Education Overview

The Center for Advanced Defense Studies (CADS) offers education programs for graduate students and industry professionals in order to rapidly build capacity in areas critical to peace and security. The Center's unique expertise and proximity to the nation's security institutions and real policy discussions has laid the foundation of educational partnerships with renowned universities.

CADS believes that academic institutions can and must play an active role in reinforcing our security environment through targeted education and special training. As such, it is our responsibility to build capacity in counterterrorism, homeland security, infrastructure protection, computer security and information assurance.

The Center's education programs offer academic degrees administered by partner institutions. CADS has engaged in academic partnerships with a number of institutions, including the Rochester Institute of Technology, the George Washington University and La Sorbonne in Paris, France. Special training programs are also available. Teaching schedules are flexible, accommodating full- and part-time students as well as working professionals (1-week intensive course and weekend classes).

The Center offers a variety of specialized and comprehensive training programs focusing on key national and global security challenges. Distinguished experts have developed unique curricula with hands-on exercises and innovative teaching techniques to rapidly build capacity in information operations, diplomacy, cultural awareness, counterterrorism, information interoperability, vulnerability assessment and force protection.

Special Training

The Center offers a variety of specialized and comprehensive training programs focusing on key national and global security challenges. Distinguished experts have developed unique curricula, hands-on exercises and innovative teaching techniques to rapidly build capacity in information operations, diplomacy, cultural awareness, counterterrorism, information interoperability, vulnerability assessment and force protection. The Center’s team has trained over 6,000 law enforcement, intelligence and military personnel in a wide variety of security-related disciplines.

Conferences

The 1st Annual Descartes Conference on Mathematical Methods in Counterterrorism was hosted as a response to the perceieved need and lack of knowledge of how mathematical models and algorithms can be effectively applied to meet counterterrorism needs today. The conference was attended by over fifty distinguished academics and government officials attended. Keynote speakers included US Congressman Curt Weldon, Christopher Darby, CEO of In-Q-Tel, and Dr. Ophir Frieder, Illinois Institute of Technology.

Prior Education Programs

The RIT/CADS Masters of Science in Professional Studies (CDPS) program featured courses in Cyber Security, WMD Defense and Counterterrorism. CDPS program courses were taught at the CADS headquarters in Washington, DC by experts and CADS faculty members. Distinguished guest speakers with backgrounds in government, academia, and industry offered presentations during several class sessions.