Homeland security educationK-State says its security studies program leads nation

Some might not even have heard of the program, but Kansas State University is currently the only university in the United States to offer a full Ph.D. in security studies, a hybrid of political science and history. “We started with a Department of Defense grant,” said Craig Stapley, director of graduate studies for the program. “We have had Ph.D. students now for three years. We’re a multi-disciplinary program with professors from the history and political science departments.”

K-State also offers a master’s program in security studies. Georgetown University offers one in security studies as well, but “as far as Ph.D. studies goes, we’re it,” Stapley said.

“We’re a 90-credit hour Ph.D., typically 30 hours of which is from our related master’s program. People who come in with a related master’s degree, like history or political science, would take 30 hours of Ph.D. work and then continue on to do 30 hours of research work,” he said.

The Web site for the security studies program said that “students entering with a master’s degree in history, political science or a closely related field can expect to complete their coursework in 3 to 4 semesters of full-time study.”

Joshua Madden writes that some schools, like Penn State University, do offer graduate programs in homeland security, but Stapley said the security studies program at K-State differs quite a bit from those. He said in comparison to a homeland security master’s program, K-State’s security studies has much more of a focus on the phenomena that arise during international events. In a homeland security program, there is more of a focus on domestic policy.

About half of the students in the program are soldiers and the other half are traditional Ph.D. students, including some international students. “I don’t think I’ve ever taught a graduate-level class without an international student,” Stapley said.

The program’s Web site said one of the key strengths is the diversity of experience among students. David Graff, professor in history, said the students are a mix of military personnel and civilians, with those on the military side using teleconference from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He said most of the civilian students are aiming to find employment with government agencies like the Department of Homeland Security.

“One of the things that makes our program so unique is our close ties to the Army Command and General Staff College in Leavenworth,” Stapley said. After a solider is promoted to Major, he said, they are usually sent to do a yearlong stint at a school such as the Command and General Staff College, where they will study many of the things that K-State focuses on in the securities studies program.

Although the program is mainly an interdisciplinary program between history and political science, some members of the sociology department are also involved with the program. For example, Nadezda Shapkina, associate professor in sociology, anthropology and social work, teaches a class on human trafficking for the program, which Stapley described as “definitely part of security studies.”

Stapley said the program is beginning to gain an international reputation. Out of the six Fulbright scholars who applied to the school last semester, only three were accepted. Orlandrew Danzell, graduate in security studies, wrote a paper that was just accepted into a top-five journal.

As for the future, the program’s Web site said “most students plan to use their degrees for professional careers in international affairs.”