Minor in Military Strategy and International Relations
The minor in Military Strategy and International Relations offers undergraduates at Carnegie Mellon a course of study focusing on military strategy and doctrine, the current national security landscape, including how cybersecurity and artificial intelligence influence national security decision making, and the full range of strategic challenges facing future American leaders. While the minor is open to all CMU undergraduates, it is in part motivated by a desire to support CMU students embarking on the unique effort to serve and defend the country through the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program and others interested in pursuing applied defense-related careers post-graduation. Indeed, CMU typically has several dozen ROTC students annually along with many others who go into related areas such as working in the Department of Defense, and these students are spread throughout the university. Many major in STEM fields, where they learn valuable technical skills but are exposed to little of the wider strategic context facing military leaders and decision-makers or the political and institutional frameworks in which they are embedded. The Military Strategy and International Relations minor aims to fill these needs, ultimately helping to foster future military and defense leaders who are fully cognizant of the national and international strategic context they will navigate.
Rationale
Building squarely on the “3D” concept which has gained increasing currency in US foreign policy circles in recent years, the Military Strategy and International Relations minor recognizes that there can be no successful national defense without making diplomacy and international development key elements in our overall national security strategy. The Military Strategy and International Relations minor will shape future leaders who have a clear understanding of the intersectionality of diplomacy, development, and defense. The Military Strategy and International Relations minor will engage students in the whys and hows of national strategy, military planning, and the future of warfare. In addition, it emphasizes the political and institutional systems and rules in which military affairs are situated, with core courses on the topics of military strategy, governance, diplomacy, and policy decision making. Finally, the minor stresses the use of cutting-edge analytical and social science methods to prepare students for advanced training, study, and government or military service in national and international security.
Curriculum
Curriculum (60 units)
60 units
Core Courses
Students must take the following core courses (33 units):
Military Strategy | ||
84-328 | Military Strategy and Doctrine | 9 |
Governance | ||
84-319 | Civil-Military Relations | 9 |
Diplomacy (select one) | ||
84-325 | Contemporary American Foreign Policy | 9 |
84-362 | Diplomacy and Statecraft | 9 |
Policy | ||
84-450 | Policy Seminar | 6 |
Electives
Students must complete a total of 27 units (typically three courses) from the following list of courses. At least 9 units must be taken from the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Strategy & Technology (CMIST) and have an 84-number.
Electives | ||
84-104 | Decision Processes in American Political Institutions | 9 |
84-200 | Security War Game Simulation | 6 |
84-226 | International Relations | 9 |
84-275 | Comparative Politics | 9 |
84-303 | International Human Rights | 6 |
84-312 | Terrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa | 6 |
84-313 | International Organizations and Law | 9 |
84-317 | Defense Resourcing: From Strategy to Execution | 6 |
84-318 | Politics of Developing Nations | 9 |
84-322 | Nonviolent Conflict and Revolution | 9 |
84-323 | War and Peace in the Contemporary Middle East | 9 |
84-324 | The Future of Democracy | 9 |
84-325 | Contemporary American Foreign Policy If not used as a core course, course may count as an elective. | 9 |
84-327 | Repression and Control in Dictatorships | 9 |
84-329 | Asian Strategies | 6 |
84-362 | Diplomacy and Statecraft If not used as a core course, course may count as an elective. | 9 |
84-365 | The Politics of Fake News and Misinformation | 9 |
84-370 | Nuclear Security & Arms Control | 9 |
84-372 | Space and National Security | 9 |
84-373 | Emerging Technologies and International Law | 9 |
84-374 | Technology, Weapons, and International Conflict | 9 |
84-380 | US Grand Strategy | 9 |
84-383 | Cyber Policy as National Policy | 6 |
84-386 | The Privatization of Force | 9 |
84-387 | Remote Systems and the Cyber Domain in Conflict | 9 |
84-388 | Concepts of War and Cyber War | 6 |
84-389 | Terrorism and Insurgency | 9 |
84-390 | Social Media, Technology, and Conflict | 9 |
84-393 | Legislative Decision Making: US Congress | 9 |
84-405 | The Future of Warfare | 9 |
17-200 | Ethics and Policy Issues in Computing | 9 |
32-201 | Leadership & Management | 9 |
32-310 | Evolution Of Warfare | 9 |
32-402 | Leadership and Ethics | 9 |
79-257 | Germany and the Second World War | 9 |
79-268 | World War I: The Twentieth Century's First Catastrophe | 9 |
79-302 | Killer Robots:The Ethics, Law, and Politics of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems | 6 |
80-136 | Social Structure, Public Policy & Ethics | 9 |
Students may double count a maximum of two courses (18 units) with another major or minor. Unlimited double counting is permitted with general education requirements.