All students are required to meet the general university admission requirements.

Program-Specific Application Deadlines

• U.S. Applicants
  • For fall: August 1
  • For spring: January 1
  • For summer: May 1
• International Applicants
  • For fall: January 8
  • For spring: August 1

Additional Documentation

Your application must include the following:

• Statement of objectives, three to four paragraphs in length, that includes your academic objectives with specific reasons for the selection of your field of study, contemplated research areas and professional plans
• Three letters of recommendation
• Official transcript(s) from previous college(s) attended

The Master of Public Administration will prepare you for careers such as:

• City management
• Community and social services
• Disaster response
• Education
• Elected office
• Emergency services management
• Environmental management
• Financial administration
• Grant writing
• Housing
• Parks and recreation
• Public safety and criminal justice
• Public works
• Public policy
• Transportation
• Urban planning
• Political advising
• Nonprofit administration and management

Required Courses (30 credits)

Fall Courses:

• POLSC 700 – Research Methods in Political Science (3 credits)
• POLSC 702 – Public Administration and Society (3 credits)
• POLSC 708 – Public Personnel Administration (3 credits)
• POLSC 736 – Strategic Management of Public and Nonprofit Organizations
• POLSC 738 – Public Finance (3 credits)

Spring Courses:

• POLSC 710 – Policy Analysis and Evaluation
• POLSC 711 – Administrative Ethics
• POLSC 735 – Public Organization Theory
• POLSC 740 – Nonprofit Financial Management
• POLSC 831 – Public Administration Capstone

Area of Emphasis (6 credits)

Each student must develop a particular emphasis. Below are several areas of emphasis which we highly recommend to our students. Students wishing to propose other emphases may do so with the advice and consent of the Director of Graduate Studies.

• Public Budgeting and Finance
• Planning
• Security Studies
• State and Local Government

Internship in Public Administration (1 credit)

Pre-service students are required to complete an internship (POLSC 897). This entails serving in a full-time administrative position for a period of at least 10 weeks (400 hours) in the public sector, or in a not-for-profit agency.

Mid-career students with significant employment experience may have the internship requirement waived. Students who wish an internship waiver, should send a request to the Director of Graduate Studies in writing during their first year of study.