Unlock your potential with the University of Arizona's Master of Public Administration program. Our innovative curriculum is tailored to empower you with the leadership, strategy, and real-world skills needed to excel in the public service sector. Designed for today’s busy professionals, our evening courses and flexible online schedule will allow you to balance your career while advancing your education.
Whether you're aiming for leadership roles in government, nonprofits, or public agencies, our program gives you the cutting-edge expertise and confidence to drive change and make an impact. Prepare for a successful future in public administration—on your terms.
Core Competencies
Students who graduate from our Master of Public Administration program will have the following core competencies:
Curriculum
Our curriculum is developed and updated to make sure it is reflective of the student body we serve, as well as the challenges they may face as public administrators. The Master of Public Administration program aims to prepare students to successfully navigate an ever-changing public service environment. Graduates of our program learn to incorporate different leadership strategies that support organizational success and create positive, effective working environments. Our core courses, and electives taught within the department, are offered in the evenings on the Main Campus to accommodate our many students who wish to work full-time while pursuing their degree.
To further ensure our students’ success after graduation, our curriculum includes a Capstone Project that requires students to engage in administrative projects and evaluations, while remaining under the guidance of our extensive professional and academic faculty. The Capstone project takes place during the final semester of study to allow all classroom and internship knowledge to be incorporated into the experience. Our graduates are qualified to enter the nonprofit, government or public agency workforce, fully equipped for success!
Required Coursework
The two-year (full-time) course of study for the Master of Public Administration includes 42 required unit hours divided among four components: core, electives, internship, and capstone.
Core Courses (24 units)
This course focuses on micro-economic theory and applications for public policy.
This course focuses on understanding and analyzing interactions, effectiveness, and complexities of organization structures.
This course focuses on the various theories of how public policy is formulated.
This course focuses on techniques for evaluating processes and outcomes of public sector and non-profit programs.
This course focuses on financial management and budgeting in the public and nonprofit sectors, as well as techniques and organizational issues.
This course will examine leadership and ethical questions encountered by managers and leaders in the management of nonprofit and government organizations. The study of leadership and ethical principles will be combined through the examination of case studies regarding problems in the management of nonprofit and government organizations.
This course provides a graduate-level introduction to statistical and data analysis for public and nonprofit managers, which emphasizes both the practical and theoretical aspects of statistical analysis as it relates to the administration of public and nonprofit organizations.
The course covers basic statistical concepts such as descriptive statistics, probability theory, inference, sampling and distributions, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis.
The overarching goal of the course is to provide students with a set of decision-making tools to use throughout their careers as public administrators and nonprofit managers.
This course is designed to provide an overview of the human resource issues that affect managers in public and nonprofit organizations. It will also address strategies in which volunteer leaders, managers, and human resource professionals can use to manage their organizations within the constraints of state and federal laws.
Please note that the following sample plans are based on Main Campus enrollment and the courses are listed according to the semesters in which they are typically taught to aid in planning. However, course availability is subject to change at departmental discretion.
2-Year Sample Plan 1.5-Year Sample Plan
Elective Courses (12 units)
Electives are available from a variety of concentrations in public administration. Students are welcome to take all 12 units of elective coursework from one or multiple concentrations.
Any coursework taken outside of SGPP will need approval from the Program Director and Graduate Programs Manager prior to enrollment. No more than 12 units of elective coursework may be taken outside of the School of Government & Public Policy and must be at the graduate level. Students are responsible for adhering to this policy even if a course is approved by the department. Please note that courses may not be offered every semester or academic year, and some courses may not award you 3 units.
Faculty members who have expertise in specific areas are also listed for students to contact to further discuss course options based on specific career goals.
More information coming soon!
Internship (3 units)
All MPA students are required to complete a 3 credit/135 hour on-the-job internship experience (PA 593: Internship). Internship Waivers are available for career students with managerial experience, military affiliated students, and Coverdell Fellows/Peace Corps Service members. Students have been placed in internship positions at the municipal, state and federal government, with nonprofit organization and international agencies.
Capstone Course/Project (3 units)
The MPA capstone project is an opportunity for students to showcase what they have mastered in the program. The project is based on the needs of a community partner and is team-based (Main Campus) or solo- based (Arizona Online). The project plan typically includes an overall project goal, master's competencies addressed by the project, design implementation, evaluation assessment and milestones. The project contributes to the development and enforcement of the student's knowledge and skill sets in the field of public management and policy.
Please note the capstone course is available as a spring only course and should be one of the final courses completed in the program.
Enrollment requirements:
- Students should be in good academic standing for capstone enrollment.
- 6 of 8 core courses should be completed prior to enrollment in the Capstone Course.
Students must submit a Master's Plan of Study in GradPath and have it approved by all reviewers prior to enrollment in Capstone Course. See the Graduation Checklist for more information.