UT Tyler College of Arts and Sciences

Master of Public Administration

The Master of Public Administration degree is a professional course of study for persons in, or preparing for, mid-level or upper-level management positions in public and nonprofit organizations. The program emphasizes the theoretical, practical, and analytical abilities required of persons holding responsible public positions. Centered in the Department of Social Sciences, it also permits the incorporation of specialized fields of interest such as general administration, criminal justice, urban and regional planning, research and evaluation, and environmental management.

 

Admission Requirements

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.

2. A minimum total score (Verbal and Quantitative) on the General Test of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) of 1000.

3. A minimum grade point average of 3.20 on a 4-point scale on the last 60 hours of upper-division coursework leading to the baccalaureate degree.

4. A minimum grade point average of 3.20 on at least 15 hours of undergraduate and/or graduate coursework in the social sciences.

5. A minimum grade of "C" in an upper-division social science research methods course.

6. Consideration is also given to one or more of the following: the applicant's demonstrated commitment to his or her chosen field of study; socioeconomic background; first generation college graduate; multilingual proficiency; geographic region of residence; and level of responsibility in other matters including extracurricular activities, employment, community service, and family responsibilities.

7. Students who satisfy all requirements except the acceptable GRE score may be admitted under the condition that they obtain a grade of B or higher on a prescribed set of graduate courses.

 

Transfer of Credit

A student may transfer a maximum of 9 semester hours of graduate credit in which a grade of "B" or better has been earned from approved institutions. Such credit will be accepted for the degree program only if approved by the admissions committee, and the graduate coordinator.

 

Degree Requirements

Each candidate for the degree must satisfactorily complete 36 hours of course work as indicated:

A. core curriculum (21 hours required):

* PADM 5330 Survey of Public Administration

* PADM 5331 Information Systems in Public Administration

* PADM 5332 Public Budgeting and Finance

* PADM 5336 Administrative Ethics

* PADM 5337 Administrative Law

* PADM 5350 Seminar in Human Resources Management

* PADM 5396 Research Methods

B. area of concentration (at least 9 hours)

The MPA program offers 5 areas of concentration: general administration, criminal justice, urban and regional planning, research and evaluation, and environmental management. Depending on the area of concentration, up to 12 hours of restricted electives may be required.

C. Electives (3 to 6 hours) are to be chosen with the consent of Graduate Coordinator to strengthen students' programs and might emphasize either substantive content or skill development. Students without previous agency experience may elect to take an additional 6 hours of internship. Internship credit must be in addition to the 36 hour degree requirement.

 

Graduation Requirements

All candidates for the master of public administration degree must also meet the following requirements:

A. A cumulative grade point average of 3.0 (4.0 basis) on all work taken for graduate credit. No course with a grade below "C" may be applied toward this degree.

B. Satisfactory performance on a comprehensive written or oral examination, to be taken during the student's last semester of enrollment, over the work covered in his degree program. Any student who fails the comprehensive examination may, upon recommendation of the Graduate Coordinator, be granted permission to take a second examination. Upon failing the second examination, the student will be dropped from the program.