Prospective Students
Master of Public Policy
- Degree Requirements
- Non-Degree Status
- Recommended Course Schedule
- Internship
- Professional Portfolio
- Special Opportunities
Additional information, including tuition and fees, can be found at: Graduate Admissions
Degree Requirements
The Master of Public Policy (MPP) is designed to be a two-year professional degree although part-time students may take significantly longer to complete the degree.
Students are normally required to complete 39 credits of coursework (13 courses), including 24 credits (8 courses) in a common curriculum component, that includes an Internship, 9 credits (3 courses) in a policy concentration area, 3 credits of free elective (1 course), and a 3 credit Policy Research Seminar. Students are also required to prepare a portfolio of their professional work and present it to a faculty committee for their review and approval.
The Common Curriculum Component consists of eight courses required of all students in the MPP program. Some courses in the Common Curriculum Component have prerequisites which can/may be fulfilled by courses taken as an undergraduate. If a prerequisite is not fulfilled by a course taken in obtaining a bachelor's degree, the Free Elective may be used to fulfill one prerequisite, including one undergraduate course. No other courses taken as prerequisites will count toward the MPP degree requirements.
Requirements for Master of Public Policy Degree
| Credits | Courses | |
|---|---|---|
| Common Curriculum Component | 24 | 8 |
| Policy Area Concentration | 9 | 3 |
| Elective | 3 | 1 |
| Internship | 3 | 1 |
| Total: | 39 | 13 |
Concentration Areas
The MPP requires students to declare a policy area concentration by the beginning of their second semester. The policy area concentration will be fulfilled by taking three or more courses on a related topic(s). Special Topics courses and Independent Study courses may count toward the concentration if they are relevant to the student's declared area of concentration and are approved in advance by the Program Director.
Available concentration areas include:
- Public Management
- Environmental Policy
- Education Policy
Students may propose an individualized concentration area from available courses and submit it for approval to the program director before the end of the student's first semester.
Non-Degree Status
Students may enroll in up to two MPP courses without being admitted to the MPP program. Students interested in taking courses as a non-matriculated student must have the permission of the instructor before enrolling in the course.
Recommended Course Schedule
Year 1- Fall
POL 500 - Public Institutions and Policy Process
POL 540 - Microeconomics for Public Policy (prerequisite for POL 541)
POL 581 - Research Methods for Public Policy (prerequisite for POL 530, 580, and 585)
Year 1- Spring
POL 510 - Public Management
POL 530 – Policy Analysis
POL 541 – State and Local Finance
Year 2 – Fall
POL 580 – Statistics
Concentration Area Class or Internship
Concentration Area Class or Internship
Year 2- Spring
POL 585 - Applied Policy Research Seminar
Concentration Area Class or Internship
Concentration Area Class or Internship
Internship
The Master of Public Policy requires an internship (3 credits) for students with less than 2 years of substantial and relevant public policy or public management experience. The field work component of the internship (2 credits) will be waived if an individual has at least 2 years substantial and relevant work experience in a policy making or public management position, although all students must enroll in the academic seminar component (1 credit) of the internship to graduate and for purposes of reviewing the students' professional portfolios.
Students seeking a waiver should make a formal request in writing to both the Department Chair and Internship Coordinator in the semester prior to when they plan on completing the internship requirement. This written request should include a detailed discussion of the substantive reasons why the applicant's previous experience and professional background merits a waiver. Waivers are granted at the sole discretion of the Department of Public Policy.
Students will select an internship venue from a pre-approved list of local, state, and federal agencies, non-profit organizations, and private sector businesses. The internship's objective is to expose students to a policy-related or public management setting that allows them to integrate public policy theory (in their academic course) with the real world of policy making and public management in their area of substantive interest. In the academic seminar, interns will share workplace experiences and analyze these experiences within the framework of public policy and public management theory.
For more information about internships, please see: http://www.naspaa.org/students/careers/service.asp
For a searchable listing of internship opportunities in Massachusetts, visit http://www.massitsallhere.com/stayhere
Professional Portfolio
Students should begin developing a professional portfolio during their first semester. In the last semester of their studies, students present their portfolio to a faculty committee and discuss how it represents their learning and will support their future job search.
Special Opportunities
Kassel University (German Exchange Agreement)
The Department of Public Policy has a student exchange and course-sharing partnership with Kassel University's (Germany) Master in Global Political Economy program. The exchange agreement allows up to 3 students annually to study in Germany for periods of 4 weeks to one full semester (or summer). All courses in Germany are taught in English and are pre-approved for transfer credit in the MPP. Consult the International Programs Office for more information.
