Master of War

Greg Sheridan ’03 lends his talents to Scottish higher education

by Heidi Hormel ’85

January 2, 2010

Greg Sheridan ’03 attended the University of Glasgow for graduate school and wound up working for the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Photo by Maciej Siurek

Not many people can say they are masters of war, but Greg Sheridan ’03 can proudly say that and more.

Sheridan earned a master’s (MLitt) in war studies from the University of Glasgow, Scottish Centre for War Studies, in 2006.

When he enrolled to study military history at the university, which is the fourth oldest in the United Kingdom, he was a member of that program’s second class.

At Dickinson, Sheridan, who did not study abroad, was a self-directed history major, focusing, not surprisingly, on military history, using the U.S. Army War College archives on a regular basis.

After graduation, he worked for Dickinson’s information technology services but really wanted to pursue a master’s degree in his area of interest. At the University of Glasgow he found a very focused one-year program.

His master’s dissertation, a copy of which is at the U.S. Army War College as well as at the University of Glasgow, explored the U.S. Cold War, the U.S. nuclear doctrine and what the U.S. military learned from the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, during which the Israelis did not use nuclear weapons.

Sheridan’s original plan was to get his degree, return to the United States and work for the government. But as fellow Scotsman Robert Burns said: “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men/Gang aft a-gley.”

Through the United Kingdom’s Fresh Talent: Working in Scotland Scheme he received a two-year visa upon achieving his master’s and secured a job at the university. He then met his wife Nathalie, who is a Ph.D. candidate at a neighboring university.

While he works to maintain his American accent and his love for Arizona Iced Tea (recently buying a case for an exorbitant price), Sheridan is excited about his adopted country’s move towards independence.

“In a few years, I could be in a brand new country,” he said, his enthusiasm obvious. For the first time in centuries, Scotland has its own parliament, which opened in 1999, and there is serious discussion of how the country could become independent of the United Kingdom.

While Sheridan admitted that his work at the university is not obviously linked to war or military history, his degree was “a lot about strategies, which can be used in many different arenas.”

He started at the university as a student information desk manager, helping to determine, during a two-year project, how student-services space would be used. He developed a “student-centric” approach, which provided students a first place to go for information and access to student support services.

The idea of having primary student services work together was novel for the university and was implemented, in part, by Sheridan, who kept in mind during the design process his own recent experiences as a student.

Being a graduate of a liberal-arts program like Dickinson’s has given him the valuable skills to easily move into different positions and areas of the university, Sheridan said. Now he is the customer services and information manager for the Sports and Recreation Service.

Because he has been doing more project management and the university has a fantastic M.B.A. program, he’s considering adding another degree to his arsenal.

“It will certainly help in higher-education administration,” he said of the area in which he would like to work.

Unlike his first master’s, this one will not require him to take out a personal loan to complete his studies. Still, he does not regret that investment, nor moving to Scotland, except … “There is no Fay’s Country Kitchen—God bless it,” Sheridan said wistfully.