Academic programs such as a bachelor’s degree in protection have become increasingly popular over the past decade. Protection programs include equipping professionals in the strategic security field with the theoretical and on-the-job skills to protect and secure corporations, executives, and governments. While some protection programs focus strictly on protection techniques, other programs provide students with a knowledge base from which to build and grow one’s own business and strategies. This essay suggests that those master’s and bachelor’s degree in protection programs with a focus in counter-terrorism are on the cutting edge and will enable students and professionals to have a better grasp of the protection field and thus better serve their own clients in the field.

What is protection?

The protection field encompasses a wide variety of career paths. There are a number of protection-related jobs within the competitive security market, including bodyguard positions and close personal protection of private citizens to the protection of government and public figures such as government officials and diplomats, as well as celebrities. Protection jobs can also be found in large public corporations that require both high-level security for their employees as well as protection on a more global scale for corporate assets worldwide. The Federal government is also a large employer of individuals in the protection field. Protection for an agency such as the U.S. Secret Service is vital to its mission. Federal protection jobs also include the Pentagon Force Protection Agency, which protects the Department of Defense community in the Washington DC region, and the Diplomatic Security Service, which is the security/ law enforcement wing of the U.S. Department of State. Despite the different levels of protection, most protection employers charge their employees with providing for the well-being of their clients.

Protection programs

Federal protection jobs require a high level of specialty training, and nearly every government agency employs agents and officers to protect their facilities and employees. To be successful in this field, individuals must be able to carry out operations that will not expose their employers to legal or civil liability and employees must have the ability to perceive emerging threats before they are realized. To develop these skills and a solid knowledge base, professionals can enroll in programs ranging from a bachelor’s degree in protection to more short term certificate programs in protection or security, depending upon what the professional hopes to gain from the academic experience. Protection programs typically encompass both theory and practical tradecraft or the study of field techniques. Courses may include an introduction to the security industry, the study of protective security law, advance work, ethics, and essentials of executive protection, among other courses.

In addition to traditional protection courses, however, protection specialists can benefit from additional, more focused paths of study within these programs. For instance, by taking classes in counter-terrorism, professionals would also be equipped with both the theoretical and practical tools to recognize such a threat in their own particular line of work, and could also parlay this into specialty work within the counter-terrorism field.

Individuals interested in moving into federal or local law enforcement, the intelligence community, and the military could benefit from pursuing a master’s or bachelor’s degree in protection, as the skills learned in these programs will benefit them in whatever career path they choose. Moreover, by opting for protection programs that incorporate additional expertise, such as the study of counter-terrorism techniques, students will be even more prepared for the variety of threats they might encounter as a protection specialist, whether working in private industry or for the U.S. government.

Author Bio: Daniel Sommer is marketing director of Henley-Putnam University, a leader in the field of strategic security. For more information on bachelor\’s degree in protection, counter-terrorism or Henley Putnam University visit http://www.Henley-Putnam.edu

Category: Education
Keywords: bachelor\\\’s degree in protection, counter-terrorism