Curriculum

The MPA program requirements are designed to address core competencies, establish basic courses, and offer specialized electives. The curriculum requires 39 units. Pre-service students with less than 24 months of professional experience in the public sector or nonprofit organizations must complete an internship.

Total Program: 36 semester hours

Core Courses

24 semester hours

PADM 501Public Service & Society 13
PADM 510Public Management and Leadership3
PADM 531Organizational Theory and Development3
PADM 533Policy Formation3
PADM 534Budgeting and Fiscal Management3
PADM 561Legal Environment of Public Administration3
PADM 582Quantitative Methods for Public Management3
PADM 596Graduate Seminar3
Total Semester Hours24
1

PADM 501 Public Service & Society is to be completed the first session of study. If not offered the first session, then it must be taken as soon as it is offered.

Concentration and Elective Courses

12 semester hours

Concentrations require a minimum of 12 semester hours (four courses) and are listed on final transcripts upon completion of the MPA degree. Students may complete a set of electives instead with advance approval by the program director.

Eligible elective courses are non-core 500 level PADM courses, HSM courses in the Public Health Concentration, and non-cross listed nonprofit MGMT courses. Other graduate courses are not eligible as concentration or elective courses without advance approval by the program director.

Students without previous public or nonprofit experience are required to take PADM 598 Public Service Internship within the first year of study or 18 units (whichever comes first). This course is classified as an elective. Other students may take the internship course as an elective with advance approval by the program director.

Students cannot double dip in counting concentration and elective units to reduce the number of units required for the degree. A total of 36 units is required for all students.

Urban Management and Affairs Concentration

This concentration focuses on developing skills in managing in urban metropolitan environment.

PADM 570Urban and Community Politics3
Select a minimum of two of the following:6
PADM 504
Organizational Communication
PADM 538
Collaborative Public Mgmt
PADM 587
Managing Sustainable Communities
Electives Approved by Program Director3
Total Semester Hours12

Nonprofit Management and Governance Concentration

This concentration focuses on developing skills in leading and managing nonprofit organizations.

PADM 520Nonprofit Governance3
Select a minimum of two of the following:6
PADM 504
Organizational Communication
PADM 522
Grant Management
PADM 524
Nonprofit Finance and Fundraising
Electives Approved by Program Director3
Total Semester Hours12

Public Health Concentration

This concentration focuses on measures to prevent disease, promote health and prolong life. Public health activities aim to provide conditions in which people can be healthy. The focus is on populations and systems, not on individual patients or diseases.

HSM 545Foundations of Public Health3
Select a minimum of two of the following:6
HSM 546
Epidemiology
HSM 548
Applied Research for Public Health Professionals
HSM 549
Public Health and the Urban Context
Electives Approved by Program Director3
Total Semester Hours12

Electives

Students can choose any of the concentration courses listed if not already taken for a concentration (no double dip). Additional elective courses may include:

PADM 555Ethics in Administration3
PADM 580Applied Research3
PADM 581Comparative Public Administration3
PADM 590Selected Topics in Public Administration3
PADM 598Public Service Internship3