Department of Social 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, local government management, and non-profit management.

Admission Requirements

1. A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.
2. A minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4 point scale on the last 60 hours of undergraduate and/or graduate coursework. Candidates with advanced degrees will be given preference.
3. Three years of full-time employment in a public or non-profit organization is required. A curriculum vita should be submitted to document employment in a public or non-profit organization. A satisfactory score on the Verbal and Quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) may be substituted for the employment requirement. The GRE requirement can be waived if the applicant earned a 3.25 overall undergraduate GPA or has previously earned a graduate degree, from an accredited university.
4. A letter expressing interest and motivation for pursuing the degree should be submitted.
5. 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.
6. A course in research methods is recommended before admission.
   
   

MPA Degree Requirements

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

Core Curriculum (24 hours required)

MANA 5320 Organizational Behavior
PADM 5331 Information Systems in Public Administration
PADM 5332 Public Budgeting and Finance
PADM 5336 Administrative Ethics
PADM 5350 Seminar in Human Resources Management
PADM 5396 Research Methods
PADM 5397 Advanced Social Science Analysis
PADM 5353 Public Administration Capstone Seminar

 

Area of Concentration (12 hours)

The MPA program offers 3 areas of concentration: criminal justice, municipal management, and non-profit management.

Criminal Justice:
CRIJ 5302 Judicial Policy and Social Processes 
CRIJ 5303 Contemporary Criminological Theory 
CRIJ 5307 Criminal Justice Policy
CRIJ 5313 Contemporary Issues in Corrections (or)
     CRIJ 5332 Law Enforcement: Environment and Practice

Local Government:
PADM 5307 Metropolitan Problems
PADM 5339 Urban and Regional Planning
PADM 5385 Studies in Demography
PADM 5308 Local Government Management (or)
 PADM5309   Public Sector Grant Writing

Non-profit:
PADM 5307 Metropolitan Problems
PADM 5312 Non-Profit Management
PADM 5309 Public Sector Grant Writing
PADM 5313 Strategic Planning for Non-Profit

 

Graduation Requirements

All candidates for the Master of Public Administration degree must also meet the following requirements:

1. 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.
2. A grade no lower than “B” in the capstone course. 

Proposed Two-Year Course Rotation:

• 2024-2026 Course Schedule

UT Tyler Department of Social Sciences
Division of Public Administration
David Scott
Office: 903.565.6582
Building: CAS #133

• More Information About the Public Administration MPA Degree