Oberlin College and the Politics Department should consider adding a National Security concentration. An International Affairs concentration, Journalism concentration, and a Business concentration have been recently added at Oberlin, which is a major step in allowing for concentration and exploration of — and qualification for — different career paths. As these have been added, a National Security concentration should potentially be another addition. The same benefits to learning experience and qualification could be experienced by students if a National Security concentration were added at Oberlin within the Politics department. A National Security concentration would be a valuable opportunity for students, especially those studying fields such as politics, economics, and related fields. It would also be a valuable opportunity for those who are pursuing concentrations in International Affairs, Journalism, and government. In the spring semester of 2023, I took a politics class called International Security with Professor Joshua Freedman, which I enjoyed and found highly engaging. In this class, we learned about material and ideational causes of war and peace, theories of international security, threats to international security, and the impact of changing technology, such as drones and computers. This class was a valuable learning experience that is a significant area within my Politics major and also gave me a glimpse into a potential career path that would be interesting to pursue.
National security is also an essential component of international politics, affairs, and relations. Concerns and dynamics pertaining thereto also have strong implications for the dynamics related to those fields. There is a strong desire for people with an understanding of security related issues in the field of international affairs, including among employers in that area — such as the Department of State. A concentration in national security would enhance understanding of the field and would provide an additional qualification for Oberlin students who are going into the field of international affairs and international relations. A National Security concentration would also be a valuable qualification for those going into government careers, as policymakers often have to work with security policy. This would be an additional qualification for that career path as well. It would also be beneficial for those studying economics, as economic security is a significant issue. Economics and resources have major implications for global security, and global security has major implications for economics, business, and resources.
In addition, it would also be a potentially beneficial concentration for those studying environmental studies. Climate change, environmental security, and environmental issues also have major implications for national and global security and will become more of a security issue in the future. The negative effects of climate change, such as increased resource scarcity, will increase the likelihood of global conflict.
A National Security concentration would also encourage students to potentially pursue studies of foreign languages, such as Arabic, Chinese, Russian, and Spanish. This would also further an interest in studying foreign languages and other cultures — an essential part of an education.
National Security and defense is itself a career path. It is mainly associated with the federal government, and there are multiple relevant federal agencies that are responsible for a national security and intelligence-related objective. Some of these agencies include the CIA; NSA; Department of Defense, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; FBI; other agencies involved in law enforcement; and the military.
As such, having a National Security concentration would give students an additional advantage, and experience if they decide to go into that career path. The national security career path is also a valuable and essential part of the U.S. Government and the public sector. The goal of this field in the federal government is to assess and respond to threats to the U.S. and global security and to provide essential analysis and information relevant to policy making. It is also an essential part of international relations, which would benefit a growing interest in the field at Oberlin College; as such, having this concentration would also make a positive impression on potential employers for students going into the international affairs and relations field.
There is also value in pursuing the national security and intelligence field and career path, given its implications for politics, international relations and affairs, economics, and environmental security. Having a concentration in National Security would be a valuable opportunity, and learning experience for students at Oberlin College, especially those going into fields such as politics and economics. Oberlin College and the Politics department should seriously consider adding a National Security integrative concentration as it has done with the International Affairs and Journalism concentrations. National and global security is an interdisciplinary field. Threats to and implications of peace and security are diverse and draw from various disciplines such as politics, economics, psychology, technology/computer science, environmental science/studies and climate change, material and ideational causes, and many others. An understanding of these fields and issues and their relation to national security would be a beneficial opportunity for students.
As such, integrating many of the overlapping and interdisciplinary security issues into a concentration would be a prudent and beneficial step for students, the Politics department, and Oberlin College.
Given the interdisciplinary nature of national and global security, it would be important to include coursework from multiple fields, such as politics, economics, psychology, environmental studies, computer science, and history.
All of these fields have ties to national security and provide important skills and background for careers in the field. The field of national security is interdisciplinary, which fits well within a liberal arts education at Oberlin. Overall, having a National Security concentration would open more doors for Oberlin College students at various agencies in the federal government, military, international affairs and relations, and related fields. Having this comprehensive understanding of the field beyond a single course would be a significant opportunity for students to advance their career path in those fields.
