Certificate in National Security Affairs and International Relations

The certificate program is designed for professionals in the field seeking career advancement, those who aspire to enter the field, individuals in related professions, and those retired from the military and government seeking consulting and other positions. Examples of potential students include personnel in the military, federal, state and local governments, law enforcement, corporations, and academia, as well as recent college graduates. For students with a graduate degree or pursuing a graduate degree in another field, this would be a valuable complement to their existing program. The program focuses on building the critical analytical skills graduates need to succeed professionally in the field of national security affairs. The ability to critically analyze intelligence information, historical and contemporary issues informing the field, and to perform textual analyses, defines the program core’s most important learning outcomes.

The Graduate Certificate in National Security Affairs and International Relations is a 15 credit hour program. Students will complete any five of the six core courses in the M.S. in National Security Affairs and International Relations. Students who are in good standing in the NSAIR certificate program may speak with the department about the MS program. The program is designed to be completed entirely online; however, there are few of the courses that maybe offered in the residential format and students may select those sections as appropriate.

Certificate Information

(12 Credits) 

Choose four courses from the following:

Course Number

Course Name

Credit Hours

NSAM 5001 Current Issues in National Security 3
NSAM 5003 National Intelligence Collection 3
NSAM 5004 Border Protection and Military Issues 3
NSAM 5010 U.S. Foreign Policy and National Security 3
NSAM 5014 Ethical Issues in National Security 3
NSAM 5015 International Relations: Theory and Practice 3

(13 Credits) 

Choose from one of the following:

Course Number

Course Name

Credit Hours

NSAM 5002 Terrorists and Terrorism: Theory and Practice 3
NSAM 5016 Civil Liberties and National Security 3
NSAM 5020 International Law and Institutions 3
NSAM 5030 American Government and Domestic Security 3
NSAM 5040 Cyber Conflicts and Statecraft 3
DEM 5090 Weapons of Mass Threat and Communicable Diseases 3
NSAM 5502 Directed Readings in National Security Affairs 3
NSAM 5650 Economic Statecraft in National Security Affairs 3
NSAM 6130 Practicum/Internship 3
NSAM 6690 Special Topics in National Security Affairs and International Relations 3

Graduate Open House

Join us on Friday, October 6th at 5:30 PM EST to learn more about National Security Affairs, including careers within the field, NSU graduate degree offerings, and the application process.

This event is free and open for all to attend. You may register for the Open House here.

Program directors and department faculty from the Department of Humanities and Politics and NSU Halmos College of Arts and Sciences Graduate Admissions will be in attendance to answer your questions about your program(s) of interest.