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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

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Graduate-Level Security Studies

The NSA department is one of the core departments at NWC and offers two courses that lead to the master's degree: national security decision making (NSDM) for senior-ranking students and theater security decision making (TSDM) for mid-ranking students. These eight-credit hour 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

National Security Decision Making (NSDM) is designed to engage senior-rank students in the complexities of U.S. foreign policy and the international security environment at the national-strategic level.

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NSDM Capstone Final Exercise (FX)

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Theater Security Decision Making Course

National Security Affairs ILC Syllabus Cover

Theater Security Decision Making (TSDM) is designed to engage intermediate-rank students in the complexities of today's national and international security environment with a strong emphasis on U.S. decision making challenges and processes at the theater-strategic level of the geographic combatant commands.

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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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Featured Faculty

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Derek S Reveron Profile Picture

Derek S. Reveron

Chair | National Security Affairs

Derek S. Reveron is professor and Chair of the National Security Affairs Department at the Naval War College and is a faculty affiliate at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard Kennedy School. He specializes in strategy development, non-state security challenges and U.S. defense policy. Co-written with a computer scientist, his current book project examines security in the information age. He served 33 years in the Navy Reserves, where he commanded units in support of U.S. European Command, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, U.S. Southern Command and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command.

Publications by this Professor
Paul J. Smith Photo

Paul J. Smith

Professor | National Security Affairs

Dr. Paul J. Smith joined the NSA department in July 2006 and teaches the Security Strategies course. He was formerly an associate/assistant professor with the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (APCSS) in Hawaii. His research focuses on transnational security issues and the international politics of East Asia.

Publications by this Professor

Featured Publications

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The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Assessing a Year of Military Aid to Ukraine

Jahara Matisek, Will Reno, Sam Rosenberg RUSI

The Confrontation with Russia and U.S. Grand Strategy

Nikolas K. Gvosdev Foreign Policy Research Institute

More Bang for the SFA Buck: Improving U.S. Security Force Assistance in Ukraine and Beyond

Jahara Matisek, Will Reno, Sam Rosenberg Modern War Institute