ABOUT
MICHAEL SHURKIN
Michael Shurkin is a senior analyst and consultant with a long career in national defense and security. He taught history as a lecturer at the Johns Hopkins University before joining the Central Intelligence Agency, where he served a Political Analyst covering West Africa and Afghanistan and trained as a military analyst. He later served as a Senior Political Scientist with the RAND Corporation, where he worked on a wide range of topics, including military doctrine, force structure, and strategy; security assistance; Building Partner Capacity; counterterrorism; and security in West Africa.
​
Currently, Michael works as Director of Global Programs for 14 North Strategies, a consultancy that provides analytic and intelligence support to C-Suite clients with major investments in Africa. He also publishes on international security and military doctrine. He is an Associate Fellow at the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). He hails from Wayne, Pennsylvania, and has a BA in history from Stanford University, as well as an MA, MPhil, and Ph.D. in history from Yale University. He also studied at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris, France, and is fluent in French.
​
The French Government has awarded him the distinction of being a Knight of the National Order of Merit for his work on French defense policy and the French military.
Experience
2023 to Present
2021 to Present
2021 to Present
2009 to 2021
2005 to 2009
2000 to 2003
RUSI, Associate Fellow.
14 NORTH STRATEGIES
Director of Global Programs.
SHURBROS GLOBAL STRATEGIES
Founder and President.
RAND CORPORATION
Senior Political Scientist.
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
Political Analyst.
JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
Lecturer, History Department.
Awards
Chevalier of France's Nation Order of Merit
Bourse Chateaubriand for dissertation research
Awards
Nominated for France’s National Order of Merit for work on the French military and French defense policy, August 2023.
Education
1994 to 2000
1993 to 1994
1992 to 1993
1988 to 1992
YALE UNIVERSITY
MA, M.Phil., and Ph.D. in Modern French History
YESHIVAT DARCHEI NOAM
Studies in Jewish law and Bible
ÉCOLE DES HAUTES ÉTUDES EN SCIENCES SOCIALES
Graduate study in French History, Sociology, 1992-1993
STANFORD UNIVERSITY
Bachelor of Arts in History, with honors.