The Master of Public Administration degree is a professional course of study for persons in, or preparing for, mid-level or upper-level management positions in public and nonprofit organizations. The program emphasizes the theoretical, practical, and analytical abilities required of persons holding responsible public positions. Centered in the Department of Social Sciences, it also permits the incorporation of specialized fields of interest such as general administration, criminal justice, urban and regional planning, research and evaluation, and health care administration.
The program has two tracks/concentrations: The Generalist MPA and Executive Health Care Administration
MPA Generalist Concentration Degree Requirements
Each candidate for the degree must satisfactorily complete 36 hours of course work as indicated:
Core Curriculum (21 hours required):
Area of Concentration (9 hours)
The MPA program offers 5 areas of concentration: general administration, criminal justice, urban and regional planning, research and evaluation, and health care administration.
General Administration (9 hrs.):
3 hours selected from the following courses:
6 additional hours in appropriate graduate courses in public administration, economics, geography, political science, and sociology. To be decided with the consent of the MPA coordinator.
Criminal Justice (9 hrs.):
| CRIJ 5303 | Contemporary Criminological Theory | |
| 6 additional graduate hours in criminal justice | |
Urban and Regional Planning (9 hrs.):
Research and Evaluation (9 hrs.):
Health Care Administration (9 hrs.):
6 hours to be selected from the following courses:
Electives (6 hours)
to be chosen with the consent of MPA Coordinator to strengthen students’ programs and might emphasize either substantive content or skill development. Students without previous agency experience may elect to take an additional 6 hours of internship. Internship credit must be in addition to the 36 hour degree requirement.
Graduation Requirements
All candidates for the master of public administration degree must also meet the following requirements:
- A cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 basis) on all work taken for graduate credit. No course with a grade below “C” may be applied toward this degree.
- Satisfactory performance on a comprehensive written or oral examination, to be taken during the student’s last semester of enrollment, over the work covered in his degree program. Any student who fails the comprehensive examination may, upon recommendation of the Graduate Coordinator, be granted permission to take a second examination. Upon failing the second examination, the student will be dropped from the program.
Executive Health Care Administration MPA-Total Semester Hours=36
The Executive Health Care (EHCA) concentration is designed for working members of the healthcare community. The program is taught using the "hybrid" model with one week of concentrated on-site instruction in Tyler and additional requirements to be met online using Blackboard course management system. Courses are taught by expert visiting faculty from around the country.
The EHCA program requires 36 semester credit hours. Students take three courses (nine credit hours) per semester and complete the degree in three regular semesters plus one summer session at the end of the program. The EHCA concentration is tightly sequenced and each cohort is admitted once a year in the Fall semester. A student who misses a course will be required to wait for the next cohort.
Admission Requirements
Students are admitted only once a year--in the Fall semester--as a cohort. Admission is highly selective; students come from a variety of health organizations and disciplines, including doctors, nurses, administrators and other healthcare professionals from hospitals, clinics, HMOs, pharmaceutical firms, insurers, nursing homes, nonprofits, and governmental agencies, including local, state, and federal departments.
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.
- A minimum of three years of full-time employment in the health care profession.
- A letter expressing interest and motivation for pursuing the degree; an interview may also be required
- A minimum grade point average of 3.0 on the last 60 hours of undergraduate and/or graduate coursework. Candidates with other advanced degrees will also be given preference.
- Consideration is also given to one or more of the following: the applicant's demonstrated commitment to his or her chosen field of study, socioeconomic background, first generation college graduate, multilingual proficiency, geographic region of residence, and level of responsibility in other matters including extracurricular activities, employment, community service, and family responsibilities.
- A course in statistics or research methods is recommended before admission to the program.
Executive Health Care Administration Degree Requirements
Each candidate for the degree must satisfactorily complete 36 hours of course work as indicated:
Core Curriculum (9 hours required):
| PADM 5332 | Public Budgeting and Finance | |
| PADM 5350 | Seminar in Human Resources Management (Same as MANA 5350) | |
PADM 5355
| Topics in Policy Analysis | |
Health Care Concentration (27 hours)
All candidates for the Executive Health Care Administration concentration must also meet the following requirements: