Jul 23, 2024

2023-2024 Graduate Catalog

2023-2024 Graduate Catalog [Not Current Academic Year. Consult with Your Academic Advisor for Your Catalog Year]

Public Administration, MPA

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Hobby School of Public Affairs > Public Administration, MPA

The Master of Public Administration Program (MPA) provides higher levels of training and education for pre-service and in-service public managers, and public officials to address major public policy issues in a metropolitan scenario.

Admission Requirements

Admissions decisions for the MPA program will be made on the totality of the student’s application. However, it is expected that the typical well-qualified student will have an undergraduate GPA above 3.0 with scores above 152 on the verbal, 150 on the quantitative, and 4.0 on the analytical writing sections of the GRE.

Applicants must show through either their quantitative GRE score or their performance in previous coursework that they possess the ability to handle the quantitative elements of the curriculum. Students must have an undergraduate degree, although no particular major is required. Applicants to the MPA program are not required to have any professional experience, although such experience enhances their application.

GRE Waiver Option

The Hobby School’s GRE requirement is waived for applicants to the Hobby School’s Master of Public Policy who have at least one of the following from an institution accredited as specified in the UH Minimum Qualifications for Admission to Master’s and Doctoral Programs:

Overall undergraduate GPA of 3.3 and higher (on a 4-point scale)
OR
Master’s or terminal degree

Application Information

For full information on application processing, required documents, and admissions deadlines, please visit the MPA Admission page.

MPA Curriculum and Degree Requirements

Credit hours required for this degree: 38

The MPA degree focuses on the management side in the public sector. The program is designed to be completed in two years, but program length will vary depending on full-time or part-time enrollment. In order to accommodate working students, required classes are offered in the evenings, Monday through Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The total core curriculum consists of nine courses or 29 hours. The remaining three courses are electives oriented to your specialization. This results in an overall total of 12 courses or 38 hours for the MPA degree.

Required Courses (9 courses required: 29 credit hours)

PUBL 6310 - Administrative Theory Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6311 - Public Administration and Policy Implementation Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6313 - Fundamentals of Policy Analysis Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6342 - Budgeting For Public Agencies Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6350 - Public Management Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6410 - Quantitative Methods I Credit Hours: 4.00
PUBL 6415 - Decision Science for Public Affairs Credit Hours: 4.00
PUBL 6398 - Special Probs Publ Adm/Policy Credit Hours: 3.00
Topic(s): Administrative Law and Regulations

Specialization Electives (3 courses required: 9 credit hours)

Three courses are required and chosen in consultation with the program advisor.

The elective curriculum is complemented by nine hours (three courses) in the students’ area of specialization. The specialization courses are chosen by the student and must be approved by the MPA Director.

Early in the second year of the program students are required to submit a formal statement of specialization to the MPA Director. This statement should describe the specialization and the three courses, which will be used to fulfill the requirements. Electives will be tailored to the students’ specialty needs and career goals using an inter-disciplinary approach across UH departments such as:

PUBL 6321 - Seminar in Urban Politics Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6343 - GIS for Urban Applications Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6347 - Seminar in Health Care Policy Credit Hours: 3.00
cross-listed with
POLS 6315 - Health Care Policy Credit Hours: 3.0
PUBL 6346 - Seminar in Emergency Management Credit Hours: 3.00
PUBL 6349 - Seminar in Non-Profit Management Credit Hours: 3.00

MPA Comprehensive Exam

At or near the completion of course work, students are asked to demonstrate their familiarity with the literature in the field and their ability to apply it to problems of public administration in a one-day exam. This exam is typically taken during the last term of course work.

Internship

Determined in consultation with the program advisor. The internship requirement is designed for those who have not had a full time work experience in private, public, or non-profit sector.

Dual Degrees

The Hobby School currently has a dual degree with the UH Law Center (Juris Doctorate/MPA).

Dual degree programs allow students to earn two graduate-level degrees in less time than it would take to complete them sequentially. Students interested in this option must be admitted separately to each of the programs and admission to one has no official bearing on admission to the other.

For more detailed information concerning these dual degree programs, please visit the Dual Degree Programs page.