Covert Action, HUMINT and the Psychology of Intelligence Elicitation (Research)

Home of the two-year degree, the University of Buckingham, based in the South East of England, is ranked 6th for Student Satisfaction in the UK (National Student Survey, 2020).

We are proudly independent and not-for-profit, and offer courses in Allied Health, Business, Computing, Education, Humanities, Law, Medicine, Psychology and Security and Intelligence. We are one of the few universities in the UK that offer September and January start dates for almost all of our courses.

Based in Buckingham on a riverside campus, we are only 20 minutes from Milton Keynes central station and a short drive from Bicester, Aylesbury, Banbury and Northampton. There is free parking on-site and we are within easy reach of London and Oxford.

Our award-winning small class tutorials ensure every student is known by name and supported throughout their studies, including by dedicated personal tutors.

This programme aims to offer insight into hitherto closed and sensitive areas of security and intelligence practice within both western democracies and authoritarian regimes. Emphasis is placed on relating academic and historical analyses to contemporary problems and policy questions, especially in the UK, but also to western states in general, using a unique degree of practitioner-led expertise.

This programme in Covert Action, HUMINT and Psychology of Intelligence Elicitation enables students to choose (with guidance) their own topic of research and to pursue this under expert one-to-one supervision. The MA by Research combines engaging course pre-recorded seminars with a focus on one’s own research project. This programme is aimed at everyone who is interested in intelligence and security issues, whatever their career plans, but also at those who may be aspiring to work in the field of security and intelligence. It can also assist the career development of those already employed within that field.

An important element of this programme is the academic advisors and course staff, who are constantly available to provide their guidance and input. It would appeal to anyone who wants to improve their academic skills, advance their career, or simply explore key topics in this broad field.

Course Highlights

• Enhances opportunities to develop a professional career in the intelligence and security sectors

• An opportunity to undertake a research project in an area of the student’s choosing

• Outstanding flexibility – study offered part time and full time AND by way of distance learning

• The programme welcomes both holders of first degrees or those who have the relevant professional experience

• Pre-recorded lectures enable the student to decide the best time to study

• Learning supported by former practitioners and leading international experts who work with NGO’s Governments and security sectors worldwide

• Programme qualifies for ELCAS funding

• Access to BUCSIS sponsored national intelligence conferences

• Opportunity to study at the world-leading Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies (BUCSIS)