MPP and MPA Programs
California State University Sacramento, Department of Public Policy and Administration (PPA)
Program Comparison Highlights
Institutional Structure: TO COME
Curriculum Design: TO COME
Professional Program Features: TO COME
Program Summary
Website: http://www.csus.edu/ppa/
University: California State University Sacramento
Location: Sacramento, California
Degree: Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA)
Marketing Approach: "The Master of Public Policy and Administration is an interdisciplinary program designed to equip its graduates with conceptual, analytic, and problem-solving skills and experiences enabling them to deal with public sector policy and administrative issues, problems, and opportunities. The Sacramento State program differs from other similar programs in that it focuses on California state and local levels of government. This attractive feature is facilitated by the proximity of the CSUS campus to the main operations of the California state government. The proximity offers significant advantages to students in the program, providing them with a ready "laboratory" for observing the policy and administrative issues they will confront professionally and for gaining experience alongside existing practitioners in public policy and administration. In particular, the program’s internship feature is greatly strengthened by the placements available in California state government, local government and related organizations. The program’s curricular design and scheduling of courses allow students to complete the program in four semesters if enrolled full-time. In addition, part-time students may complete the program under a five- or six-semester schedule. Classes are scheduled in the late afternoon and evening hours to accommodate the scheduling interests of students who are employed in the daytime or who have other obligations that require evening schedules." (At http://www.csus.edu/ppa/about/index.html, accessed 18 May 2014.)
Degrees Awarded per Year: TBD [Information will be requested from the School]
Academic Unit within University: The Department of Public Policy and Administration (PPA)
Related Academic Units and Degrees: The PPA's graduate programs are listed, by graduate unit, at http://www.csus.edu/ppa/index.html. The units providing the degrees most closely related to the MPP include: MPPA and JD joint degree program with University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law and the Certificate in Collaborative Governance.
Posted Tuition: $3,947.00 tuition and fees per year for MPPA for domestic students entering in 2013 (at http://www.csus.edu/schedule/Fall2013Spring2014/fees.html, accessed 18 May 2014).
Concentration/Curriculum Overview: The Master of Public Policy and Administration is an exciting professional degree opportunity for students interested in a public service career. The program draws together the diverse perspectives, technologies and skills now essential to a successful career in public management or in one of the many fields within the public policy arena. Unlike programs with a more limited focus, ours provides skills necessary for management and budgeting, as well as analytical tools helpful for understanding the economic implications of policy choices, evaluating policy options, developing political strategies for advancing proposals, and conducting/assessing research projects. Additionally, consideration of ethics and the public good is infused throughout the curriculum.
MPPA Degree Requirements
Summary: The graduate program in Public Policy and Administration curriculum consists of four components.
- Academic Core (27 units)
- Electives (6 units)
- Internship (3 units)
- Culminating Experience (thesis/project, 3 units)
Duration: 2 years (four terms of full-time study).
Academic Prerequisite: Applicants must possess a bachelor's degree with a GPA of 3.0 or better. Prerequisites ~ A grade of B or better is required in all prerequisite courses. Prerequisites are: microeconomics, statistics (recommended), and government/political science. Applicants with prerequisite deficiencies may be required to complete additional course work.
Number of One-Semester-Equivalent Courses Required for Completion: 13, including the internship
Number of Required Courses: 11, including the internship
Number of Electives Typically Taken (difference between above two entries): 2
Number of Electives Offered within Program: 7
Comprehensive Examination: No
Thesis Required: Yes, Culminating Experience (PPA 500)
Internship Required: Yes, Public Policy and Administration Internships are required for students who lack sufficient professional administrative or analytic experience.
International Study Required: No
Co-curricular Activities Supportive to Degree
Professional Development and Career Support: No
Student-run Journal: No
Applied Projects: No
Pro Bono Consulting: No
Courses Offered: The full list of 2013-2014 PPA courses is found at: http://catalog.csus.edu/current/programs/ppa.html#Master. In the CourseMap below, required courses are indicated by (R). Courses profiled in the Atlas as "Compass Courses" are marked with an asterisk (*). For these courses, the links in the CourseMap point to the profiles on the Atlas. For the remaining courses, the links point to the descriptions on the Sacramento course listing site.
Course Material Online: Short course descriptions, and most syllabi are available to the public online at http://www.csus.edu/ppa/syllabi/archive/index.html.
Instructional Distribution (PEACO Profile): The distribution of instruction offered, based on the course assignments to subjects in the Sacramento Course Map below, weighted by estimated enrolment based on the number of elective sections offered and number of electives typically taken is displayed below. [See note on PEACO Algorithm.]
|
I. Courses Required and Offered |
|
|
a. Number of one-semester courses required for degree |
13 |
|
b. Number of required courses |
11 |
|
c. Number of elective courses taken (a - b) |
2 |
|
d. Number of elective courses offered |
8 |
|
e. Enrolment weight of elective courses (c/d) |
0 |
|
Number of weeks (classes) per semester |
14 |
|
|
|
|
II. Distribution of Courses (Enrolment-Adjusted) among Atlas |
|
|
Domains and Subjects |
|
|
Tools and Skills |
59.6% |
|
- Strategy and Structure |
11.5% |
|
- Economic Analysis |
15.4% |
|
|
- Quantitative Methods and Management Sciences |
15.4% |
|
- Leadership, Communication, Professional Practice |
17.3% |
|
Institutions and Context |
25.0% |
|
- Democratic Institutions and Policy Process |
17.3% |
|
- Ethics and Accountability |
0.0% |
|
- Social, Political, Global and Local Contexts |
7.7% |
|
Management Functions |
7.7% |
|
- Public Financial Management |
7.7% |
|
- Evaluation and Performance Measurement |
0.0% |
|
- Other Management Functions |
0.0% |
|
Policy Sectors |
7.7% |
|
- Fiscal, Monetary and Tax Policy |
0.0% |
|
- International Development |
0.0% |
|
- Health |
0.0% |
|
- Other Policy Sectors |
7.7% |
|
Total |
100% |
|
|
|
|
III. Number of Courses in "NASPAA-required Subjects" taken by |
|
|
Typical Student in NASPAA Required Competency Domains |
|
|
Lead and Manage in Public Governance |
1.96 |
|
Participate and Contribute to the Policy Process |
2.84 |
|
Analyze, Synthesize, Solve Problems and Make Decisions |
4.94 |
|
Articulate and Apply Public Service Perspectives |
1.51 |
|
Communicate and Interact with Workforce and Citizenry |
0.90 |
|
Total Course Equivalents taken in Required Competencies |
12.15 |
|
|
|
|
IV. Ratio of Courses in "NASPAA-required Subjects" taken by |
|
|
Typical Student to Estimated Requirement for Competency |
|
|
Lead and Manage in Public Governance |
0.98 |
|
Participate and Contribute to the Policy Process |
1.42 |
|
Analyze, Synthesize, Solve Problems and Make Decisions |
1.73 |
|
Articulate and Apply Public Service Perspectives |
0.84 |
|
Communicate and Interact with Workforce and Citizenry |
0.66 |
|
Ratio of Total Instruction in Competencies to Amount Needed |
1.21 |
Source: At http://www.csus.edu/schedule/Fall2013Spring2014/fees.html, http://www.csus.edu/ppa/curriculum/index.html (accessed 18 May 2014).
Page Created By: Matthew Seddon on 18 May 2014 and updated by Ian Clark on 9 June 2014 and Dave Marshall on 3 April 2015. Updating and editing may consist of substantive and/or formatting changes. Unless otherwise noted, however, information regarding a program's structure, curricular offerings and PEACO score is based on the program as it was on the date of page creation. The content presented on this page, except for the assignments of courses to Atlas subjects, the Instructional Distribution analysis, and the Commentary is drawn directly from the source(s) cited above, and consists of direct quotations or close paraphrases.
Sacramento MPPA Course Map
C o u r s e s O f f e r e d, l i s t e d b y P u b l i c P o l i c y a n d M a n a g e m e n t S u b j e c t