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(U) Getting an 'A' in Espionage: Colleges Set Up Intelligence Studies
Programs
FROM: Deborah Maklowski
NSA/CSS Deputy Senior Intelligence Authority
Run Date: 07/18/2006
(U) At the urging of Congress, the Intelligence Community works with universities to prepare
students for careers in intelligence.
(U) In mid-July, the Intelligence Analysis Skill Community is hosted a visit to the National
Cryptologic Museum by a group of 20 high school students from around the country who are
participating in a week-long summer "Spy Camp" run by Trinity University in Washington, D.C.
This summer program is one of the ways Trinity is reaching out to high school students to get
them interested in and thinking about a career in the Intelligence Community (IC), and it is just
one element of the school's new Intelligence Studies Program, developed with funding provided
by the IC under the Centers for Academic Excellence initiative.
(U) In January of 2003, the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence levied an action
on the IC (HR 2417, Sec.337) requiring the IC to "...carry out a pilot project ...to test and
evaluate alternative, innovative methods to recruit and hire for the intelligence community
women, persons with disabilities, and minorities with diverse ethnic backgrounds, skills,
language proficiencies, and expertise." In the summer of 2003, what was then the IC's
Community Management Staff held a series of multi-agency off-sites to develop ideas for these
methods. They came up with five proposals, one of which was to establish IC Centers of
Academic Excellence (CAE) for analysis at high-diversity universities and colleges across the
U.S., creating feeder pools of intelligence and language analyst applicants.
(U) Under this program, academic institutions would apply for grants from the IC to develop
and/or redesign curricula and build programs to address those knowledge areas, competencies,
and skills that were identified as critical by a cross-section of IC agencies in 2004*. CAE schools
are asked to take a multidisciplinary approach to curriculum development, looking for
consortium solutions whenever feasible, and to build a variety of features into their programs,
including regional seminars, co-ops and internships, scholarships for study abroad and foreign
language immersion programs, high school outreach efforts, and sabbaticals and officer-inresidence opportunities for IC professionals. The intent is to prepare students for careers
as intelligence officers and to assist selected schools in developing and establishing
these essential programs.
(U) The restructuring of the IC as a result of the 2004 Terrorism Prevention and Intelligence
Reform Act did not slow the CAE program's forward momentum. Dr. Lenore Gant continues to
lead the effort, now as part of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Under her
guidance, Trinity University was the first school to apply for and be certified as an IC
CAE; the school recently completed its second academic year in the program. (In fact, five of
Trinity's current Intelligence Studies Program participants will accompany the high school
students visiting NSA this month.) Three other universities have also been certified -Clark Atlanta University, Florida International University, and Tennessee State
University -- and they've just completed their first year as IC CAEs.
(U) Accountability is key to the program's success. The certification process is stringent, there
are requirements for periodic site visits, and schools must establish and report performance
metrics for courses, curriculum research projects, selections for major fields of study, and co-op
programs. Annual third-party (no, the other kind!) formal reviews are required, and other
evaluations are performed by student/faculty focus groups and IC evaluators meeting one-onone with students and faculty. At the IC level there's an Executive Advisory Board to support Dr.
Gant and help keep the IC CAE program on track. The Associate Directorate for Education and
Training represents NSA on this board, and the NSA/CSS Deputy Senior Intelligence Authority
serves in an advisory capacity.
(U) There's a great deal to be gained by all participants in the CAE program.
The schools:
can attract high caliber students through their participation in a reputable national
security studies program;
they can offer their students career-broadening experiences and opportunities to work
hands-on with real-world intelligence issues;
they can build effective and flexible programs that rely on their own corporate strengths;
and
they have access to IC professionals and subject matter experts.
The IC:
is able to develop a well informed and educated pipeline of talent, bringing diverse skills,
knowledge and expertise into the Community;
it has access to a broader base of eligible candidates;
the applicants' learning curve as new employees is lessened; and
it promotes a positive transition for graduates to "real work."
As for the students:
they gain unique insight into the national intelligence world and the possibilities of a
career in the IC;
they will be more competitive for positions upon graduation; and
they learn early in their freshmen year that there are some behaviors that, although
popular among college students, are counterproductive in respect to obtaining a security
clearance later on!
*Note: (U) The list of knowledge areas, competencies, and skills the IC agreed upon is quite
long, and includes academic disciplines (such as proficiency in foreign languages and knowledge
of foreign cultures, international affairs/relations, the geopolitical and social sciences,
economics, history, psychology, computer science, engineering, math, and the military sciences)
and core competencies and skills (e.g., critical thinking and research skills, creative problemsolving, logic and mathematical reasoning, oral and written communications skills, program and
project management, forecasting, and familiarization with core IC businesses and functions).
"(U//FOUO) SIDtoday articles may not be republished or reposted outside NSANet
without the consent of S0121 (DL sid_comms)."
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DERIVED FROM: NSA/CSSM 1-52, DATED 08 JAN 2007 DECLASSIFY ON: 20320108