Public Administration (MPA) - General Program
The MPA General program is designed to provide advanced education in administration for persons employed in the public or non-profit sectors, as well as for those seeking entry into careers in administration. This interdisciplinary program addresses the educational needs of those with specialized, technical, or liberal arts degrees, and those seeking to expand or update their administrative education. It is comprised of faculty and courses in political science, economics, health care, education, criminal justice, sociology, and psychology.
Requirements
Applicants should have completed:
- A course in government or public sector administration or relevant experience
- A course in microeconomic principles
- A course in statistics
Applicants lacking any of the prerequisite knowledge base courses can fulfill the requirement(s) with MPA classes as part of their degree.
MPA – General Program (39-42 credit hours)
I. Core Courses (15 credits)
PUB 500: Politics, Policy, and Public Administration (3)
PUB 501: Administrative Organization and Behavior (3)
PUB/HCR 506: Research Methods (3)
and two of the following:
PUB 502: Management in Public and Nonprofit Organizations (3)
PUB 503: Personnel Issues in Public Service (3)
PUB/POL 510: Intergovernmental Relations (3)
PUB/ECN 571: Public Economics (3)
II. Administrative Functions and Processes (12 credits)
PUB 503: Personnel Issues in Public Service (3)
PUB 504: Ethical Issues in Public Administration (3)
PUB/HCR 518: Budgeting in Public and Nonprofit Organizations (3)
PUB/POL 519/520: Law and Administrative Processes (3)
PUB 521: Entitlement Program Law and Policy (3)
PUB/POL 522: Environmental Law and Public Policy (3)
PUB/HCR 524: Employment, Law, and Public Policy (3)
PUB/POL 541: The Welfare State in Comparative Perspective (3)
PUB 572/SOC 566: Work, Occupations, and Professions (3)
III. Analytical Methods (6 credits)
PUB/HCR 508: Evaluation of Services and Programs (3)
PUB 523: Accounting in Government & Nonprofit Organizations (3)
PUB/HCR/PSY527: Personnel Selection and Evaluation (3)
PUB/ECN 575: Cost-Benefit Analysis (3)
PUB/ECN 580: Quantitative Methods for Public Administration (3)
IV. Applied Research (6 credits)
PUB/HCR 593: Practicum in Research Design (3)
and
PUB/HCR 595: Practicum in Applied Research (3)
Or a relevant research-intensive course selected from the following
(Each of these courses requires a substantial
research project similar in scope to PUB 595.)
PUB/ECN 571*: Public Economics (3)
PUB/ECN 575*: Cost-Benefit Analysis (3)
PUB/POL 510*: Intergovernmental Relations (3)
PUB 502*: Management in Public and Nonprofit Organizations (3)
V. Internship (3 credits)**
PUB 590: Internship (3)
*These courses cannot be double counted to meet requirements in any other section of the MPA General Program.
**The internship is not required of those students who are practicing administrators or who have had two or more years of experience in an administrative capacity.