Online M.A. in Intelligence and Global Security

Why Pittsburgh’s Online Intelligence Degree is right for you

The need for security professionals, both domestically and internationally, has never been higher. According to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, between 15,000 and 17,000 security and protection jobs are available every year. But such work requires specific knowledge about threats facing our country and how to combat them. Having the right credential is essential. You can earn that credential with Point Park’s online Master of Arts in Intelligence and Global Security degree. Because our online intelligence degree is offered in a fully digital format. Earning an intelligence master’s degree online means taking advantage of a meaningful opportunity to advance your career.

Global Security and Intelligence Studies Degree Curriculum Overview

The online intelligence degree program offers a diverse curriculum on topics like threat analysis, cybercrime and international terrorism with an emphasis on career preparedness. Each course is developed by professionals with years of experience and expertise in their fields, and the curriculum focuses on career preparedness. With Point Park’s online intelligence degree, our supportive digital community helps students gain relevant, practical skills that can be applied from the first day on the job.

Contact an enrollment counselor to learn more.

  • Next Start Date: May 7, 2023

Program Length: 1-2 years
Credit Hours: 30 Hours
Course Length: 8 Weeks
Cost Per Credit: $759
Transfer Credits Accepted: Up to 9

  • Est. Program Length: 1-2 Years

  • Credit Hours: 30 Hours

  • Course Length: 8 Weeks

  • Cost Per Credit: $740

  • Transfer Credits Accepted: Up to 9

Tell me more about Point Park University’s Online M.A. in Intelligence and Global Security

What’s it like in Point Park’s online Intelligence and Global Security program?

Just ask Intelligence Studies Director Sean Elliot Martin, Ph.D.

Master’s in Intelligence and Global Security Course Offerings

Admission Requirements

Course Description
Students will learn basic research methods for studying issues and problems in security and intelligence studies. They will gain proficiencies in research planning, data collection and analysis and in the various methodologies that are utilized by academic, governmental and corporate entities and the relationship of each to the study of social sciences. By using inductive and deductive approaches, the student will achieve an understanding of the theories of competing hypothesis design.

Course Description
This course enables the student to examine and understand the difference between strategic or long-term intelligence from operational and tactical short-term intelligence gathering. It analyzes the different methods of collection and tradecraft used in strategic collection. The course provides an appraisal of the intelligence cycle and the target centric approach to analysis. The course further addresses current U.S. laws and policies as well as congressional oversight of the methods and operational guidelines which affect the intelligence community.

Course Description
This course examines the concept and practice of intelligence operations. The course focus is to recognize the range of resources that are necessary to carry out intelligence operations. It identifies the tools, as well as techniques, that are related to successful operations and contrasts those techniques and tools that are lacking and result in failures.

Course Description
This course describes a modern approach developed in 2002 for the collecting and analysis of data. This replaces the former intelligence cycle, which was popular during the Cold War era. It maintains the use of experts in analysis, but broadens participation in analysis of information to non-experts, in order to obviate bias as a factor when reviewing information. It also includes participation of the policy maker(s) in defining specific tasks and the expanded use of open-source intelligence.

Course Description
This course analyzes current global security threats. It attempts to explain why these threats are prominent and offers possible solutions of both a short- and long-term strategy in coping with the new threats. The student will develop a comprehensive knowledge of threat analysis and how U.S. intelligence addresses such threats. It also examines the amount of involvement of foreign intelligence services during such actions.

Course Description
This course examines the risks of growing international terror acts, the organizations that figure most prominently as the perpetrators, and current strategies to prevent the growth of such groups. It also examines the history of terrorism and current trends with respect to financing, structure and weapons used by terrorist groups.

Course Description
This course examines the proliferation of cyber criminal activity in the 20th and 21st centuries. It defines the threat of such activity and its implications to U.S. and global security. It advances ways to deal with and prevent the spread of cyber criminal activity and addresses the methods used in conducting criminal investigations into cyber crime. The course also assesses the degree to which such activity has influenced transnational criminal activity.

Course Description
This course examines Homeland Security from its inception after 9/11 describing why it was created and what agencies were merged to form it. This course affords knowledge of the mission and responsibilities of the Department of Homeland Security under the Homeland Security Act. The course also evaluates the changes in Homeland Security since its inception and its current duties and responsibilities.

Course Description
This course addresses the collection of intelligence and analyzes how such collection is formatted into intelligence briefs used by policy makers. It synthesizes a variety of writing techniques to create a short, decisive and informative report retrieved from volumes of data.

Course Description
The student must select a topic of research. The topic must be chosen with the consent of the Graduate Review Committee. The research conducted by the student will be presented in his/her research paper to the Graduate Review Committee in order to be nominated to graduate with the MA degree. Prerequisite: The student must successfully complete all other program requirements with a Q.P.A of 3.0 or better.

Turn Your Master’s in Intelligence Studies into a Rewarding Career

Graduates of this program have gone on to work in elite governmental offices including the CIA, FBI and NSA. When you earn an affordable, flexible degree in intelligence studies from Pittsburgh’s Point Park University you’ll have career opportunities like:

Intelligence analysts are government employees charged with examining and delivering information regarding security threats. They are responsible for making sense of large amounts of data, identifying significant issues, conducting research, and establishing and maintaining records, among other duties. These professionals must be comfortable working with classified information and must possess excellent knowledge of databases, imagery analysis and signal intelligence.

Information security analysts work to protect the computer networks of organizations and companies. They protect systems from cyberattacks by analyzing networks for security violations, conducting penetration tests, researching and implementing IT security trends, developing best practices and more. Information security analysts must be excellent problems solvers and must possess a certain degree of ingenuity.

Surveillance officers, also known as “gaming surveillance officers,” are responsible for managing security within casinos. They are responsible for monitoring the game floor for fraud or theft, handling investigations, responding quickly to emergencies and suspicious activities, handling monies and other valuables, and adhering to necessary laws and compliance. Surveillance officers often must have good credit histories due to the financial nature of their work.

Geospatial intelligence analysts are responsible for collecting and analyzing geospatial data for the armed forces. They must be knowledgeable in image collection; information interpretation; relevant software use; preparation of charts, maps and reports; and other relevant tasks. The work of geospatial intelligence analysts helps the armed forces gain relevant information needed for various courses of combative and non-combative action.

Cybersecurity officers work to ensure the protection of computer networks. As employees of the government, financial institutions or other organizations requiring high security, cybersecurity officers may do risk analysis, analyze and review systems and security architectures, conduct network penetration testing, conduct vulnerability assessments and other related duties.

Protective agents are employees of the CIA and are responsible for conducting sensitive operations for the agency. These individuals may work as security personnel, serve in special detail operations, specialize in explosive ordinance disposal, become dog handlers or serve in a number of other roles. Protective agents must have military, police or security experience and must be willing to work in a covert job field.

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