MPA Degree Requirements
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The MPA degree is awarded after successful completion of 38 hours of course work. This includes:
- 28 hours (9 courses) of required core courses that all students complete.
- 9 hours (3 courses) of electives tailored to the student's interests.
- 1 hour of practicum, for which students attend a series of practitioner seminars and workshops.
In addition, all students must pass a written master's examination (final paper) to complete the requirements for the MPA degree. Once a student begins the program, all degree requirements must be completed within seven years.
Note: If you began the MPA program prior to the summer 2010 semester, please contact your advisor for your degree requirements.
MPA Course Checklists
Students can use the following checklists to track their progress toward the MPA:
City & County Leadership Program:
Public Service Leadership Program:
Final Essay Examples
Courses
Core Requirements: (All students must take these core courses)
Choose one of the following 5 classes, PUAD 824, 825, 826, 827 or 828. If a second course from this series is taken, it is counted as an elective.
PUAD 824: Public Policy and Administration (3). An exploration of the ways in which public policy is made in the United States, focusing on the role of the administrator at each stage of the policy process: formulation, implementation, and evaluation. Various theories of policy-making with application to specific areas of public policy will be examined.
PUAD 825: Public Policy and Urban Administration (3). An exploration of policy development, implementation, and evaluation in the local government context. Various theories of the policy process and their application to municipal government are examined.
PUAD 826: Public Policy and Administration of State Government (3). An examination of political and administrative aspects of state government focusing on legislative and executive branches of government.
PUAD 827: Health Care Policy and Administration (3). Seminar designed to explore the development of public health policy in the United States. Particular attention will be given to (1) the development of public institutions and policy goals; (2) current policy problems such as expenditure-cost controls, prospective reimbursement, utilization review, access, and public and private investment planning; and (3) administrative problems in the current health care system.
PUAD 828: Nonprofit Management and Policy (3). This course focuses on the economic, social, and legal foundations of the nonprofit sector. Nonprofits are examined in the context of a three-sector economy, with emphasis on the ways in which nonprofits compensate for market failures and government failures. The course examines government-nonprofit relations in the modern welfare and offers an in-depth examination of the health, education, and welfare functions as performed by nonprofits. This course also provides exposure to selected topics in nonprofit management such as grant writing, board relations, advocacy, fundraising and volunteer management.
PUAD 831: Public Administration Practicum (1). Exposes students to day-to-day operational facets of public management through workshops, speakers, and exercises. Students attend 18 contact hours in order to earn this credit hour.
PUAD 834: Human Resource Management (3). Explores the way public sector organizations procure, allocate, and develop labor and how the employee-employer relationship is established and maintained. Also emphasizes the relationship between civil service personnel systems and larger political systems.
PUAD 835: Financing Public Services. This course examines the management of public investments and theories of taxation and non-tax revenues. Basic microeconomic theory is introduced.
PUAD 836: Introduction to Quantitative Methods (4). Introduces quantitative approaches to examine public management and public policy decisions. Concepts of research design, probability, and inferential statistics are covered. Classwork typically involves computer work in spreadsheet and statistical analysis programs.
PUAD 837: Resource Allocation and Control (3). Discusses the methods and political context of policy analysis and the role of budgets in policy making and implementation. Examines public budgeting processes and budgetary decision making.
PUAD 841: The Role, Context, and Ethics of Public Administration in American Society (3). Provides students with an overview of the social context of public administration with an emphasis on political issues, political history, and ethics.
PUAD 842: Law and Public Management (3). Course investigates major concepts that make up the legal environment of public administration. The accepted uses and procedures of the field, relationships among courts, agencies, the legislature, and basic legal research are examined.
PUAD 845: Organizational Analysis (3). Explores knowledge of organization theory and administrative behavior to understand and diagnose organizational problems and dynamics in the public sector. Emphasis is placed on organization-environment relationships.
PUAD 853: Policy Analysis and Evaluation (3). This course will examine the fundamental research techniques associated with analyzing alternative solutions to policy problems, as well as evaluating the effectiveness of public programs. Such techniques include cost-benefit, risk-benefit and cost-effectiveness analysis, and quasi-experimental and experimental designs.
Electives:
PUAD 830: Administrative Ethics (3). A survey of ethical issues faced by public administrators. Special attention will be given to ethical problems arising within hierarchical organizations and to the ethical implications of particular public policies.
PUAD 839: Topics in Public Administration (3). Study of selected topics in public administration. Each course addresses a separate topic. in recent semesters courses have been offered in performance auditing, leadership, and employment law.
PUAD 840: Theory of Public Administration (3). Survey of the development of ideas about public administration among public officials and research investigators. Emphasis on basic concepts, research reports, and theoretical treatises on the nature of public administration.
PUAD 849: Law, Courts and Public Policy (3). The course explores the role of judges and courts, as normal parts of the policy process and considers the roles, options, and constraints on judges and courts as they perform their duties. The course explores the implications for public policy of judicial involvement at various stages of the policy process and in different types of policy.
PUAD 851: Infrastructure Management (3). This course focuses on municipal infra-structure issues and relationships between generalist managers and technically-trained staff.
PUAD 852: Comparative Public Policy and Administration (3). This seminar examines the application of theories in public administration, public management, and public policy in international and comparative contexts. Particular attention is given to how governments and publics are connected by way of intergovernmental strategies, governance, and differing political and administrative arrangements.
PUAD 854: Innovation and Organizational Change (3). This course will examine theories of innovation and organizational change as applied to public organizations. Particular emphasis will be placed on the concepts of innovation in bureaucratic organizations, on the process of successful change in organizations, and on leadership and employees' roles.
PUAD 855: Financial Management for Public and Not-for-Profit Organizations (3) Financial management focuses on the use of financial information for decision making and evaluation. This course will rely on fundamental accounting concepts as they relate to the basic financial statements of government and not-for-profit organizations. Time will also be spent on financial management practices (e.g. cash management, debt management, etc.) and financial condition analysis. Material presented in this course expands on the foundational material covered in PUAD 837. Prerequisites: PUAD 837 or permission from the instructor.
PUAD 856: Management and Information Technology (3). An introduction to the concepts of information policy and management of technology within governmental organizations. The course covers the effects of technology on government and society as well as information policy (privacy, security and access) and their importance to democracy. The course also includes a leadership perspective on planning, funding, and implementation of technology systems in governmental organizations as well as the role of Chief Information Officer.
PUAD 893: Directed Readings (1-3). Designed to meet the needs of advanced students whose study in public administration cannot be met with current course work.
PUAD 894: Professional Development Seminar I (3). Open only to City & County Leadership-Option students during their internship year, this intensive seminar is designed around issues interns confront in their working relationships. Emphasis is placed on the transition of the student from an academic environment to a professional work relationship. Class sessions deal with issues like employee socialization, power and trust, and administrative change. Fall (ICMA conference)
PUAD 895: Professional Development Seminar II (3). Continuation of PUAD 894. Winter and Spring (Lawrence campus)
PUAD 896: Field Project Report (1-6). A major independent research project in lieu of a thesis for the M.P.A. degree. Prerequisite: Completion of all other course requirements for the degree.
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