computer applications, public personnel management, public sector economics, and budgeting in government agencies. Upon completion of these core courses, the student must choose a specialty area for advanced coursework. Students newly admitted to the Master of Public Administration program must take PUA 500 (Perspectives on Public Administration) during their first semester of enrollment.
The Master of Public Administration program offers four specialty areas in response to the various needs for public sector expertise. These specialty areas include: Human Resource Management, International Development, Management Information Systems, and Nonprofit Management and Community Development. Students may select their final 9 semester credit hours from two different graduation options: thesis or coursework. All students must take a comprehensive examination over the core and specialty areas. An oral defense of the thesis is required of those students who elect to undertake that option.
A 3 semester credit hour background course, PUA 600 (Seminar on American Political Institutions and Public Policies), is required of international students and others with limited academic backgrounds in American public administration.
Core Courses (24 semester credit hours):
PUA 500: Perspectives on Public Administration
PUA 501: Quantitative Methods
PUA 503: Research Methods and Policy Analysis
PUA 504: Organization Theory
PUA 505: Managerial Computer Applications
PUA 506: Human Resource Management in the Public Sector
PUA 605: Public Sector Economics
PUA 607: Budgeting in Government Agencies
Specialty Area Courses (9 semester credit hours):
The student must select and complete three specialty area courses at the 600 level in Public Administration (9 semester credit hours) in consultation with the student's advisor.
Internship (suggested for pre-service students, 3 semester credit hours): PUA 699: Internship in Public Administration
Thesis Option (6 semester credit hours plus three additional coursework hours): A thesis is a formal paper reflecting systematic research on a significant problem. It should represent a student's independent research, carried out under the supervision of the Public Administration faculty. A thesis may use primary data collected by the student and/or secondary data collected by governmental and non-governmental organizations. It must, however, provide evidence of originality, appropriate