Political Science, Security, & Technology (BHA Concentration)
Emily Half, BHA PSST Concentration Advisor (POS 391)
BHA Political Science, Security, & Technology Concentration
(90 units minimum)
The concentration in Political Science, Security, & Technology takes a social science (not technical) approach to studying emerging technologies that affect war and peace. There is no better place to study security and technology than Carnegie Mellon University, a thought leader in global and national security issues, policies, and strategies related to digital technologies. CMU students are uniquely poised to influence the future, with cutting-edge research happening across campus in all the relevant technological areas–e.g., machine learning, cybersecurity, robotics, big data, neuroscience, human-computer interaction, human enhancement, synthetic biology, and various types of artificial intelligence.
In this course of study, Carnegie Mellon undergraduates learn how to analyze the political, economic, social, and ethical dimensions of new technologies, equipping themselves to contribute to vital political debates and influence technological developments in the public interest.
The lesson of the past few years is that the pace of technological change will only increase, and its impact on the future of humanity will also grow. In particular, the geopolitical implications of various forms of artificial intelligence are well along, including their impacts on work, health, environmental protection, and especially conflict. The ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan and elsewhere reflect the role of autonomous weapons, loitering munitions, UAVs, voice-cloning tools, and open-source intelligence driven by machine learning tools.
The full effects of these technologies are some years away, but our students must be equipped to shape and adapt to them. Most serious among these effects will be the impact on war and peace, what it means to be human, patterns of economic prosperity, and the future of global stability.
Students in this concentration read, employ, and create evidence-based research that addresses and shapes the future of technology in national and international security. In choosing their electives, students have the opportunity to emphasize either the international or domestic American aspects of this topic. Challenges posed by digital technologies affect people of all political parties, in the United States and throughout the world, especially in democracies.
Political Science Core (3 courses, 27 units)
Students must complete the following three courses:
| Units | ||
| 84-101 | Introduction to Political Science | 9 |
| 84-104 | Decision Processes in American Political Institutions | 9 |
| 84-226 | International Relations | 9 |
Communication (1 course, 9 units)
Students must complete the following course:
| 84-250 | Writing for Political Science and Policy | 9 |
Methodology Core (2 courses, 18 units minimum)
Students must complete two of the following courses:
| 84-266 | Research Design for Political Science | 9 |
| 36-202 | Methods for Statistics & Data Science | 9 |
| 15-110 | Principles of Computing | 10 |
| or 15-112 | Fundamentals of Programming and Computer Science | |
Security and Technology Core (4 courses, 36 units)
Students must complete the following course:
| 84-274 | An Introduction to Technology and War | 9 |
Students must complete 27 units from the following list of courses:
| 84-314 | Politics, Technological Change, and Economic Growth | 9 |
| 84-330 | Race for the Future: US-China Tech Competition | 6 |
| 84-343 | Offensive Cyber: Law & Policy | 6 |
| 84-345 | Hackers, the Law, & Policy Responses | 6 |
| 84-347 | Congress & National Security | 9 |
| 84-349 | Digital Diplomacy: Cybersecurity Challenges and Global Governance | 9 |
| 84-350 | A Strategist's Introduction to Artificial Intelligence | 9 |
| 84-353 | US-China Strategic Stability | 6 |
| 84-356 | Applied Political Data Analytics | 9 |
| 84-363 | Click. Hack. Rule: Understanding the Power & Peril of Cyber Conflict | 9 |
| 84-368 | Technology Ethics | 9 |
| 84-370 | Nuclear Security & Arms Control | 9 |
| 84-371 | International Governance of Artificial Intelligence | 9 |
| 84-375 | Geopolitics of Innovation | 9 |
| 84-383 | National Cyber Policy & Strategy | 6 |
| 84-387 | Remote Systems and the Cyber Domain in Conflict | 9 |
| 84-405 | The Future of Warfare | 9 |