Contact
China Open-Source Research Course for Rising China Specialists (October 2024)
“The opportunity to deeply engage with such senior scholars and experts was incredibly helpful. Hearing about all the day-to-day wonky details that lead to such important policy research has given me a better picture of how to improve my own skillset going forward.“
—Inaugural course participant
The China Open-Source Research Course for Rising China Specialists is a three-day professional development course to train the next generation of analysts in how to conduct open-source research and analysis on China.
Nadège Rolland
Distinguished Fellow, China Studies
The inaugural course was held on October 22–24, 2024, in Washington, D.C. Through a combination of traditional and innovative open-source research techniques and methods—from parsing and interpreting authoritative documents or satellite imagery, to applying forensic procedures and other analytical tools—the course ensured the participants’ sustained ability to conduct research despite increasing barriers.
The course was directed by Nadège Rolland, NBR’s Distinguished Fellow in China Studies. Featuring 11 sessions led by eminent China experts from academia, government, media, and the private sector, participants were afforded an unparalleled range of experience and insights on how to conduct professional China-related research.
| The Chinese Party-State as an Organization |
| The Institutions and Producers of Knowledge in China |
| Evolution of Sinology in the United States since 1949 |
| Sources and Methods for Researching China |
| Tracking China’s Communist Party Elite Politics |
| Researching the Chinese Economy and Trade Statistics |
| Researching China’s People’s Liberation Army |
| Monitoring China’s United Front Work and International Networks |
| Uncovering China’s Nuclear Modernization Efforts |
| Exposing China’s Industrial Espionage and Intellectual Property Theft |
| Unpacking China’s Domestic United Front Work |
Course Eligibility and Upcoming Courses
Learn more about the course and eligibility requirements here.
Sign up to receive updates when upcoming course dates are announced.
CHINA OPEN-SOURCE RESEARCH COURSE UPDATES
Students at NBR’s China Open-Source Research Course participating in an interactive exercise using open-source commercial satellite imagery during Dr. Renny Babiarz’s module on “Using Satellite Imagery to Track China’s Nuclear Modernization”
