Program in brief
Provides an opportunity for senior military officers and defense officials to acquire theoretical and practical knowledge of international security affairs.
- Program Director: Professor Yoko Iwama
- Associate Director: Professor Harukata Takenaka
- Degree Offered: Master of Policy Studies
- Language of Instruction: Japanese / English
- Time Schedule:
- Program duration…1 year
- Enrollment…October
- Graduation…September
- How to Apply: See this page in Japanese
Administered jointly by GRIPS and the National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS) of the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the Strategic Studies Program is designed to provide an opportunity for senior military officers and defense officials to acquire theoretical and practical knowledge of international security affairs. Students will learn how to analyze security environment, plan operations and policies, and execute them effectively.
In the course of the year, students will take required and recommended courses at GRIPS and NIDS. The required courses provide a basis for advanced security studies on the topics such as security studies theories, military history, and contemporary policy issues. The recommended courses offer students opportunities to acquire deeper knowledge on more specialized issues such as civil-military relations, space and security issues, defense industry and technology, security issues of different countries in the world.
The program uses policy simulations in order to enable the students to apply what they learned in the classroom to situations in the real world. The students will also participate in games in which they will learn ways to effective coordinate policies and actions with other government as well as non-government agencies and entities.
Finally, the students are required to write policy papers on specific theoretical and/or policy issues. Two advisors, one each from GRIPS and NIDS, will supervise the paper-writing process.
Target Group
Senior military officers and defense officials of any nationality.
