Public Policy and Administration, MA Public Policy Specialization

Students in this specialization will be able to understand the factors in public decision-making and policy formulation by honing their analytical skills and increasing their theoretical and practical knowledge in the field. Graduates are able to evaluate competing demands and lead toward innovative and transformative public policy solutions. 

Curriculum

Core Courses (10 units)

Course Title
MPPA 401-DL/401-0Research Methods
MPPA 402-DL/402-0Elements of Public Finance and Budgeting
MPPA 403-DL/403-0Fundamentals of Public Administration
MPPA 404-DL/404-0Microeconomics for Public Policy Administration
MPPA 405-DL/405-0Statistics for Research
MPPA 406-DL/406-0Program Evaluation and Policy Analysis
MPPA 407-DL/407-0Scope and Theory of Public Policy
MPPA 408-DL/408-0Public Organization Theory & Management
MPPA 418-DL/418-0Ethics and Leadership
MPPA 498-DL/498-0The Capstone Project
or MPPA 590-DL Thesis Research

Specialization Courses (3 units)

Course Title
Any three courses
MPPA 411-DL/411-0
The Legislative Process
MPPA 419-DL/419-0
The Strategic Policy Environment
MPPA 421-DL
Administrative Law
MPPA 432-DL/432-0
Intergovernmental Relations
MPPA 430-DL/430-0
Behavioral Economics
MPPA 435-DL/435-0
Regulatory Policy
MPPA 438-DL/438-0
Environmental and Climate Policy
MPPA 490-DL/490-0
Special Topics in Public Policy (Demography, Global Health and Policy)
MPPA 580-DL
Global Policy Laboratory

About the Final Project

Students may pursue their capstone experience independently or as part of a team. As their final course, students take either the individual research project in an independent study format or the classroom final project class in which students integrate the knowledge they have gained in the core curriculum in work assigned by the instructor. In both cases students are guided by faculty in exploring the body of knowledge on public policy and administration while contributing research of practical value to the field. The capstone 590 thesis project and 498 capstone class count as one unit of credit.
 
Course Title
Choose one
MPPA 498-DL/498-0
The Capstone Project
MPPA 590-DL
Thesis Research