MPA Program Requirements (39 hours)

The MPA curriculum provides a foundation in the principles of administration, addresses the practical responsibilities of managers, and reflects on the task of administrative leadership. The 39 credit hour program includes three components: the Core Program, an Area of Concentration, and the Project Paper Seminar. Pre-career students (status determined upon admission based on evidence of significant administrative or managerial experience in a relevant sector) also complete a three credit hour (300 contact hour) professional field experience. The curriculum assumes that candidates already have basic computer literacy and a working knowledge of the American political processes at local, state, and national levels.

1. Core Program (18 hours)

The Core Program includes course work in the theoretical foundation of public management, critical areas of administrative responsibility, and methods of administrative and policy analysis. Students complete each of the following six courses:

• PADM 6000 - Historical and Legal Foundations of American Public Administration Credits: 3 hours
• PADM 6060 - Analytical Methods Credits: 3 hours
• PADM 6070 - Quantitative Data Analysis Credits: 3 hours
• PADM 6080 - Organization Theory and Behavior Credits: 3 hours
• PADM 6180 - The Political and Economic Environment of Public Administration Credits: 3 hours
• PADM 6390 - Managing Public Performance and Information Technology Credits: 3 hours

2. Area of Concentration (18 credit hours)

In addition to the MPA core, the project paper requirement, and if required, the professional field experience, each MPA student must complete one of the 18-credit hour areas of concentration. Options for the area of concentration are health care administration, human resources administration, nonprofit leadership and administration, and public management. In the event that a student’s needs are not adequately addressed by one of the four areas of concentration, they may, with the MPA advisor’s assistance and approval, design a concentration from the wide array of courses that are offered by the School of Public Affairs and Administration or by other departments in the University. Note: Course offerings from other departments may change each year, and so other courses may occasionally be substituted with MPA advisor permission in advance. Student’s may, with the MPA advisor’s assistance and approval, include non-PADM courses. Students selecting courses from outside SPPA must have the approval of the other department and meet prerequisites if any prerequisites are indicated for the course.

3. PADM 6800- Project Paper Seminar (3 credit hours)

Project Paper Seminar is the capstone course of the MPA program and is required for each student regardless of their area of concentration. It provides an opportunity for students to integrate theory and practice in a significant problem solving exercise. The product of the seminar is a professional analysis of a management problem or an applied scholarly inquiry in the field of public administration. MPA candidates who have completed at least 30 hours of MPA course work, including all MPA core requirements, are eligible to enroll in the Project Paper Seminar. MPA advisors encourage students to enroll in this seminar as their last course, if possible.

4. Professional Field Experience/Internship (3 credit hours)

For pre-career students (status determined upon admission based on evidence of significant administrative or managerial experience in a relevant sector), the fourth major component of the MPA is a planned professional field experience, or internship, equivalent to three credit hours (minimum 300 contact hours). The goal of the internship is to provide candidates with work experience, which will afford realistic exposure to their world of professional administration and to the organizational and bureaucratic environment in which the dynamics of an agency are developed.

Concentrations