Presidency of the Council of Ministers - Department of Information for Security - "A Thesis for National Security"Award

The "A Thesis for National Security" Award

You win a cash prize of 3,000 EUR (after tax) plus a plaque for an outstanding Master's thesis on national security and intelligence. Up to 10 prizes are awarded each round. The competition is run by Italy's Presidency of the Council of Ministers, through its Department of Information for Security (DIS), and aims to bring young academics closer to the world of intelligence. Your thesis must fit one of the award's themes: geopolitics, crisis and conflict regions, intelligence studies, the work, organisation, law, doctrine and history of the secret services, threats to national security, or economic, financial, energy, space and environmental security.

Who can apply

• Degree: You have obtained a ‘Laurea Magistrale’ (an Italian Master’s degree) from an Italian university.
• Grade: Your dissertation has been awarded at least 105 out of 110 marks.
• Timing: You defended your thesis between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2027.
• Topic: Your dissertation focuses on one of the topics covered by the prize in the field of national security and intelligence services.
• Nationality: Applicants of any nationality may apply. The only requirement is that the university and the dissertation must be from Italy.
• Original work: Your thesis is your own original work, is not subject to any copyright restrictions, does not infringe the rights of any third party, and has not previously been submitted to an earlier edition of this competition.
• Clean record: You enjoy full civil rights and have no criminal convictions or pending criminal proceedings. You have never been dismissed from the civil service, the armed forces or the police on disciplinary grounds.

How to apply

Applications must be submitted by email to the DIS. Please send your application form, your thesis, an abstract, a letter of recommendation from your supervisor, your CV and a scan of your identity document – all as PDF files. The application deadline is 15 April 2027. A panel of senior intelligence officials will assess the theses in terms of their relevance to national security, their depth and their overall quality. The winners will be notified by email by 30 September 2027.

How realistic are your chances?

This is a very specialised award. Your final dissertation must be an Italian Master’s thesis that has achieved a mark of at least 105/110 on a specific security topic, which significantly narrows down the range of possible subjects. As up to 10 prizes are awarded per round, a highly rated thesis on a clearly relevant topic stands a good chance of success. Please note that the committee’s decision is final.