School of Arts, Communication, and Global Studies

Return to: Graduate Programs

MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY AND ADMINISTRATION (MPPA) DEGREE PROGRAM

Program Mission

The mission of the Master of Public Policy and Administration Program at York College of Pennsylvania is (1) to provide public service education and training to individuals seeking or already working in government, nonprofit, or advocacy related careers; (2) to prepare these individuals for leadership and problem solving roles in their organizations and communities; and (3) to give them the methods, techniques, strategies, and experiences that they can use to understand challenging policy and administrative problems and develop appropriate and applicable solutions in response.

Learning Outcomes

Students earning the Master of Public Policy and Administration degree from York College will be able to do the following.

1. Articulate and apply a public service perspective.

2. Understand, explain, participate in, and contribute to the policy process.

3. Lead and manage in public governance and administration.

4. Emulate the thought processes, professional work habits, ethical practices, and decision making approaches exhibited by career professionals during experiential learning opportunities.

5. Use critical thinking capacity to systematically analyze and evaluate questions, ideas, issues, policies, programs, and their implications; and make subsequent decisions based on ethical and informed selection and interpretation of supporting information, research, evidence, data, and findings.

6. Express knowledge, findings, interpretations, and prescriptions through written, oral, and visual communication skills accepted as standard conventions in the public service profession when communicating with peers, political leaders, and a diverse and changing workforce and citizenry.

Suggested Course Sequencing

Undergraduate Early Entrance 4+1 Option. Any undergraduate student in any major at York College may pursue the Early Entrance 4+1 MPPA degree option, assuming they have met the requirements for Early Entrance. Majors in the Department of History and Political Science may count some of their MPPA requirements toward their four-year BA and the MPPA simultaneously, though it depends on the particular major and the approval of the Director of the MPPA Program and the Chair of the Department of History and Political Science. Any undergraduate student in any major at York College may take any of the MPPA courses offered during a given semester.

York College students who take 18 credits of MPPA courses during the last two years of their undergraduate career can complete the MPPA degree with one extra year of study beyond graduating with their four-year bachelor’s degree. Up to 18 credits may count toward both the bachelor’s degree and MPPA degree, but again, it depends on the particular major and the approval of the Director of the MPPA Program and the Chair of the Department of History and Political Science.

Students wishing to pursue the Early Entrance 4+1 option must declare their intent by the end of their sophomore year to ensure that all bachelor’s degree requirements can be satisfied. Other than Political Science majors, students should complete all general education requirements (except for 6 constellation credits) and all major and undergraduate elective requirements (except for 12 credits of any combination thereof) by the end of their junior year. (Up to 12 credits can potentially be acquired during summer sessions, though there is no guarantee regarding summer course offerings. There will most likely be at least one MPPA course offered every summer.)

After completing their four-year bachelor’s degree, students pursuing the Early Entrance 4+1 option can complete the remaining 18 credits of MPPA requirements over the course of the ensuing semesters, including the summer immediately after graduation and the summer at the end of the fifth year. The standard full-time load for graduate students is 9 credits per semester, though a 12 credit semester (while not recommended) may be possible if students have no other responsibilities, such as a part-time job, and can devote all their attention to the coursework. A 12 credit semester must be approved by the Director of the MPPA Program and the Chair of the Department of History and Political Science. No graduate student in the MPPA Program will be permitted to take more than 12 credits in a single semester. Below is the suggested course sequence of graduate courses for the Early Entrance 4+1 program.

Two-Year Full Time. For any interested candidate with a Bachelor’s Degree (alumni or otherwise), the program can be completed in a balanced and manageable way by taking nine credits per semester for four semesters. (Up to 9 of the following required credits can potentially be acquired during the summer, though there is no guarantee regarding summer course offerings. There will most likely be at least one MPPA course offered each summer after the program begins.) Below is the suggested course sequence of graduate courses for the two-year program.

Three Year Part Time. For any interested candidate with a Bachelor’s Degree (alumni or otherwise), the program can be completed in three years by taking six credits per semester for six semesters. (Up to 12 of the following required credits can potentially be acquired during the summer, though there is no guarantee regarding summer course offerings. There will most likely be at least one MPPA course offered each summer after the program begins.) Below is the suggested course sequence of graduate courses for the three-year part-time program.

Four-Year Part Time. For any interested candidate with a Bachelor’s Degree (alumni or otherwise), the program can be completed in four years by taking three credits in each fall, spring, and summer session across a four-year period. (There will most likely be at least one MPPA course offered each summer after the program begins.) Below is the suggested course sequence of graduate courses for the four-year part-time program.

Application Procedures

Application for admission to the Master of Public Policy and Administration Program may be made for fall, spring, or summer sessions. To be considered for admission, applicants should submit their applications and all required supporting materials to the York College Graduate Admissions Office. Applicants are admitted on a rolling basis.

Grades and Degree Progress

Students are required to complete all core Master of Public Policy and Administration courses (MPA course prefix) with a minimum grade of 3.0. Student who do not meet this requirement may repeat a course once in order to continue in the program. To do so, the student must obtain prior approval from the MPPA Director.

Students enrolled in the Master of Public Policy and Administration program must maintain at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average to remain in good standing and to be eligible to graduate. If a student’s cumulative grade point average falls below 3.0, the student has one semester to bring their grade point average above the 3.0 mark.

Students may have no more than six credits of MPA Electives with a grade of 2.0.

Failed courses (courses in which a student earned a grade of 0) must be retaken in the earliest semester that the course is offered. A particular course may be retaken one time. A student may repeat no more than two courses total. For any repeated course, both grades will appear on the transcript but only the highest grade will be used in calculating the GPA.

Return to: Graduate Programs