NE 203 - Ethics and Moral Reasoning for the Naval Leader (3-0-3)
This course is structured around classical and contemporary writing in moral philosophy. Current and historical case studies are used to show how these fundamental ideas can be applied to the service of the professional military leader.
NL 110 - Preparing to Lead (2-0-2)
Principles of Self Leadership and Organizational Dynamics. In this first year leadership course, midshipmen examine fundamental tenets of leadership in the context of the theories and principles of individual and group leadership. Topics include self leadership, self management, and team leadership, as well as a seminar with First Class Midshipmen. The course instructors provide relevant personal and Fleet based examples and emphasize interactive learning.
NL 200 - Human Behavior (3-0-3)
An introduction to the science of psychology, this course covers the theories and principles of individual and group human behavior. Topics include learning, personality, social psychology, memory, human development, brain-functioning, health psychology and psychopathology. This course emphasizes research-based discoveries in the field of psychology. Students are prepared to critically evaluate behavioral science research and apply salient principles to leadership.
NL 211 - Social Psychology (3-0-3)
This course focuses on human behavior in the social context. How individuals influence and are influenced by groups, as well as the field of group dynamics will be examined. Emphasis is placed on research-based findings in the areas of causal attribution, social perception, interpersonal attraction, attitudes and attitude change, group dynamics, prosocial behavior and aggression. Particular emphasis is given to application in the military setting.
NL 310 - Leadership: Theory and Application (3-0-3)
Students examine the theory and research of the contingent and dynamic process of leadership. Students refine and further develop their understanding of personal strengths, values, and growth opportunities in the context of team, group, and organizational leadership, as well as through the creation of a leadership vision and professional development plan. The course combines literature from the fields of social psychology, organizational behavior, and group dynamics to help students understand the factors that influence leadership in a military context.
NOTE: Midshipmen who are considering participation in the service academy exchange program should click here for important information regarding completion of the NL 310 requirement.
NL 335 - Armed Forces and Society (3-0-3)
This course examines the American military as a social institution using sociological concepts, theories, and methods. The internal organization and practices of the armed forces and the relationships between the military and other social institutions comprise the field of study. To understand the armed forces and their place in society it is necessary to consider forces, past, present and future, that influence and shape the military. Topics include: military culture and socialization; race and gender, recruiting and retention; changes in military organization; marriage and military families; warfare, technology, and the media. Permanent course designation pending. Counts as upper level Humanities Social Science elective.
NL 400 - Law for the Junior Officer (2-0-2)
This course provides a broad survey of military law applicable to the junior officer. Students examine operational law concepts including the Law of Armed Conflict and the Law of the Sea. This course also explores a variety of military justice topics including constitutional issues such as search and seizure and self-incrimination, judicial and non-judicial forums and the administrative separation of enlisted service members from the Navy and Marine Corps.
NL 430 - Leadership in Groups and Organizations (3-0-3)
This course investigates models of leadership drawn from military sociology and organizational behaviors. It provides an overview of the critical scholarship on how large, complex, formal organizations like the Navy function and examines the leadership process within such organizations. Topics include group formation and performance, organizational culture and change from the perspective of junior leaders, and the challenges and imperatives of leadership under changing organizational circumstances.
NL 435 - Peace, War, and Social Conflict (3-0-3)
This upper division course examines the social and military aspects of war and peace. Using sociological theories, concepts and methods the course considers, at the macro level of analysis, war and combat as social conflict (origins and causes, events and processes, effects and outcomes). At the meso-level of analysis, the course addresses the dynamic effects of social structure in the processes of war, combat and peace. While the Modern Western experience occupies a considerable section of the course, non-Western analyses of war and peace, as well as other forms of social conflict and resolution are introduced.
NP 230 - Introduction to Philosophy (3-0-3)
This course gives you a chance to hone your discussion, debating, critical thinking and persuasive writing skills by arguing about some of the great perennial questions pursued by thoughtful men and women in every age, every culture. These may include: Are our lives directed by fate/destiny, or do we have free will? Do we have certain knowledge of anything at all? What is truth? Is there is a distinction between mind and brain? When you wake up in the morning, how do you know that you are the same person you were yesterday? As the Greek philosopher Socrates once said, "The unexamined life is not worth living." Come explore life through the works of great philosophers, from Plato to Descartes to David Hume.
