Plan Description
The Master of Public Administration degree is designed to provide the public administrator with an understanding of the governmental and economic environment in which he or she must work. In addition to serving administrators in governmental organizations, the program is appropriate for career military personnel, nonprofit organization administrators, and the private sector professionals whose responsibilities involve extensive contact with governmental agencies and public sector personnel.
Courses within the program are scheduled during the evenings and weekends to meet the needs of employed students. Graduates of the program will have an understanding of governmental structure and organizations, the essential principles of public management, and the theory and methods of research concerning public administration and the development of public policy. Graduate work in the program provides an awareness of the organizational contexts within which public sector administrators make and implement decisions, as well as training in the skills of administration and management. The M.P.A. is fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (N.A.S.P.A.A.).
Plan Admission Requirements
All applications for admission to the M.P.A. program are made to the Graduate College but are reviewed by the M.P.A. Admission’s Committee. The committee considers all training and preparation, general abilities, and previous experience.
The applicant should have:
- An earned bachelor’s degree in an acceptable field of undergraduate study from a regionally accredited college or university.
- A GPA of at least 2.75 overall or 3.00 in the last 60 semester hours of undergraduate study.
- Satisfactory score on either the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT). Applicants with an undergraduate GPA of 3.5 and five years of responsible administrative or professional work experience in the public or nonprofit sector need not submit GRE or GMAT scores. Applicants who have completed the department’s Graduate Certificate in Public Management with a GPA of 3.5 or higher need not submit GRE or GMAT scores. The GRE scores should be sent directly to the School of Environmental and Public Affairs.
- Three letters of reference sent to the School.
- A resumé indicating educational and professional experience sent to the School of Environmental and Public Affairs.
- A personal statement describing how the MPA fits into the applicants professional goals.
- An official transcript from the college or university where the applicant received a bachelor’s degree should be sent to the School of Environmental and Public Affairs and Graduate College.
All domestic and international applicants must review and follow the Graduate College Admission and Registration Requirements.
Plan Graduation Requirements
- The student must submit all required forms to the Graduate College and then apply for graduation up to two semesters prior to completing his/her degree requirements.
- The student must complete an Applied Analytical Project.
Plan Degree Requirements
- Completion of a minimum of 36 credit hours with a minimum GPA of 3.00.
- All students entering the program should start with PUA 701 - Principles of Public Administration, a class designed to provide a general overview of the field. With this foundation, the student then embarks upon the rest of the program.
- Students may enroll in PUA 725 only after they have completed at least 24 credit hours toward the MPA degree. The order of the end-of-course sequence (PUA 725 and PUA 791, Topics in Administration) is determined by when the student completes the required 24 credit hours.
- Students enroll in PUA 791 - Topics in Administration to complete their final project which is taken after completing either PUA 725 or PUA 726. The final project applies analytical skills to an issue of interest to a governmental or nonprofit agency and should be completed near the end of a student’s program of study.
- Students must obtain a B average in order to graduate. A student can have no more than one grade less than a B-. It is assumed that students working full time and taking courses on a part-time basis can complete the M.P.A. program in two and one-half years of study.
- For students without appropriate professional administrative experiences, the degree requires an internship and a total of 39 hours.