Master of Public Administration

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Master of Public Administration Mission Statement

The Master of Public Administration (MPA) program prepares individuals to serve as managers in the executive arm of local, state, and federal government, and increasingly non-profit and non-governmental organizations (NGO). MPA students can also become managers in a variety of large, public-serving institutions such as universities, hospitals, and multi-national companies. It is our goal that those completing an MPA Program will increasingly be called to work in large national and multi-national organizations in support of the public good. The program focuses on the systematic investigation of executive organization and management. The main objective of the program is to help students in understanding and recognizing the development and principles of the field of public administration, as well as the making, management, implementation, and assessment of public policy in our society today.

Expected Learning Outcomes

  1. To lead and manage in the public, nonprofit, and health care sectors
  2. To understand, analyze, and participate in the public policy process
  3. To analyze, solve, and track public sector problems
  4. To articulate public sector values

Admissions Requirements

  • Bachelor’s Degree – Student must complete bachelor’s degree from an institution with regional accreditation or equivalent verification in the case of international degrees. An international degree must follow university policies in existence for certifying international degrees and/or credit.
    • Recommended undergraduate course work: Two courses that focused upon American National Government, State and Local Government, or any equivalent courses focused on the three branches of government, or courses about government structure, policy making, and administration and budgeting.
  • Undergraduate Grade Point Average – Students must have achieved an undergraduate GPA of 2.75 or higher on a four (4)-point scale.
  •  Letters of Reference – Two letters of reference from the applicant’s undergraduate instructors or one letter from an instructor and one from a professional source are required.
  •  Personal Statement – Submit an essay detailing the student’s purpose for attending the LMU MPA program, relevant skills, qualification, preparation, and a statement of goals after completing the program.
  • Transfer Credit – A maximum of nine (9) graduate credit hours or the equivalent of graduate work closely related to the MPA degree will be allowed in transfer by approval of the program’s Admissions Committee.
  • Entrance Interview – An entrance interview may be requested if one or more requirements are not met.

Graduation Requirements

  • A minimum of thirty (30) credit hours of graduate course work, including all required courses, is required for graduation with the Master of Public Administration degree General, Nonprofit, and Health Care Policy tracks.
  • Students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.00 or be placed on academic probation. Failure to meet or exceed this standard of academic progress in the subsequent semester will result in dismissal from the program.
  •  All students must complete a comprehensive examination.
    •  Students must complete all required courses in the program prior to taking the comprehensive examination.
    •  Comprehensive examination will be administered in the semester prior to graduation. For instance, students planning to graduate in the Spring semester should complete their comprehensive examination by the end of the preceding Fall semester.
    • Students must schedule their comprehensive examination with the program director by the eighth week of the semester that they plan to take the examination
    • The comprehensive examination is graded on a pass/fail basis.
    • Students unable to pass the comprehensive examination will be required to retake sections for which they did not receive a passing grade. Failure to successfully pass all sections of the comprehensive examination will result in a failure to meet graduation requirements. Students have up to three (3) attempts at a section to achieve a passing score. Students that do not achieve a passing score in a section must enroll in a one (1) hour independent study per section failed to refocus their studies and retake the examination.
  • Completion of all program and university assessments and surveys.

Curriculum & Standards

The curriculum of the MPA program at LMU is designed to enhance a student’s academic qualifications. All classes are preparatory coursework for post-graduate goals in programs leading to a terminal degree. Please note that the semester’s schedules and/or coursework and timeframes are subject to change based upon individual student needs or as determined by the MPA/MSCJ Admissions Committees and Program Directors.

Course Offerings

Required Courses (3 credit hours each; 18 hours):

  • PADM 510 Quantitative Analysis
  • PADM 515 Qualitative Analysis
  • PADM 520 Public Administration
  • PADM 525 Public Policy Process
  • PADM 530 Public Financial Administration
  • PADM 540 Public Service Ethics and Values

Elective Courses (3 credit hours each; 12 hours):

  • PADM 550 Economics for the Public Sector
  • PADM 591 Healthcare Policy
  • PADM 592 Strategic Communication in Healthcare
  • PADM 593 Directing Healthcare Organizations
  • PADM 594 Fiscal Impact of Healthcare Policy
  • PADM 601 Managing Public and Non-Profit Organizations
  • PADM 602 Nonprofit Marketing
  • PADM 603 Nonprofit Board Development
  • PADM 604 Nonprofit Fundraising
  • PADM 611 Legal Context for Policy and Public Management
  • PADM 612 Public Policy in Population Culture
  • PADM 613 Grant Proposal Writing
  • PADM 620 Special Topics in Public Policy
  • PADM 696 Independent Study

Total: 30 Credit Hours

Program Tracks

Track 1: General Public Administration

30 credit hours including a comprehensive examination. See requirements above.

 

Track 2: Nonprofit Management

30 credit hours including a comprehensive examination: 18 core/required PA hours, 3 hours of PA electives, and 9 hours of Nonprofit Management courses.

Choose at least three (3) of the following:

  • PADM 601 Managing Public and Non-profit Organizations (3)
  • PADM 602 Nonprofit Marketing (3)
  • PADM 603 Nonprofit Board Development (3)
  • PADM 604 Nonprofit Fundraising (3)

 

Track 3: Health Care Policy

30 credit hours including a comprehensive examination: 18 core/required PA hours, 3 hours of PA electives, and 9 hours of courses related to the health care field.

Choose at least three (3) of the following:

  • PADM 591 Healthcare Policy
  • PADM 592 Strategic Communication in Healthcare
  • PADM 593 Directing Healthcare Organizations
  • PADM 594 Fiscal Impact of Healthcare Policy

JD-MPA DUAL DEGREE PROGRAM

MU offers a dual degree program through which students may obtain both the Juris Doctor (JD) degree and the Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree. Students enrolled in LMU Law School’s JD program must successfully complete ninety (90) credit hours. The program of legal education includes sixty-seven (67) credit hours of required courses and twenty-three (23) hours of elective courses. Students enrolled in the LMU MPA program must successfully complete thirty (30) credit hours, including eighteen (18) required credit hours and eighteen (12) elective credit hours. Students enrolled in the JD-MPA Dual Degree Program may use up to twelve (12) credit hours of coursework in approved JD elective courses to fulfill MPA program elective credit hours.

You must apply to and qualify for each program separately. Admission to one program does not guarantee admission to the other program.

JD Curriculum

Curriculum LMU offers a traditional three-year, full-time JD program that averages fifteen (15) credit hours/semester. For information on the JD Curriculum, consult the LMU Duncan School of Law Student Handbook and Catalog, page 24.

MPA Curriculum

Students in the JD-MPA Dual Degree Program must complete the following courses:

  • PADM 520 Public Administration
  • PADM 525 Public Policy Process
  • PADM 530 Public Financial Administration
  • PADM 540 Public Service Ethics and Values
  • PADM 510 Quantitative Analysis – OR – PADM 515 Qualitative Analysis
  • PADM Elective

JD-MPA Dual Degree Program Notes

  • Required MPA courses will be offered in a rotation during the summer terms. Dual degree students may take up to twelve (12) hours of MPA coursework during a summer semester if they are NOT taking any law courses. In a summer semester,students enrolled in any law course may only take seven (7) total credit hours of coursework in any program.
  • The MPA portion of the JD-MPA Dual Degree program may be completed in any combination of Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters except for the Falland Spring semesters of the 1L year and the semester immediately following graduation while preparing for the bar examination. Students taking more than sixteen (16) combined credit hours of coursework in a Fall or Spring semester must seek permission to do so from the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the LMU Duncan School of Law. In a Fall or Spring semester, no student enrolled in law courses may take more than eighteen (18) credit hours of any kind, including law courses and graduate program courses.
  • Students enrolled in the LMU JD-MPA Dual Degree Program are encouraged to complete elective requirements in either program through an externship in a legal setting that primarily serves the public, nonprofit, and health care sectors. Students seeking elective credit through an externship for the JD-MPA Dual Degree program must receive written approval from both the law school’s Director of Experiential Learning and the MPA Program Director. See the course description for Externship I/II below for more information.
  • Dual degree students MUST consult with their advisor prior to registering for courses.
  • Students will pay the MPA tuition rate for courses in the MPA program and the JD tuition rate for courses in the JD program, including those used to fulfill MPA requirements. Any merit scholarship awarded as part of admission to the JD program will be applied only to courses in the JD program.

JD-MPA Program Admission Requirements

  • Applicants to JD-MPA Dual Degree program must meet the admissions requirements for each program individually. For admissions requirements to the LMU Duncan School of Law, consult the LMU Duncan School of Law Student Handbook and Catalog.