In various circles, the question of whether intelligence analysis is an art or a science is a perennial topic of discussion and disagreement.

What makes intelligence a daunting career choice is that the paths are ill-defined and often downright confusing. Unlike careers in law enforcement where you attend a training academy, there is no ROTC-like program to bring intelligence professionals into the workforce. Most people working in intelligence did not start their career in the field. So where do you start?

Like the military and many other highly technical professions, the world of intelligence loves acronyms. LPTA is one of them.

By Erik Kleinsmith

One acronym that is almost uniformly misunderstood and yet hated in the intelligence community is LPTA. Intelligence job-seekers need to understand what LPTA means and why to be very very wary of it.

By Dr. Valerie E. Davis, American Public University

The job of an intelligence analyst is often very stressful due to the nature of the work and intense pressures to deliver information in a short amount of time. AMU intelligence studies professor Dr. Valerie Davis writes about the importance for intel analysts to learn how to recognize and identify stress and understand effective ways to manage it. 

By Brian Meek

After a 24-year career in law enforcement, Brian Meek is looking towards retirement and the prospect of starting a second career in the intelligence field. Learn what steps he’s taken to make the transition to a new career in intelligence.

Working as an intelligence analyst is an exciting and challenging career. AMU professor Dr. Valerie E. Davis writes about how aspiring analysts must develop and perfect these four core abilities.

Seeking a career in intelligence? Start your search knowing how intelligence practices have expanded beyond the 17 core agencies of the U.S. National Intelligence Community.

There has been a major shift in national security thinking among many intellectuals and practitioners regarding the role of intelligence. Intelligence is not a replacement for national security policy, yet that seems to be what is happening today. AMU’s Dr. Lamont Colucci discusses the role of intelligence as the servant of a strategic national security policy not a replacement.