Global Security and Intelligence Studies Volume 4, Number 1, Spring/Summer 2019 | Page 22

Forging Consensus? Approaches to Assessment in Intelligence Studies Programs
fers in-residence courses to prepare students for careers in intelligence or further
academic study. In contrast, the Citadel’s Master of Arts program in Intelligence
and Security Studies was created in 2016 and is primarily an online program. Its
purpose is to prepare students for intelligence careers in the federal government
(Jensen 2015). The Intelligence, Security Studies and Analysis master’s program
at Angelo State University is also primarily an online program. However, like the
program at UTEP, the Angelo State program offers a thesis option to complete the
program for students who are preparing for teaching or additional graduate study.
The undergraduate programs have a greater degree of similarity. The programs
at Notre Dame College and Coastal Carolina University employ primarily
in-residence courses. The programs at Angelo State University and the University
of Arizona South are primarily online institutions due to their focus on serving
members of the armed forces. The Citadel undergraduate program in Intelligence
and Security Studies is a blended program with a balance of in-residence and online
courses. That said, all share a focus on the emphasis on objectives related to
the liberal arts.
Assessment Programs in Intelligence Studies
The assessment structures of the programs in this study were heavily influenced
by the institution that housed them. As Greg Moore of Notre
Dame College noted, the assessment structure served two masters: the
field of study and the mission of the institution (Gregory Moore, Telephone interview
with author, December 20, 2017). None of the programs in this study was
solely responsible for the construction of their assessment plan. The actual plans
were often constructed as a collaborative venture between the program faculty
and the institution’s assessment staff. For instance, at the Citadel, the program
goals were submitted to the institution which helped the department to identify
the appropriate assessment tools (Carl Jensen, Telephone interview with author,
December 21, 2017). Institutions provide management software and technical
expertise to support the program’s assessment effort. As one program director
noted, “they have been good at determining what measures are best for our field”
(Background, Telephone interview with author, January 24, 2018). This institutional
influence ensures that the intelligence studies program at their institution
supports the larger effort to maintaining accreditation from the regional accrediting
associations (Gregory Moore, Telephone interview with author, December
20, 2017).
But while the institutions heavily influenced the assessment structures, the
actual implementation of the assessment measures was conducted within the program.
Program directors often handle the assessment requirement, sometimes
with the assistance of other faculty. For program directors, this was a part of their
administrative responsibilities associated with their job description. For faculty,
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