Public Administration Program

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Master of Public Administration (MPA)

Public administration is a field practiced at the intersection of the government, nonprofit, and private sectors. GSPIA’s MPA program trains managers to balance the needs of each community with its resources, promoting neighborhood development, effective local government, ethical leadership, and responsible business practices. Students gain an incredibly diverse and flexible set of professional skills that will prepare you for leadership in nonprofit agencies, government offices, and private businesses worldwide.

Students will development professiona skills in neighborhood development, data interpretation, advocacy for effective local government, ethical leadership, responsible business practices and critical thinking and problem solving.

Degree Requirements

All MPA students are required to complete the GSPIA core & MPA Degree Core courses along with the required Concentration courses and Electives.

Degree Core required courses (12 credits):

PIA 2022 Quantitative Methods

PIA 2025 Microeconomics

PIA 2028 Public Policy Analysis

PIA 2096 Capstone Seminar OR PIA 2099 Thesis

All students must complete an approved internship of at least 300 hours while enrolled at GSPIA.   The internship must be approved by teh student’s career advisors in advance.   Students with at least three years of relevant full-time work experience may peitition their career advisor for a waiver of this requirement during their first semester. 

MPA Degree Core required courses (9 credits):

PIA 2020 Administration of Public Affairs

PIA 2117 Program Evaluation

PIA 2104 Financial Management

MPA Concentrations (12 credits):

Applicants will select from one of the following concentrations.  Please click on this link for concentration details, Public Administration, MPA  

Energy & Environment

Governance & International Public Management

Policy Research & Analysis

Public & Nonprofit Management

Social Policy

Urban Affairs & Planning

Free Electives/Minor Courses (15 credits)

Total MPA degree credits = 48

Minor

MPA students may also pursue a minor. Please click on the following link: GSPIA Minors  

Joint Degree Options

MPA students are eligible to pursue one of several joint degrees at the University of Pittsburgh, including a joint MPA/law degree (JD), MPA/Master of Public Health (MPH), MPA/Master of Science in Information Science (MSIS), and MPA/Master of Social Work (MSW). They may also pursue a joint master’s degree through the Graduate School of International Cooperative Studies at Kobe University in Japan. An accelerated, five-year bachelor’s/master’s degree program is available to select University of Pittsburgh undergraduates.

Master of Public Administration/JD  

Master of Public Administration/MPH  

Master of Public Administration/MSW  

Master of Public Administration/MIS  

Quantitative Economics/Public Administration, MS/MPA  

Accreditation

GSPIA’s Master of Public Administration degree is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA). NASPAA accreditation recognizes that a master’s program in public affairs has gone through a rigorous process of voluntary peer review conducted by the Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation (COPRA) , and has met NASPAA’s Standards for Professional Master’s Degree Programs in Public Affairs, Policy, and Administration.

Programs

• Public Administration, MPA

Return to: Graduate School of Public and International Affairs