| WHAT IS THE CURRICULUM?
The 30 credits of required and elective courses focus on leadership abilities; critical thinking skills; strategic planning; systems thinking and an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving; conflict and change management; and the ability to work and lead as part of a team; and other topics.
The 30 semester credits are divided as follows: 12 credits of core courses; 9 credits in a focus area, such as nonprofit management, economic develop.m.ent, foreign policy and international affairs, social policy, or other related courses; 6 credits in skills courses; and 3 credits in electives. No internship or formal thesis is required for graduation.
The MPA curriculum focuses on leadership abilities; critical thinking skills; strategic planning; systems thinking and an interdisciplinary approach to problem solving; the ability to work and lead as part of a team; and other topics. The 30 semester credits are divided as follows: 12 credits of required core courses; 9 credits in an area of concentration, such as those offered in the MPP and MURP degrees; 6 credits in skills courses; and 3 credits in electives. Although no formal thesis is required for graduation, through the synthesis workshop, students prepare a professional project analyzing a public policy or management problem for a public, nonprofit, or private sector community client.
Required core courses (12 credits)
PA 5941 - Leadership for the Common Good - a dynamic seminar that introduces the range of leadership theories and tasks. Leadership is defined as inspiring and mobilizing others to undertake collective action in pursuit of the common good.
PA 8001 - Transforming Public Policy - develops interdisciplinary understanding of one or more policy areas; explores theory and practice through readings, cases, and model-building; articulates possible policy or system improvements, along with the leadership implications for formulating and implementing them.
PA 8002 - Synthesis Workshop - addresses a particular policy or problem area, typically on behalf of a client. Based on interdisciplinary inquiry and modeling, students propose solutions and offer recommendations.
Recent synthesis workshop topics
Concentration electives (9)
Choose a focus from those listed below or design your own area of concentration.
Skills courses (6) and electives (3)
You may choose from a wide variety of classes, including Financial Management in Public and Nonprofit Organizations, Group Process Facilitation, Conflict Management, Statistics, Organizational Design and Change, Policy Analysis, and Strategic Planning. Available computer courses range from Microsoft Word to GIS. |
