Master of Public Administration Online
The Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree provides professional education for students interested in public-service careers. Accredited by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA), the interdisciplinary program is designed to stress the knowledge, skills, values, and behaviors essential to the successful public servant. Some flexibility in curriculum is permitted to meet the diverse educational needs of pre-service and in-career students, changing-career students, and students in different career specialties in public administration. The curriculum components are designed to produce professionals capable of intelligent and creative analysis, communication, and action in the public sector context.
The program is offered online through UTEP Connect.
Admission Requirements
- Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.
- A two-to-three page double-spaced statement of purpose that addresses educational and career goals and reasons for pursuing an MPA degree.
- Three academic or professional letters of recommendation. At least one academic letter of recommendation is preferred.
- Applicants whose degrees are from non-English speaking institutions are required to demonstrate English proficiency. Please consult the Graduate School website for required scores.
Degree Requirements
Completion of at least 36 semester hours of coursework consisting of the following:
- At least 18 hours of courses including PAD 5302, PAD 5310 , PAD 5311, PAD 5351, PAD 5365, and your choice of one from PAD 5350, PAD 5352, or PAD 5353 (detailed in the degree plan). One of the following courses may be repeated for elective credit one time, per program approval: PAD 5350, PAD 5352, or PAD 5353. Selected MBA core courses may be substituted for MPA core courses, depending on course offerings by each program. Advance approval by the MPA coordinator is required for substitution.
- The final program requirement is the completion of one of the following: the capstone course, PAD 5367 Comprehen Integration/Pub Adm (3 semester credit hours).
Degree Plan
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| MPA Core | ||
| All courses require a grade of C or better | ||
| Required Courses: | ||
| PAD 5302 | The Public Adm Profession | 3 |
| PAD 5310 | Pub. Policy Process & Institut | 3 |
| PAD 5311 | Econ Anal for Public Admin | 3 |
| PAD 5351 | Applied Stats for Public Admin | 3 |
| PAD 5365 | Pol Anal & Decision Making | 3 |
| Elective - Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Public and Nonprofit Manage. | ||
| Public Budgeting & Financ Mgmt | ||
| Human Resources Management | ||
| Capstone (required): | 3 | |
| Comprehen Integration/Pub Adm | ||
| Public Policy Management Concentration | 15 | |
| Select five courses from the list below: | ||
| Qual Rsrch Methods for Pub Adm | ||
| Innovation and Problem Solving | ||
| Public and Nonprofit Manage. | ||
| Public Budgeting & Financ Mgmt | ||
| Human Resources Management | ||
| Admin Law and Regulation | ||
| Soc Entrepren & Not/Prof Mgmt | ||
| Admin. Ethics & Responsibility | ||
| Regional and Urban Planning | ||
| Urban Administration | ||
| Intergovernmental Relations | ||
| Pub Part & Democratic Process | ||
| Selected Problems in Pub Adm | ||
| Pub & Nonprofit Program Eval | ||
| Total Hours | 36 | |
PAD 5350 Public and Nonprofit Manage., PAD 5352 Public Budgeting & Financ Mgmt, PAD 5353 Human Resources Management may be included if not counted in the required core above.