Sponsored Research

The Defense Security Cooperation University (DSCU) promotes access to and production of Security Cooperation knowledge. DSCU sponsors research that meets standards of scientific rigor and aligns substantively with the Department of Defense Learning and Evaluation Agenda for Partnerships (LEAP) framework and the DSCU Research Agenda

Research Proposals

DSCU is currently accepting grant proposals for theory-, evidence-, and data-building research that develops the body of knowledge on security cooperation. The grants competition is open to all researchers anywhere in the world. A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NFO) is posted on Grants.gov, with details on project eligibility, research priorities, and the application process.

Funded Projects

Sponsored Research

The Defense Security Cooperation University (DSCU) promotes access to and production of Security Cooperation knowledge. DSCU sponsors research that meets standards of scientific rigor and aligns substantively with the Department of Defense Learning and Evaluation Agenda for Partnerships (LEAP) framework and the DSCU Research Agenda

Research Proposals 

DSCU is currently accepting grant proposals for theory-, evidence-, and data-building research that develops the body of knowledge on security cooperation. The grants competition is open to all researchers anywhere in the world. A Notice of Funding Opportunity (NFO) is posted on Grants.gov, with details on project eligibility, research priorities, and the application process.  

Funded Projects 

The Defense Security Cooperation University (DSCU) is excited to announce its first grant and cooperative agreement awards for research that contributes to the body of knowledge on security cooperation. Following a rigorous, multi-round review of applications, DSCU awarded seven grants and one cooperative agreement in FY24 for research on a wide range of security cooperation topics. DSCU was able to sponsor these research projects for the first time due to support from both appropriators and authorizers in Congress to fulfill the mandate in 10 USC Section 384.    

DSCU’s Brigadier General Charles Young Research, Analysis, and Lessons Learned Institute (the Young Institute) executes the sponsored research program and is committed to ensuring that findings are shared widely to advance the study of security cooperation, and that policy-relevant implications are made accessible to practitioners to advance evidence-based decision-making. 

DSCU Research Grants 

Project Title
Research Team

Formal and Informal Security Assistance: Improving Aid and Training Programs 

Dr. William Reno (Northwestern University), Dr. Ryan Burke (US Air Force Academy) and Lt. Col. Dr. Jahara “Franky” Matisek (US Naval War College) 

Exporting Might and Right: Security Assistance and Liberal International Order 

Dr. Renanah Joyce (Georgetown University) 

Disinformation and Security Dynamics in Partner States Pakistan and the Philippines 

Dr. Matthew Rhodes-Purdy and Dr. Amira Jadoon (Clemson University) 

Contested Logistics and Combined Operations: Lessons from Allied Operations in World War II 

Dr. Ryan Grauer (University of Pittsburgh) and Dr. Rosella Cappella Zielinski (Boston University) 

NATO Joint Acquisition History 

Mr. Robert Foxcurran 

The Value Arms Ecosystem: New Data on Stockpiles, Production Capacity, and Transfers 

Dr. Vasabjit Banerjee (University of Tennessee, Knoxville) and Dr. Benjamin Tkach (Mississippi State University) 

Measuring Oversight: A Global Dataset of Defense Institutions 

Dr. Louis Alexandre Berg (Georgia State University) 

DSCU Cooperative Agreements

Project Title
Research Team

The Value Proposition: Why Partners Choose the U.S. or Our Competitors 

Dr. Seth Jones, Dr. Daniel Byman, and Mr. Alexander Palmer (Center for Strategic and International Studies) 

Contact

If you are interested in learning more about DSCU-sponsored research, please sign up here. To contact the Grants team, email dsca.dscu.grants@mail.mil.

The views and opinions that appear on the Brigadier General Charles Young Institute for Security Cooperation Research and Lessons Learned site are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of DSCA/DSCU or its organizations. The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute DSCA/DSCU endorsement of the linked websites, or the information, products, or services therein.

The Young Institute does not endorse nor advocate published materials. The Young Institute mission is to expand the intellectual foundations and promote learning that improves the practice and advances the field of Security Cooperation.