College degrees focused on strategic security.

Strategic security combines intelligence, counterterrorism, and personal protection to provide leaders with critical information to keep their organizations secure. At NAU’s Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security, you will learn about tactical insights and field operations from experts who share their real-world experiences. You’ll perform quantitative and qualitative analyses using both analytical and practical methodologies. Our security-centric education spans all spectrums of threat detection and prevention to include government intelligence. Each course is taught by high ranking professionals with a strong combination of academic and operational experience. Find out more about our academic team here.

History

Henley-Putnam University was founded in 2001 as the California University of Protection and Intelligence Management by former members of the CIA, U.S. Secret Service, FBI and others in the US Intelligence Community. National American University acquired the university in early 2018 and renamed it the Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security.

Colonel David Henley and General Israel Putnam both served under General George Washington in the American Revolutionary War. Henley specialized in organizing and analyzing streams of raw data, while Putnam focused on actively using agents, debriefing deserters, and interrogating prisoners to acquire intelligence.

Take charge of your future today. Explore one of our intensive programs:

Program List

Acquire the knowledge you need to find the answers.

Intelligence management careers require an astute and open mind to gather results, interpret findings, and share them to effective positive change within an organization. In the NAU’s Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security’s Intelligence Management programs, you will learn to use concepts of intelligence gathering, analysis, and reporting. Our programs emphasize professionalism, proactive strategies, and a thorough understanding of the dynamics of the broad field of intelligence. You will develop skills in intelligence analysis, counterintelligence, collection management, and intelligence operations. With this comprehensive skillset, you could find employment in private, corporate, nonprofit, and governmental agencies, serving as a research analyst or intelligence specialist.

Learn the skills to keep our nuclear deterrent option safe.

The Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security’s Nuclear Enterprise Security Studies programs are open exclusively to those who currently work in or are trained military veterans in the U.S. nuclear enterprise. Specialized certificates and degree programs enhance your knowledge of the fundamentals of security, deterrence policies, the nuclear enterprise, and nuclear and radiological event operations. By continuing your education, you are helping the nation maintain a safe, reliable, and credible nuclear deterrent and a robust incident response capability.

Secure your future through education.

The need for professionals who can recognize and respond to threats is growing. NAU’s Henley-Putnam School offers Strategic Security programs where you’ll study the interaction of applied tradecrafts and ongoing behaviors to forestall reasonable or probable threats. Unlike traditional security or strategic studies programs that focus on political and military strategies to influence the spectrum of peace and conflict, HP’s strategic security programs apply objective information on the personal, local, and organizational developments that can deter and prevent conflict.  You will develop skills in strategy development, strategic analysis, and assessment for jobs such as a strategic advisor, security analyst, or security manager.

Gain insights to shape a more secure future.

Understanding terrorism is key to developing effective responses. NAU’s Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security’s counterterrorism programs introduce you to the concepts of terrorism and counterterrorism strategies and techniques so you can build a defense to deter and prevent acts of violence. Your education will include counterterrorism research, threat management, and terrorist techniques while focusing on analytical rigor, contingency planning, and proactive security measures. Your instructors will emphasize the importance of understanding state-sponsored, political, social, economic, religious, and criminal extremism as well as terrorism history and counterterrorism policy throughout counterterrorism studies courses. These programs of study will provide the critical thinking, judgement, and cultural sensitivity skills to start you on the path to jobs such as counterterrorism analyst, antiterrorism specialist, or counterterrorism operations specialist.

Gain skills to become the first line of defense.

Advance your career in protection management at NAU’s Henley-Putnam School of Strategic Security. Our specialized certificate and degree programs increase your knowledge of operations in the security industry. Learn the skills you need to protect your clients and their businesses assets, including property and data. By gaining an understanding of threat assessment, workplace violence, cyber security, corporate espionage, intelligence gathering and analysis among other security issues you’ll be well-positioned for careers in private security, personal executive protection, corporate security, or corrections.

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Your NAU enrollment counselor is ready to help you build a success plan to get you where you want to go. We make applying, enrolling—and succeeding—here simple, whether you’re a first-time or a transfer student, active military or veteran, or a college graduate ready to earn your master’s or doctorate degree.