Organizations – To understand the current organizational structures, resources, capabilities and responsibilities of intelligence institutions.
3) Explain the current intelligence organizations at the academic institution’s home nation national and local levels.
4) Discuss the general characteristics of current intelligence organizations in key foreign nations (adversaries and allies).
CA3. Intelligence Planning – The process of defining an intelligence organization’s strategy or direction, including making decisions on allocating its resources to pursue this strategy.
5) Demonstrate knowledge of legal and ethical principles applicable to intelligence activities, including intelligence collection, counterintelligence and covert action.
6) Discuss the current organizational structures, functions, capabilities, and responsibilities of intelligence customers.
7) Demonstrate knowledge of applicable national strategies and plans, including their history, inter-relationships, similarities and differences.
8) Explain the strategic planning interface between various levels of the public and private sectors.
9) Employ the latest in strategic and organizational management, organizational behavior, leadership, interagency operations and information sharing procedures used in the intelligence community.
10) Explain the intelligence resource management process.
11) Demonstrate the preparation and presentation of intelligence management written and oral communications.
12) Appraise the use of the "Intelligence Cycle as a framework for understanding intelligence activities.
CA4. Intelligence Collection – The process of collecting, processing and exploiting information used in intelligence products.
13) Discuss processes for prioritizing and tasking the employment of collection assets to support strategic, operational and tactical intelligence analysis.
14) Explain the organization, capabilities, limitations, exploitation and key issues in Human Intelligence (HUMINT) (informant direction) collection operations, both overt and covert.
15) Explain the organization, collection platforms, capabilities, limitations, exploitation and key issues in Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) (wiretaps-eavesdropping) collection operations.
16) Explain the organization, collection platforms, capabilities, limitations, exploitation and key issues in Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) (imagery-mapping) collection operations.
17) Explain the organization, collection platforms, capabilities, limitations, exploitation and key issues in Measurement and Signature Intelligence (MASINT) (other technical) collection operations.
18) Discuss the contributions, limitations and issues related to collaboration of information and intelligence sharing obtained through foreign services.
19) Describe the issues and challenges in coordinating intelligence collection from multiple sources.
20) Discuss future technologies and their potential impacts on intelligence collection.
CA5. Intelligence Analysis – The process where information is analyzed and intelligence products are developed and provided to strategic, operational and tactical consumers.
21) Formulate analyzable questions through de-construction of the intelligence tasking or problem.
22) Locate and search available databases and other sources to gather existing information and intelligence products, including Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) (publicly available information), and identify information gaps.
23) Assess the validity of human and technical information through vetting procedures designed to detect misinterpretations, fabrications, deliberate deceptions, and unacknowledged biases.
24) Explain the challenges of tasking multi-source collection assets to fill identified information gaps.
25) Select appropriate procedures for group analytic efforts (brainstorming, Red Team analysis, Team A/B, etc.).
26) Demonstrate procedures for modeling and hypothesis generation.
27) Employ basic qualitative and quantitative analysis procedures to test hypotheses and develop analytic findings.
28) Demonstrate the ability to present complex data and findings in meaningful ways (e.g., maps, charts, tables, graphs, etc.).
29) Create written and oral reports to convey analytic findings to superiors and customers.
CA6. Counterintelligence and Security – The countering of adversary threats to one’s nation, organization, personnel, systems and information.
30) Discuss the history of counterintelligence and counterespionage, including recent case studies.
31) Explain the employment of general security measures (physical, personnel, information, cyber, investigations and security management).
32) Demonstrate knowledge of the classification management systems applicable to home nation.
33) Discuss operational security measures.
34) Differentiate between the fields of counterintelligence, counterespionage and counterterrorism.
Graduate Degree Outcomes
Standards for graduate degree programs in intelligence education should include increased depth and rigor in the instruction of the above undergraduate degree general outcomes and undergraduate core area outcomes. These outcomes may be met through previous degree programs where possible. For graduate degrees the following additional outcomes should be met:
35) Complete a minimum of one year of study beyond the undergraduate level.
36) Create a research project or other research activity resulting in a report that demonstrates both mastery of the subject matter and a high level of professional communication skills.
37) Complete advanced instruction in qualitative and quantitative analysis skills.
For more information, please contact the IAFIE Educational Practices Chair: Dr. James Ramsay (University of Wisconsin-Stout) EdPractices@iafie.org