Admission requirements
This course is part of the minor Intelligence Studies. This is the only course within the minor that is also open to students who do not follow the entire minor, for example Exchange Students and Study Abroad Students. Registration in uSis is mandatory. There are 250 places open for registration, on a first come first serve basis, where minor students are given priority.
Description
This course in an introduction to Intelligence Studies. Students will learn about what intelligence is, how it is collected and how it feeds back into policy. We will examine different national systems of intelligence, different intelligence collection methods (such as HUMINT or OSINT), international cooperation in intelligence and covert influence.
Course objectives
- You will be able to describe and explain the characteristics of intelligence and security sectors in different countries, including reasons for commonalities and differences.
- You will be able to describe the roles and influence of intelligence in international politics and to explain how states use intelligence as an instrument of power.
- You will understand the different processes of intelligence within state political systems, including forms of intelligence collection in response to ‘customer’ requirements, analysis and assessment, and dissemination to policy and security customers.
- You will be able to provide examples of important cases in Intelligence Studies that exemplify key themes in the course and explain their significance.
- You will be able to discuss key issues and debates in Intelligence Studies, including: why and how state intelligence services cooperate; why and how governments seek to covertly influence domestic and international affairs; the importance of oversight and accountability of these institutions in liberal democracies.
Timetable
On the right side of the programme front page you will find links to the website and timetables, uSis and Brightspace.
Mode of instruction
7 lectures of 3 hours by instructors and guest lecturers.
Assessment method
Open book mid-term exam
70% of total grade
Grade must be 5.50 or higher to pass the course
Resit possible
Resit will take the same form
Final exam
30% of total grade
Resit not possible, grade must be compensated
In the case of written assessment methods, the examiner can always initiate a follow-up conversation with the student to establish whether the learning objectives have been met.
The Course and Examination Regulation Security Studies and the Rules and Regulation of the Board of Examiners of the Institute of Security and Global Affairs apply.
Reading list
TBA on Brightspace with course syllabus.
Registration
Registration via MyStudymap or uSis is possible from TBA after registration for the entire minor.
Leiden University uses Brightspace as its online learning management system. After enrolment for the course in MyStudymap you will be automatically enrolled in the Brightspace environment of this course. Furthermore, announcements and modifications will be communicated via Brightspace. Students have the responsibility to stay informed and are thus advised to regularly check Brightspace for updates.
More information on registration via MyStudymap can be found on this page.
Please note: guest-/contract-/exchange students do not register via MyStudymap but via uSis.
Contact
intelligencestudies@fgga.leidenuniv.nl
Remarks
All sessions will be in English. Exams and assignments need to be written in English.