Written Assignments
Policy Memo
Students will work in teams to draft a short policy memo that responds to a simulated international crisis. Students will take on the role of National Security Council personnel and provide guidance to the President of the United States.
The policy memos are due during Class 13 and will count for 10% of the final course grade.
For further detail, see Policy Memorandum Project.
In Class Midterm
Students will also respond to an essay prompt and short answer questions that cover course materials. The midterm will be held during Class 20.
The midterm will count for 20% of the final course grade.
Short Form Analytic Article
Students will also conduct original analysis by writing a short form analytic piece similar to those published in War on the Rocks, Foreign Policy, or Foreign Affairs. The piece should analyze a contemporary issue affecting U.S. national security. Generally, short form analytic pieces focus on a narrowly-framed question. For instance, a paper might explore how the United States should respond to China’s more assertive military posture in the South China Sea. Or, it could examine how the United States can better secure critical infrastructure from cyberattacks. The strongest papers will provide a policy-relevant “hook” that highlights the importance of the issue and will identify which agencies/actors will be involved in handling the issue, what actions these actors might take, and the obstacles to achieving the U.S. security objectives. Papers should draw from concepts and theories covered in the class, but also require additional research.
To facilitate the writing process, we will spend part of Class 11 discussing writing best practices. Students will email the instructor a paragraph describing their proposed topic, central argument, and the evidence that will be used in the paper no later than Class 16. Students will meet individually with the instructor the week of Class 17 to discuss the paper topic. The analytic article should be approximately 2,000–2,500 words. The final article is due by 11:59 pm on the date of Class 28, and will count for 35% of the final course grade.
General guidance on written assignments
We will spend a portion of the class of Class 11 discussing best practices for writing essays. As our discussion that week will highlight, the most successful written assignments clearly lay out an argument, are structured in a coherent and readable manner (typically including an intro, body paragraphs that address the question or topic at hand, and a conclusion), and concisely and clearly synthesize evidence that supports the writer’s claims.
Please double-space papers, use a standard 12-point font (e.g., Times New Roman), and ensure citations follow a consistent format.
