Why I Want to Study National Security Essay

My interests in security studies are rooted very deeply in personal as well as academic experiences. When I was a young child and saw 9/11 unfold, I knew I wanted to dedicate my life to studying political science and foreign affairs. I remember the feeling I had when I took a tour of the Cleveland FBI offices when I was a freshman in undergrad, the second I walked in the door I knew I wanted that to be my life, and my career. I knew I wanted to have a meaningful career and to work for my country. I’ve dedicated my entire life from the moment I could understand politics and current events to the study of politics, law, and government, and I decided that a master’s in security studies is ultimately the best path for me to go on. I originally wanted to go to law school and thought that would be my path into government, but after spending two years since graduation working as a paralegal and after completing multiple legal internships I decided that I could not dedicate my life to that kind of work, and that is not where my interests are. My love is and always has been political science, and strangely enough, I needed some time to myself to figure that out, to figure what direction I wanted to go in.

When I started my college career at Lorain County Community College I immediately jumped into their political science classes, and while the college offered only a small amount of high-level coursework I was able to crystalize my interests and develop a focus so that when I transferred I would have a solid foundation. I took the essential political science classes like State and Local Governments, American Government, and so on, but one class that stood out to me at Lorain County Community College was Contemporary World Problems. World Problems was taught with a very liberal approach in the sense that it allowed students to pick a topic and write a weekly paper about it. Consequently, because I enveloped myself in political science early in my college career, when I transferred to Kent State University I was able to jump right into upper division political science coursework.

While at Kent State I was lucky enough to have been mentored by a leading political scientist in International Relations and Network Theory, Professor Gabrielle Paar-Jakli, and through her own experiences was able to teach a from a unique perspective because of her experience with the Hungarian State Department. The European theater was one of my focuses, and professor Paar-Jakli’s teaching methodology gave an intimate look at European politics as well as exposure to different political thinkers such as Robert McNamara, who was a heavy influence in my senior thesis over terrorism and network theory, The Fog of War is one of my favorite pieces of political science literature. While professor Paar-Jakli was one of my mentors, we did not always agree on political issues and were often on different sides, such as in her Politics of The Global Economy class when I wrote a critical analysis that went against Joseph Stiglitz and The Price of Inequality as well as Robert Reich and Inequality for All which were tentpoles in the class. The political climate at universities is becoming increasingly hostile, but professor Paar-Jakli and myself have good mutual respect, and I was lucky enough to have her sponsor my senior thesis and presented my work at the Walsh University Political Science Conference.

Presenting my senior thesis was one of the most stressful yet rewarding endeavors that I have had to go through, and it was optional, but I loved the idea of presenting. My thesis was a critical study of terrorism and how it related to network theory and how terror networks can theoretically be disbanded if enough of a network was taken out. I also covered the psychology of terrorism and why people join movements and causes. I had a rousing near 3-hour long thesis defense because my colleagues did not share my sentiment. One of my more exciting points was arguing against the Middle East peace process by using the allegory of the cave because I firmly believe people do not stand a chance unless they are exposed to other ideas other than indoctrination.

When I was informed of the security studies program at The University of Akron I immediately jumped at it. The graduate program will allow me to develop an even deeper knowledge of the topics I love studying and started learning in my undergraduate program. I do admit I had my shortcomings in undergrad, but I know how and why they happened, and how I will not let that happen in the future. Everyone deserves a chance, and I want my chance to be with Akron University and the security studies program. I want to dedicate my life to security studies and political science, and I am very enthusiastic about becoming part of the program. Ultimately, I want to gain a understanding of contemporary problems impacting national security and use the skills that I would develop through internships and learn through the master’s program and gain employment in the security sector, or even teach at the university level. I want the University of Akron to be my future home, and it would be a tremendous opportunity to have the ability to attend.