The field of Security Studies is an interdisciplinary one, with some interaction between the social sciences and the humanities in both methodology and content. The KSU Security Studies program is rooted in two departments: political science and history. The ideal applicant thus would have some background in both of those fields, particularly in relevant areas of each of those disciplines (such as international relations within the larger field of political science and military history and regional studies within the larger field of history). However, it is not expected that successful applicants will necessarily have degrees or extensive academic coursework in both of those areas.

Nevertheless, most successful applicants will have some experience in one or the other of the fields of political science and history. Undergraduate work in one field or the other will be a plus for any applicant, and naturally graduate work in either area will carry additional weight in the admissions committee’s deliberations.