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Master of Public Administration

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, municipal management, non-profit management, and cybersecurity. 

Admission Requirements

  1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.
  2. A minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4 point scale on the last 60 hours of undergraduate and/or graduate coursework.  
  3. A letter expressing interest and motivation for pursuing the degree must be submitted for applicants that do not have at least three years of full-time employment in a public or non-profit organization.
  4. Applicants with three or more years of full-time employment in a public or non-profit organization must submit a CV or resume documenting their relevant work experience. 
  5. A course in research methods is recommended (not required) before admission.

MPA Degree Requirements

Each candidate for the degree must satisfactorily complete 36 hours of course work as indicated:

Core Curriculum (24 hours required)

MANA 5320Organizational Behavior
PADM 5331Information Systems in Public Administration
PADM 5332Public Budgeting and Finance
PADM 5336Administrative Ethics
PADM 5350Seminar in Human Resources Management (Same as MANA 5350)
PADM 5396Research Methods
PADM 5397Advanced Social Science Analysis
PADM 5353Public Administration Capstone Seminar

Area of Concentration (12 hours)

The MPA program offers 4 areas of concentration: criminal justice, municipal management, non-profit management, and cybersecurity. (Students can also purse a general administration approach by selecting courses from multiple concentrations.)

Criminal Justice

CRIJ 5302Judicial Policy and Social Process
CRIJ 5303Contemporary Criminological Theory
CRIJ 5307Criminal Justice Policy
CRIJ 5313Contemporary Issues in Corrections
or
CRIJ 5332Law Enforcement: Environment and Practice

Municipal Management

PADM 5307Metropolitan Problems
PADM 5339Urban and Regional Planning
PADM 5385Studies in Demography
PADM 5308Local Government Management
or
PADM 5309Public Sector Grant Writing

Non-profit Management

PADM 5307Metropolitan Problems
PADM 5312Non-Profit Management
PADM 5309Public Sector Grant Writing
PADM 5313Strategic Planning for Non-Profit

Cybersecurity

COSC 5341Cybersecurity
COSC 5342Cybersecurity Management
COSC 5364Cyber Risk Analysis
COSC 5388Digital Forensics

Graduation Requirements

All candidates for the Master of Public Administration degree must also meet the following requirements:

  1. 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.
  2. A grade of no lower than "B" in the capstone course.