CSE is creating a master list of syllabi in strategic studies, as a service to the academic community. The site is under construction, and comments or suggestions are appreciated. Syllabi are divided into the following main categories. If you would like to use a syllabus posted here or if you have questions regarding a syllabus, we suggest that you contact the instructor directly.
Course: Causes of Wars
Author: Dan Lindley
Organization: Notre Dame
Synopsis or Notes: The course diagnoses the causes of war and then assumes that that diagnosis should be prescriptive so that we can reduce the probability of war; examines which wars are purposeful or rational in terms of the pursuit of policy. Course: Great Books in Foreign Policy and Security Studies
Author: Dan Lindley
Organization: Notre Dame
Synopsis or Notes: The course examines a range of books that are at the heart of a number of theoretical debates in the political science sub-fields of international relations and US foreign policy. Course: Strategic Thinkers I & II
Author: Thomas Kane
Organization: University of Hull
Synopsis or Notes: The first course provides students with an in-depth understanding of strategy as seen through the eyes of classical writers; the second course encourages and facilitates the development of a capacity for advanced study in strategic thought; looks at the ways in which war has changed and what it means for politics in our time. Course: Strategy and Policy
Author: Eliot Cohen
Organization: School of Advanced International Studies (JHU)
Synopsis or Notes: Strategy and Policy is modeled on a course I helped teach at the Naval War College in the late 1980's. The audience consists of graduate students (any where between forty and seventy) at SAIS, which is a professional school of international affairs. It assumes no previous military knowledge, and I offer, as a supplement to students who feel themselves at sea three optional sessions on "Military Basics." The course is supported by a protected website. The course follows an essentially historical trajectory, using key episodes to illustrate enduring themes in the study of war: thus, a lecture on Munich 1938 is, at the same time, a lecture on net assessment. There are two hours of lecture a week, and occasional sections.
Course: The World Wars - World War II
Author: Tami Biddle
Organization: Duke University (now at Army War College)
Synopsis or Notes: The course is designed for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students on the cause, course, and consequences of WWII. Course: Defense Statecraft
Author: Eugene Gholz
Organization: University of Kentucky
Synopsis or Notes: This course is for professionally (rather than academically) oriented master's students in international affairs; looks at modern military forces as powerful instruments of statecraft. Course: The Executive Course in International and Security Affairs
Author: College of International and Security Studies
Organization: College of International and Security Studies
Synopsis or Notes: The Executive Program is a 15-week program for senior military and civilian leaders and academics that examines important trends, national security formulation, how to counter international terrorism, and the evolving relationship between international and internal security. Course: Introduction to International Relations
Author: Dan Lindley
Organization: Notre Dame
Synopsis or Notes: The course is about "anarchy and death," which are both defining features of international politics. Course: National Security Decision Making
Author: Naval War College
Organization: Naval War College
Synopsis or Notes: The course is designed to increase understanding of key concepts and issues that impact programming of future joint military force structure; critically apply the results of analysis to decisions involving national security issues; increase understanding of the context and political, organizational, and behavioral phenomena that influence national security decision making and implementation; increase ability to perform effectively in national security decision making. Course: Sept 11 in Context: How Can We Understand Terrorism?
Author: Paul Pitman
Organization: St. Mary's College
Synopsis or Notes: The course is meant for beginners, covers a range of approaches from different disciplines and various political perspectives, and moves beyond description to prescription (syllabus is a work in progress). Course: The Future of War
Author: Naval War College
Organization: Naval War College
Synopsis or Notes: The course focuses on the nature and style of future warfare and how the US might rethink its military strategy and force structure. Course: Strategy and Arms Control Reconsidered
Author: Frances J. Gavin
Organization: University of Texas
Synopsis or Notes: The course looks at missile defense, nuclear proliferation, and US national security policy during the 1960s by examining case studies and their implications. Information forthcoming.
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