K.T. McFarland Educational Background: How Well-Educated is Trump's Advisor?

Kathleen Troia McFarland, better known as K.T., is a former member of the National Security Council and a current national security analyst for Fox News. On November 25th of 2016, Donald Trump announced that McFarland would succeed Avril Haines as Deputy National Security Advisor. This isn’t the first time she’s shown interest in public office either. In 2008, she ran against incumbent Hillary Clinton for a seat in the United States Senate. She lost. When not involved in matters of national security, or criticizing Obama’s approach to combatting terrorism, K.T. McFarland works as a board member for The Jamestown Foundation. Kathleen’s currently married to Alan McFarland and a busy mother of five. We’ll now take a brief look at her formative years before diving fully into the extent of her education.
The future security advisor came into the world on July 24th of 1951. That’s where any semblance to normal youth ended. Kathleen Troia McFarland did not have a happy childhood. In a lengthy interview with The Associated Press, she described her formative years as a “nightmarish ordeal” filled with memories of an abusive father. Suffice to say, Kathleen left home as soon as she could. At the age of 18, K.T. left for college and tried her best to leave that childhood behind.
It didn’t take her long to discover her passion. After less than a year at George Washington University, her original alma mater, Kathleen Troia jumpstarted her career in public service. George Washington University, famous for its Law School and Graduate School of Education and Human Development, was a perfect place to develop her passion. After her graduation, she spent seven years in the West Wing and eventually worked her way into Henry Kissinger’s National Security Council. After her time with the Ford Administration, McFarland returned to the hallowed halls of higher education. She then completed her masters in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics at Oxford University. While she never finished her dissertation, her doctoral studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, in which she concentrated on nuclear weapons, likely proved invaluable to her knowledge of national security.
It’s unlikely, with how busy she’s likely to become, that she’ll have time to write that thesis any time soon. So, for now, K.T. McFarland will remain the holder of a master’s degree.