PLCY 800 Statesmanship and National Security

This course is designed to give students an understanding of the foundational public policies, regulations, court decisions, institutions, and interest groups relevant to the study and implementation of national security policy.

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

Course Guide

View this course’s outcomes, policies, schedule, and more.*

*The information contained in our Course Guides is provided as a sample. Specific course curriculum and requirements for each course are provided by individual instructors each semester. Students should not use Course Guides to find and complete assignments, class prerequisites, or order books.


Statesmanship and National Security is one in a series of courses designed to further the Public Policy doctoral student’s understanding of the role of God-honoring leadership in the political arena, nationally and internationally.  This leadership role becomes especially evident in the field of National Security.  The course provides an understanding of multiple perspectives on securing a nation.  Doctoral students will learn to recognize processes, terminology and approaches to engaging the national security community. Equipped with needed information, students may further the discipline by both assessing and communicating to political stakeholders that which constitutes legitimate, biblically-sound, theory-based action.


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After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview. 

Discussions (2)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student is required to provide a thread in response to the provided prompt for each discussion. Each thread must be 800 words and demonstrate course-related knowledge. In addition to the thread, the student is required to reply to one other classmate’s thread. Each reply must be 500 words.

National Security Policy Brief Assignments (5)

The student will provide an assessment of conditions impinging upon the security of the United States by submitting a 2–3-page National Security Policy Brief covering a specific area of specialization in current APA format.

The student will write a research-based paper in current APA format that focuses on a systematic review of literature pertaining to key questions confronting his or her selected national security topic of specialization. The paper must include at least 50 references in addition to the course textbooks and the Bible.

SLR: Part 1 – Topic Proposal Assignment

The student will submit a research question on a topic of specialization related to national security.

SLR: Part 2 – References List Assignment

The student will compile prospective sources other than the course textbook and the Bible that discuss the pertinent aspects of his or her national security research question.

SLR: Part 3 – Annotated Bibliography Assignment

The student will develop an annotated bibliography that provides a narrative account of the following for each source identified in the SLR References List: the nature of the study, the methodology, and the findings generated. Citations must follow current APA format.

SLR: Part 4 – Final Paper Assignment

The student will submit a final systematic literature review paper. The SLR must be 20 pages, include at least 50 references in addition to the course textbooks and the Bible, and follow current APA format. The page count does not include the title page or reference list.

The student will provide a 15-page policy paper that discusses: the background of the selected national security problem, its scope and severity, a well-specified statement of the problem, policy alternatives, criteria by which the policy alternatives should be judged, and recommended action(s) in current APA format.


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