In the heart of Paris, a unique academic institution has become a training ground for France’s elite intelligence agents. The Diplôme sur le Renseignement et les Menaces Globale, or Diploma of Intelligence and Global Threat, offered by Sciences Po Saint-Germain, is attracting both typical early-20s students and seasoned members of the French secret service.
Professor Xavier Crettiez, who oversees the course, admits that he often doesn’t know the real identities of his students, as the intelligence agents are sent to the program under assumed names. The campus, with its dour, early 20th-century buildings and imposing metal gates, provides the perfect setting for this covert training.
The four-month program, developed in collaboration with the Académie du Renseignement, the training arm of the French secret service, was established a decade ago in response to the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris. The government sought to bolster its intelligence capabilities, and Sciences Po, one of France’s leading universities, was tasked with creating a new course to train both potential new spies and provide continuous training for current agents.
The curriculum covers a diverse range of topics, including the economics of organised crime, Islamic jihadism, business intelligence gathering, and political violence. Lecturers include a DGSE (the French equivalent of MI6 or the CIA) official formerly stationed in Moscow, a former French ambassador to Libya, and a senior official from Tracfin, the agency specialising in money laundering.
The demand for the program has been steadily growing, not only from the French government but also from the private sector. Large companies, particularly in the defence, aerospace, and luxury goods industries, are increasingly interested in hiring graduates to address their cybersecurity and espionage concerns.
According to Professor Crettiez, the French intelligence agencies have expanded significantly in recent years, with around 20,000 agents in the “inner circle” of the DGSE and DGSI (the French equivalent of MI5 or the FBI). The course is seen as a fast-track stepping stone for promotion from office work to fieldwork by the intelligence agents enrolled.
While the program attracts a diverse student body, including a significant number of women, Professor Crettiez remains cautious, having to reject applications from “very attractive Israeli and Russian women with amazing CVs” who are suspected to be spies from rival countries.
The course is not just about glamorous James Bond-style adventures, as Professor Crettiez points out. “Few new recruits will end up in the field,” he says. “Most French intelligence agencies’ jobs are desk-bound.” Nevertheless, the demand for the program continues to grow, as France seeks to bolster its intelligence capabilities in the face of evolving global threats.
