Josh Chang is a defense analyst at RAND. His areas of expertise include U.S. defense strategy, force planning, nuclear deterrence, airpower, missile defense, and East Asia defense issues. He previously served as a policy advisor in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), where he worked on force development issues in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities. For his work, he was awarded the Secretary of Defense Medal for Exceptional Public Service.Prior to his time in OSD, Josh worked as an analyst at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, where he researched and co-authored reports on U.S. defense policy, budgets, force structure, and military operations, and supported studies for DoD clients. He has also worked for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Long Term Strategy Group, focusing on issues such as U.S. defense strategy in the Indo-Pacific and great power competition. He was also a 2022 nuclear scholar with the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues, where he researched extended deterrence issues and presented his work to senior leaders of the U.S. nuclear enterprise, including U.S. Strategic Command and the National Labs.He holds a Master of Arts in Security Studies and a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service, cum laude, with honors in International Politics from Georgetown University. He is pursuing a doctorate from Missouri State University's School of Defense and Strategic Studies, where he focuses on nuclear strategy and deterrence.