James ActonAnyone for a Masters?


Well, not so much self promotion as advertising…

Any of you thinking about doing a Masters starting in the autumn might like to consider King’s College London’s MA in Science and Security or our brand new MA in Nonproliferation and International Security.

I’ll unashamedly add that (i) you get to be in the Department of War Studies (which not only has a great name and is in the heart of London but it is rather good academically); (ii) our students have a very high success rate of going on to get jobs in the field; and (iii) we have studentships of £8,500 to offer!

Plug over.

Comments

  1. Andy Grotto (History)

    It’s always amused me that Anglo-American institutions sometimes have “war studies” and “war departments,” while continental European institutions conduct “peace research” and “peace studies.”

  2. Andreas Persbo

    Ah, Bradford Uni has a department of peace studies. They have an annual football (soccer) game with James’ outfit, if I am not mistaken.

    Also, take up on James offer, since VERTIC automatically accepts any intern that comes from Kings. Not only is James one of us, his director serves on our board.

    Nepotism, nah….

  3. The nuclear non-proliferators

    Alternatively, go to the cool school, the Center for Nonproliferation Studies in sunny Monterey! Who wants the heart of London and war studies? We have the PACIFIC ocean!

  4. hass

    Hmm…no MA is Disarmament, I see…

  5. user_hostile (History)

    And don’t forget to plug another accouterment Monterey shares with London: Fog. Lots and lots of fog.

    Pass me an Anchor Steam.

  6. Lao Tao Ren (History)

    James,

    How about translating the plug into Chinese and getting the major Chinese search engines to pick it up?

  7. vladimir (History)

    Thanx James,
    i never got my driving-licence but i hope got my S&S master !

    🙂

  8. Mingi (History)

    I’m currently a student in a MA program at the Department of War Studies. The academics here are certainly experts in their respective areas. And, equally important, receptive students will find that they’re very good educators as well.

    Additionally, the libraries and seminars at King’s, IISS and RUSI do a decent job making up for the poor weather. However, if the weather does get too intolerable, there’s always Eurostar and Ryanair.

  9. hass (History)

    Reuters reports that the US has dropped proposed ban on the sale of enrichment technology:

    Nations seeking enrichment capacity see sales curbs as a possible manoeuvre to dominate profitable markets, or want to be immune to cutoffs in supply amid international tensions fanned by Iran’s nuclear activity, which has drawn U.N. sanctions

    Meanwhile, back in Uganda

  10. Anon

    Hass, you’re really misrepresenting this news story. (Gasp!) The USG, which pushed for an outright moratorium on the acquisition of enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) by new governments, is now pushing a criteria-based approach to ENR in the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Oddly enough, not only would these proposed criteria foreclose India (as in the India with which Uncle Sam wants to cut a 123 agreement) from ENR trade, but also Israel and still-noncompliant Iran. In other words, these criteria would tighten NSG standards.

  11. hass

    I’m not “misrepresenting” anything – I’m quoting directly from the article.
    Here’s some more:

    U.S. Ends Effort to Ban Sale
    Of Enrichment Technology

    U.S. Scraps Ban on Enrichment Technology Sale

  12. hass

    Incidentally, this quote from the Reuters article is interesting:

    Nations seeking enrichment capacity see sales curbs as a possible manoeuvre to dominate profitable markets, or want to be immune to cutoffs in supply amid international tensions fanned by Iran’s nuclear activity, which has drawn U.N. sanctions.

    Lets see now — sanctions on Iran and the proposed restrictions on proliferation of enrichment technology has caused other nations to seek enrichment capacity in order to be “immune” from cutoffs of nuclear supply and the risk that a few countries will dominate the uranium fuel market.

    Boy, I bet no one saw that coming! LOL!

  13. Andy (History)

    Hmmm, some of those wikitalk posts seem quite familiar somehow…someone’s been a busy, busy bee.

    To remain on topic, however, I would love it, but with the expense of London and the dollar the way it is, I fear there are only a handful of Americans that could afford it. The last time I lived in England it wasn’t London and I got about $1.50 to the pound. Any chance of an online program?

  14. Anon

    Hass: From the very WSJ article you cite:

    The new rules would bar transfers to countries that are not members of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, or that don’t allow full international oversight and inspections.

    E.g., India, Pakistan and Israel.

    In addition, the proposed changes could require accession to the Additional Protocol, among other stringent criteria.

    Of perhaps greater importance, the UAE has decided not to pursue ENR because its leaders understand that proliferation — in particular, the unchecked spread of fissile material and ENR technologies — raises problems not just for nuclear-weapon States, but also non-nuclear weapon States.

    The United Arab Emirates said on Sunday that it will import enriched uranium for any reactor it builds as it sought to distance itself from the more controversial aspects of nearby Iran’s nuclear programme….

    “In an effort to limit the danger of proliferation, the UAE government has also adopted a policy renouncing the development of any domestic enrichment or reprocessing capabilities in favour of long-term arrangements for the external supply of nuclear fuel,” [Foreign Minister] Sheikh Abdullah [bin Zayed al-Nahayan] said.

    What a welcome contrast to Iran.

    Andy: Yes, when one reads the Wikipedia discussion page for ‘Nuclear program of Iran’, one does get a distinct feeling of deja vu, yes?

    Busy, busy bee, indeed.

    James: For the benefit of prospectives, would you kindly discuss the sort of assistance and networking King’s College London’s Department of War Studies and MA program provide in helping its students to find post-KCL opportunities?

    By the way, readers should know that one of the world’s greatest military historians helped to establish the KCL’s Department of War Studies.

  15. Hass (History)

    Umm…so what exactly did I “mischaracterize” when I linked to the article then when the WSJ article title says what I said? And why should I not be a “busy bee” about nuclear matters? I too attended the Univ of London, incidentally.

    And if the UAE has decided not to exercise their sovereign right to enrichment, thats their choice. However, it doesn’t make enrichment any less of a sovereign right — go ask Brazil and Argentina.

  16. Hass (History)

    Oh, also, speaking of enrichment: meanwhie back in Namibia . . .

  17. Mark

    I really don’t see the utility of calling Hass a “busy bee” rather than addressing his points which seem quite accurate whether popular or not.
    Indeed, I wish more knowledgeable people had been similarly busy bees rather than simply parroting the official narrative

  18. peter zimmerman (History)

    It’s a good programme. No, a great programme, and most of our students have gone on to get really good jobs ranging from NGOs to publishers to the intelligence and national lab communities. I’m writing a reference tomorrow for a student going to Aldermaston.

    London really doesn’t have much fog any longer; I’m surprised James didn’t jump on that. The old London peasoup fogs were mostly coal smoke and smog mixed in with fog.

    Before I went to KCL I asked Sir Lawrence Freedman, one of the founders of the department, why the name “War Studies” instead of the politically correct “Peace Studies.” “Because,” he said (at least roughly), “war is what happens. Peace is what is desired.”

    -pete zimmerman (Emeritus Prof of Science & Security, KCL, and James’ former boss… and… the guy who hired him.)