IC Center for Academic Excellence
MSC 01 1100
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131
Physical Location:
Electrical & Computer Engineering
Suite 137A, B & C
Phone: (505) 277-3223
Fax: (505) 277-2182
The National Security and Strategic Analysis (NSSA) Undergraduate Certificate Requirements
Here is the new NSSA Certificate FLIER. Here is a PDF of the NSSA Certificate requirements.
Undergraduate NSSA certificates may be earned by successful completion of a prescribed program of study as described below for students also earning an undergraduate degree at UNM. The certificate is designed to provide specific knowledge and competencies to complement and extend the student's undergraduate degree and to provide exposure to a range of topics in the interdisciplinary field of national security and strategic analysis. The capstone is a demonstration of competency by the student through a coherent and critical analysis activity and academic paper based on their individual academic path and range of classes.
A student’s program of studies must satisfy the following requirements and be pre-approved by the NSSA Faculty Committee one year prior to graduation. An approval form is available on line and should be submitted to the NSSP office Mesa Vista 3019. Address questions to the NSSA Program Director, Professor Frank Gilfeather c/o National Security Studies Program, 3019 Mesa Vista Hall, or by e-mail: gilfeath@unm.edu. Upon completion of all requirements a completion form will be generated and a designation added to your transcript noting the completion of the NSSA Certificate.
To earn the NSSA Undergraduate Certificate the student must:
1. Complete or have completed a baccalaureate degree at UNM.
2. Take a 3 credit course, Introduction to National Security and Strategic Analysis, or a pre-approved alternate course.
3. Take 9 credit hours of classes in groups A and B below with at least 3 credits from each group.
Group A - Political/Social Analysis
Group B - Quantitative Analysis
See additional discussion below in Courses in Group A and B
4. Complete a field analysis or research analysis project related to national security, strategic analysis or intelligence analysis as at least a 2 credit independent study course. Complete either a or b below as part of this requirement.
a. An analysis paper based on work in an approved internship or
b. An analysis paper based on an independent and faculty directed research project.
5. Take at least 3 semesters of a foreign language or demonstrate equivalent competency in a foreign language; or three additional courses in group B.
Shared Credit Hours between Undergraduate Certificates and Degrees
As long as courses taken for an undergraduate certificate fall within the prescribed time limits for an undergraduate degree, the University allows shared course work between undergraduate certificates and a baccalaureate degree. If the student completes the certificate in conjunction with an undergraduate degree program, the student may use 100% of the certificate course work toward an undergraduate degree as long as it is approved as part of the degree. For post-degree certificates courses should be taken in the last 6 years.
Capstone Project Details
For details on completing this requirement see the capstone project requirement description page.
Courses in Group A and B
Courses are not offered each year and some courses are topics or seminar courses. For topics and seminar courses, approval of a specific topic is required by the NSSA Faculty Committee. Other courses can substitute for these courses upon approval of the student's program by the committee. To encourage a multidisciplinary approach, at most 3 credits per department is allowed in each of Group A and B. Only one course can be taken at the 100-200 level. Students need to be aware that many courses require one or more prerequisites, which may or may not count towards the certificate, thus effectively increasing the credit hours needed to earn the certificate.
AFAS Aerospace Studies
400 National Security Affairs
401 National Security Affairs-Seniors
AFST Africana Studies
329 Introduction to African Politics
340 Race and Globalization
397 T: Interdisciplinary Topics
495 T: Africana Studies
AMST American Studies
309 T: Social Movements
ANTH Anthropology
339 Human Rights
340 T: Conservation, Environment & Indigenous People
BIOL Biology
419 T: Global Change Biology
CE Civil Engineering
491 ST: Sustainability Engineering
CJ Communication and Journalism
314 Intercultural Communications
317 International Cultural Conflict and Community Building
334 Political Communication
ECON Economics
421 Latin American Economics
423 T:Topics in Latin American Development
424 International Trade
429 International Finance
478 Seminar in International Studies
EPS Earth and Planetary Science
436 Climate Dynamics
352 The City as Human Environment (Also offered as GEOG 466)
GEOG Geography
352 Global Climate Change
461 Environmental Management
466 The City as Human Environment (Also offered as EPS 352)
HIST History
473 Indigenous Peoples of Latin America
350 Modern U.S. Military History, 1900 to Present
INTS International Studies
402 Honors International Studies
499 T:Topics International Studies
LAIS Liberal Arts, Global, National Security & Human Security
309 T: Global, National & Human Security
ME Mechanical Engineering
217 Energy, Environment and Society
MGMT Business/Management
328 International Management
420 Management in Latin America
421 International Entrepreneurship
422 Mexican Economy Markets
474 International Financial Mgmt
MLSL Military Science & Leadership
402 Leadership in a Complex World
NVSC Naval Science
331 Evolution of Warfare
POLS Political Science
240 International Politics
329 Introduction to African Politics
340 Topics in International Politics.
341 International Conflict and Cooperation.
342 American Foreign Policy
346 International Political Economy
441 Civil Wars
442 International Peacekeeping and Conflict Resolution
496 Seminar: International Relations
SOC Sociology
461 Visualizing Global Change
478 Seminar International Politics
Group B:
ECON Economics
408 Economic Forecasting Methods: A Time Series Approach
GEOG Geography
380L Basic Statistics for Geographers
381L Introduction to Geographic Information Systems
482L Positioning Systems
483L Remote Sensing Fundamentals
484L Applications of Remote Sensing
485L Internet Mapping
486L Applications of GIS
487L Spatial Analysis and Modeling.
488L GIS Concepts and Techniques
STAT Statistics
All
CS Computer Science
All
MGMT Business/Management
329 Data Management
CE Civil Engineering
491/492 T: Special Topics in Civil Engineering
493 T: Special Topics – Honors
NE Nuclear Engineering
491/492 Undergraduate Problems
496 Honors Problems
499 T: Selected Topics
ECE Electrical and Computer Engineering
491 Undergraduate Problems
493 Honors Seminar
495 T: Special Topics
ME Mechanical Engineering
461/462 T: Special Topics
463 Undergraduate Honors Thesis