Master's in Public Policy and Administration Program Overview, Northwestern University School of Continuing Studies

Program Overview:

Public Policy & Administration On-Campus

Northwestern’s part-time MPPA degree program provides students the administrative and analytical competence, as well as leadership skills and theoretical background to rise in the field and drive change at the local, national and international levels. The program encompasses a range of specialized areas — public administration, public policy, global policy — but is informed by the perspective that policy challenges are fluid, interconnected and global. Students learn to think across diverse groups and boundaries. MPPA graduates set their sights on leadership roles in government at the local, regional and federal levels, in nonprofit organizations or in private enterprise. Careers include health services managers, urban and regional planners, community service managers, government IT managers, emergency management, political science research and foreign affairs. Whatever focus they choose, MPPA graduates take satisfaction in helping to shape the policies that affect our lives.

Inside MPPA

Greg Wass
Instructor in the MA in Public Policy and Administration program and senior advisor in the Illinois Governor's Office. Wass facilitates public and private sector collaboration and innovation for better health care and social services for Illinois residents, led the launch of the largest regional multi-government open data site in the U.S. and led the development of the Illinois Health and Human Services Framework project. Wass was recently named in Government Technology's list of the top 25 doers, dreamers and drivers in public sector innovation.

Program Goals

Evaluate the collaborative inter-organizational, inter-governmental, and international public policy and administrative environment
Apply a standard of ethics to policy and administrative context
Design public policies and programs
Evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of public policies and programs
Communicate relevant policy or program information to diverse stakeholders
Lead public organizations to implement policy decisions with respect and understanding for the broader institutional, societal, economic and political environment
Manage public resources to achieve organizational goals

Areas of Specialization

Upon submitting an application, students declare an intended area of specialization from the following options:

Public Adminstration
Public Policy
Global Policy
Health Services Policy (available to on-campus students only)

Curriculum Requirements

The Master's in Public Policy and Administration requires the successful completion of 13 courses to obtain a degree. Students complete nine core courses, two elective courses corresponding to a chosen area of specialization, a leadership course and a capstone (498) or thesis (590) project. Review complete curriculum details and specialization electives for the MPPA program.

Core Courses:

LEADERS 481-0 Leadership
The purpose of this course is to identify the fundamental leadership behaviors that enable people to excel in their careers, and to help students apply these behaviors to personal and professional success. The course builds from the basic premise that leadership is learned and looks at the theory and practice of leadership at the individual and organizational level. The course will explore definitions of leadership, the importance of leadership, leadership styles, the role of vision and integrity, the importance of giving and receiving feedback, how to lead change and solve problems, effective teamwork, and communication strategies. The culmination of the class will be a personal leadership development plan formulated by each student.

View All Sections

LEADERS 481-DL Leadership

The purpose of this course is to identify the fundamental leadership behaviors that enable people to excel in their careers, and to help students apply these behaviors to personal and professional success. The course builds from the basic premise that leadership is learned, and looks at the theory and practice of leadership at the individual and organizational level. The course will explore definitions of leadership, the importance of leadership, leadership styles, the role of vision and integrity, the importance of giving and receiving feedback, how to lead change and solve problems, effective teamwork, and communication strategies.

View All Sections

MPPA 401-0 OR 401-DL Research Methods

This course provides students with a basic understanding of qualitative and quantitative research methodology frequently used in social science and policy research. The course content includes research question formation, observation and interview based research methods, analysis of qualitative data, survey development, and weighting and sampling techniques. Students will have the opportunity to apply methods to pursue a research topic of their own design. An overview of publicly available quantitative data will be provided, and comparative policy research will be discussed.

Required as a core course for students admitted for fall 2012 and after. Counts toward all MPPA specializations as an elective for students admitted prior to fall 2012.

View All Sections

MPPA 402-0 OR 402-DL Public Finance and Budgeting

Public budgeting is one of the most important responsibilities of democratic governance. The budget defines policy, sets priorities, allocates scarce public resources, and distributes the burden of paying for public goods and services. The budget is inescapably both a political document and a management tool. The purpose of this course is to understand the complexities of the budget process and its central role in both democratic institutions and the profession of public administration. Students will be introduced to the public budgetary process and to key budget theories, practices, and methodologies. The budget structure and process will be reviewed as well as the role of the public administrator and other participants in the process. The course will also examine politics in the budget process and the role of interest groups in decision-making; more specifically, the role of politics in both establishing public spending priorities and in distributing the burden of taxes and fees. Lastly, students will learn about concepts and methodologies relating to program cost analysis and how the budget may be used as a management tool.

MPPA and MPPA distance learning program core course.

View All Sections

MPPA 403-0 OR 403-DL Fundamentals of Public Admin

This course is an introduction to the basic skills useful to public administrators and policy analysts seeking to work in an analytical or managerial position in the public or not-for profit-sectors. This course is structured to introduce students to both the principles and contextual constraints that form the environment of the modern public administrator. It will cover a basic understanding of the process, policy, and politics of public administration and public management at the national, state, and local level. Fundamental theories, practices, and concepts that contribute to the administration and understanding of complex public sector organizations are explored, as well as basic practices and techniques of modern public administration. The course assumes a basic foundation in political science theory, public policy, or public administration usually garnered at the undergraduate level as well as a working knowledge of contemporary issues that confront governments today. Counts toward all MPPA specializations as an elective for students admitted prior to fall 2006. Required as a core course for students admitted for fall 2006 and after.

MPPA and MPPA distance learning program core course.

View All Sections

MPPA 404-0 OR 404-DL Microeconomics

Economics is about choice, and microeconomics is the study of resource allocation choices, beginning with how consumers and producers make choices. This course is aimed at developing student understanding of microeconomic theory, especially as it concerns the relationship between the market economy and public policy. Topics include consumer behavior and the theory of demand; production, cost, supply functions; choices under uncertainty, insurance; competitive equilibrium; subsidies, taxes, price controls; monopoly and monopsony; price discrimination and public utility pricing; monopolistic competition; general equilibrium theory and welfare economics; information theory; and public goods, externalities and market failure.

Required core course in the distance learning program and for on-campus students admitted fall 2012 and after. Counts toward all MPPA specializations as an elective for on-campus students admitted prior to fall 2012.

View All Sections

MPPA 405-0 OR 405-DL Statistics for Research

This course teaches students the fundamentals of measuring political data, summarizing observations, and analyzing contingency tables. Descriptive statistics, including central tendency, dispersion, and data display; probability; distributions, including binomial and normal; inference, including confidence intervals and hypothesis testing; correlation; bivariate regression; contingency tables and chi-square. MPPA core course. Students will do homework using SPSS, a statistical software package. SPSS is installed in some Northwestern computer labs and can be rented (downloaded to your personal computer)from www.e-academy.com. The Graduate Pack is sufficient for class.

MPPA and MPPA distance learning program core course.

View All Sections

Public Policy & Administration On-Campus

Inside MPPA

Program Goals

Areas of Specialization

Curriculum Requirements

Core Courses:

Elective Courses:

Public Policy & Administration

Graduate Options

Northwestern University SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES

Public Policy & Administration On-Campus

Inside MPPA

Impact of Urbanization on Public Policy and Administration

Government Technology

Challenges and Opportunities Working in Government

Program Goals

Areas of Specialization

Curriculum Requirements

Core Courses:

Elective Courses:

Public Policy & Administration

Graduate Options