Global Security and Intelligence Studies Volume 3, Number 1, Spring/Summer 2018 | Page 41

Global Security and Intelligence Studies
need to possess. They cannot use SATs if they do not first develop critical thinking
skills, which leads to another discussion on whether or not students can grasp
the substantive knowledge necessary to be critical thinkers within the scope of
a typical four-year education. Pherson (2017) also concedes that earlier work on
producing SATs for analyst education and training did not specifically address the
area of strategic foresight.
Intelligence Studies Programs
There are still relatively few colleges or universities in the United States
which offer undergraduate degrees in intelligence studies, but the numbers
are growing. Examples include: Point Park University (PA); Mercyhurst
University (PA); Notre Dame College (OH); Coastal Carolina University
(SC), Fayetteville State University (NC), James Madison University (VA); Norwich
University (VT); and American Public University (online). The degrees offered
at these schools fall within traditional liberal arts departments (Politics or History),
multidisciplinary programs (Science and Technology, etc.), or professional
schools (Criminal Justice and Homeland Security). Other colleges offer undergraduate
minors in Intelligence Studies, or an area of concentration in Intelligence
Analysis under a different degree program. Almost all of these programs include
coursework related to intelligence analysis. The following are a sampling of schools
and programs.
Mercyhurst University in Erie, PA was one of the first colleges to offer an
undergraduate intelligence degree program. Mercyhurst is partnered with agencies
such as the Department of Defense, European Parliament, Central Intelligence
Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of State. Students
have had internships and learning opportunities with these institutions through
Mercyhurst’s program. The Intelligence Studies program is a multidisciplinary
program with a liberal arts focus that aims to produce entry-level analysts. Students
are educated on collecting data and analyzing it for a specified consumer so
that after graduation, Mercyhurst alumni can apply these skills in the workplace,
to include the private sector, as well as in intelligence career fields.
Notre Dame College in South Euclid, OH offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in
Intelligence Studies from the History and Political Science Department. Students
in this program are held to academic standards within a traditional liberal arts
curriculum and are prepared for a future in the intelligence community. Projected
program outcomes include students possessing extensive knowledge and understanding
of the working sectors of the intelligence cycle and recognizing agencies
both mainstream and those less publicized in the intelligence community. Students
graduating from this program are expected to be fluent in the current and
plausible domestic, regional, and global security threats. Students are expected
be able to write professionally and present reports in accordance with the expec-
40