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National Security Affairs Department

The National Security Affairs (NSA) department at U.S. Naval War College (NWC) is one of the nation's largest and most vibrant graduate departments teaching foreign policy analysis and international security. We provide professional education to mid- and senior-career students who are military and civilian national security professionals from the United States and more than 60 partner countries.

Chair, National Security Affairs Department

(401) 856-5310

Graduate-Level Security Studies

The NSA department offers two courses that lead to the master's degree and Joint Professional Military Education credit: national security decision making (NSDM) for senior-ranking students and theater security decision making (TSDM) for mid-ranking students. These courses provide a broad interdisciplinary foundation in contemporary security studies to analyze how the U.S. government makes foreign policy decisions and the role the U.S. plays in the world.

National Security Decision Making Course

National Security Affairs SLC Syllabus Cover

Upon completing the National Security Decision Making (NSDM) course, you will be prepared to serve on Service and Joint staffs to operate at the national level. You’ll leave the course with:

  • the ability to develop and communicate analyses of current and emerging security issues facing the U.S. and its international partners and allies
  • the understanding of U.S. decision making dynamics at the strategic level
  • the ability to assess political, budgetary, bureaucratic, organizational, and leadership factors influencing decision making and implementation of U.S. foreign policy and strategy development
More on NSDMNSDM Syllabus

NSDM Capstone Final Exercise (FX)

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Theater Security Decision Making Course

National Security Affairs ILC Syllabus Cover

Upon completing the Theater Security Decision Making (TSDM) course, you will be prepared to serve in combatant commands and their components to advance and defend national interests at the regional level. You’ll leave the course with:

  • the ability to formulate and communicate assessments of a regional security environment, develop regional strategy using all tools of power, and identify capability gaps to advance and defend national interests
  • the understanding of U.S. decision making dynamics at the regional level
  • the ability to assess political, budgetary, bureaucratic, organizational, and leadership factors influencing decision making and implementation of U.S. foreign policy and strategy
More on TSDMTSDM Syllabus

TSDM Capstone Final Exercise (FX)

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Our Faculty

The department is first and foremost a teaching department where scholars and national security practitioners follow a curriculum that combines academic rigor with policy relevance. To further this, faculty participate in scholarly, policy and professional activities to ensure students have a learning experience that meets the needs of the Navy and the intent of the Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) system.

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Here are recent selections of NSA faculty contributions to the broader national and international security discourse.

Faculty Books

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Faculty Articles

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Student Publications

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Student Resources

Academic Information

Academic Support & Resources

Featured Faculty

Faculty Directory
Michael J. Maher faculty photo

Michael J. Maher

Professor | National Security Affairs

Professor Michael J. Maher is the Central Intelligence Agency's representative to the U.S. Naval War College and the George H. W. Bush Chair of National Intelligence. He teaches policy analysis in the National Security Affairs Department and electives on intelligence. In more than 26 years of U.S. Government service, he has served in a number of senior roles, including as an editor of the President's Daily Brief, chief of the Open Source Element at the U.S. European Command, and most recently as a senior digital expert in CIA's Directorate of Digital Innovation.

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Brian Hasse faculty photo

Brian Hasse

Military Professor | National Security Affairs

Cmdr. Hasse is a naval aviator with over 3,000 hours in the FA-18. His deployments included support of numerous operations including Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and Inherent Resolve. Prior to becoming a military professor at the U.S. Naval War College, Cmdr. Hasse served as the commanding officer of the "Fighting Redcocks" of VFA-22 in Lemoore, California.

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Featured Publications

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Seapower Is More Than Just the Navy

James Holmes The National Interest

U.S. Naval Strategy and Fleet Design for the Twenty-First Century

James Holmes The National Interest

The US May Have Lost the Sahel—But Russia is No Savior

Christopher Faulkner, Raphael Parens, Marcel Plichta Foreign Policy Research Institute