National Security and International Business (NSIB) Minor

The National Security and International Business minor highlights the strong and enduring relationship between private business and national/international security. The goal of this National Security and International Business Minor is to educate students to appreciate that the health of each domain is predicated on the strength of the other. Cyberattacks on U.S. government agencies, health researchers, and election apparatus, terrorist attacks on the U.S. mainland and U.S. facilities and personnel abroad, and nuclear ambitions of foreign governments are just examples of how foreign forces that threaten U.S. national security also damage U.S. business activity, domestically and internationally.

The primary intent of this minor is to foster in students who are entering the private business sector a lifelong appreciation for the intertwined relationship between the worlds of private business, especially international business, and the national security sector, enabling our graduates to make more informed and more confident business and political decisions in the decades to come.

Required Courses:

Classes Students Must Complete

  • GOV 360D / IB 360D - International Security
  • BGS 374 - Global Political Economy
  • IB 350 - International Trade
  • IB 368 - Global Value Chains

Elective Courses:

Upper-division Coursework to Choose From

  • HIS 365G - Topics in United States History (Topic 15: United States Military History)
  • HIS 376F - The United States and the Second World War
  • LA 325/PA 325 - Intelligence and National Security Decision-Making
  • EUS 348 / GOV 365V - The Comprehensive Notion of European Security
  • HIS 365G - Topics in United States History (Topic 22: The United States, Britain, and Global Order)
  • TC 358 (Topic: Intelligence and Statecraft)

Internship Credit:

Students may substitute an approved internship in lieu of IB 350, IB 368, or the elective course. This credit must be earned on a pre-approved national security internship of at least five weeks in length.

  • The internship must be related to national security and can be in various fields such as diplomacy, defense, intelligence, foreign policy, homeland security, international development, or human rights policy. (Note: Humanitarian work is commendable, but internships with humanitarian-minded organizations do not always connect clearly and directly to U.S. national security. Please check with the Faculty Committee first if you have any doubts.)
  • Students are responsible for informing the Faculty Committee of their internship plans before acceptance of the offer. To ensure the internship qualifies students must begin the process for approval by submitting a detailed proposal that demonstrates the relevance of the position to national security. Once the internship is approved and completed, the student must submit proof from the organization on letterhead that the internship was completed to receive credit on their degree audit.
  • Click here to view the Clements Center’s Internship Database.

Resources

2024 – 2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Please note:  Students beginning Fall 2024 and later should review the 2024-2026 Undergraduate Catalog for updated curriculum requirements.

Internship Database

View Internship opportunities!

Questions?

If you have questions, please email [email protected]

Apply Here

Phoebe Cosgrove, NSIB Minor Student

"My involvement in the Clements Center led me to discover a minor that combined my two personal interests of social work and national security. I've been able to take classes that allow me to further my education and enrich myself in current national security topics around the world. The NSIB minor also has provided me background information that has helped me while on study abroad opportunities, such as nuclear proliferation topics when studying in South Korea over the summer. My participation in the NSIB minor has connected me with students who share similar interests, and together work on collaborative assignments and encourage each other to pursue different career paths associated with national security."

David Tsui, NSIB Minor Student

"The NSIB minor has served as a perfect complement to my studies in International Relations. As an aspiring national security professional, it is a great reminder that national security and private sector activities don’t exist in a vacuum. Rather, they are more interrelated than either. I have enjoyed seeing this point come to fruition in my classes. Oftentimes, I find myself being able to apply my National Security coursework to my International Business courses and vice versa, further emphasizing their deep connection to one another. By pursuing this minor, I hope to leverage my newfound business knowledge in the national security arena through a deeper, more nuanced understanding of the world around me."

Raahil Dhingra, NSIB Minor Student

"The NSIB minor has allowed me to approach the business world from a perspective I never considered before. I am starting to gain a much deeper understanding of how the public and private sectors interact with each other and shape the economy and world we live in. I have had the privilege of being able to study abroad through the NSIB minor with a program that opens the door to so many possibilities and networks that I would never have access to."