Dr. Glenn P. Hastedt, Department Head
Dr. B. Douglas Skelley, Graduate Coordinator
For information, call (540) 568-6149
Web site: http://www.jmu.edu/polisci/mpa/
Professors
A. Eksterowicz, R. Roberts, D. Skelley
Assistant Professor
E. Williams
Admission
Mission
Master of Public Administration
Five-Year Degree Program
Financial Assistance
Further Information
Course Offerings
Admission
The Graduate Record
Examination or the Graduate Management Admission Test is required of all
applicants for the Master of Public Administration program as well as strong
undergraduate grades. Applicants should consult with the M.P.A. coordinator
concerning admission standards.
Mission
Through research, skill development, and advanced study of
public organizations, politics, and the law, the Master of Public
Administration program strives to enhance the effectiveness of public employees
and aspiring public employees for work in government, nonprofit, and private,
government-contracting organizations.
Goals
Through offering the Master of Public Administration, the
recognized professional degree in public administration, the program strives
to:
§ enhance the administrative knowledge and
skills of those already employed as professionals in government, nonprofit
organizations and firms that deal extensively with government.
§ prepare “pre-service” students, especially
those with undergraduate degrees that have public sector applicability, with
its internship component.
Master of Public Administration
The Master of Public
Administration degree requires 36 credit hours of course work and 6 credits of
internship. The internship is not required of “in-service” students, those
presently employed or recently employed in a substantive position in the public
sector. Applicants with strong undergraduate preparation that complements or
duplicates elements of the program may be exempted from certain courses or have
some of the required credits waived. In no case, however, may a student take
less than 30 credit hours of academic course work, exclusive of the internship.
After careful review of the student’s record, the program coordinator will
determine if courses or credits will be waived.
The curriculum consists of a
common component and a concentration. The common curriculum enables students to
function effectively in the public and non-profit sectors. Students will learn
concepts of organization, public management, human resource administration,
program and policy evaluation, budgeting, and relevant law. There are two
defined concentrations: health administration and public sector communication.
In addition, students, in consultation with the coordinator, may design an
individualized concentration.
The individualized
concentration may draw upon courses in other graduate programs at JMU and
graduate courses offered by other accredited institutions, including online
courses. Students should be aware, however, that the College of Graduate and
Professional Programs policy allows no more than nine credit hours of
transferred course work to count toward a student’s graduate degree. Any
transfer courses require the approval of the public administration coordinator.
In addition to a concentration
students who do not have a significant professional work background in
administration/management are expected to complete a supervised internship with
a public or nonprofit agency. The internship will support the student’s concentration.
Successful performance on a comprehensive examination is required of all
candidates for the M.P.A. degree. Information concerning the comprehensive
examination can be obtained from the coordinator of the M.P.A. program.
A student admitted to the
program must seek advice from the program coordinator before registering for
classes. The coordinator will also assist the student in planning the degree
program, taking into account the nature of the student’s undergraduate
preparation and professional experience, if any.
Students in the Master of
Education program may minor in political science by completing 12 hours of
political science or public administration courses.
Master of Public Administration Degree Requirements
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Core Curriculum
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Credit
Hours
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POSC 505. Seminar in American Government
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3
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PUAD 515. Legal Environment of Public Administration
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3
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PUAD 605. Research Design for Policy Evaluation
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3
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PUAD 606. Program Evaluation in Public Administration
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3
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PUAD 620
Seminar in the Politics of the Administrative Process
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3
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PUAD 625. Seminar in Public Management Issues
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3
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PUAD 641. Public Budgeting
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3
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MBA 650. Managing Human Resources
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3
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PUAD 696. Internship in Public Administration
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6
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30
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Concentrations
(choose one)
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Health Care Administration Concentration
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HTH 659. Health Care Environment
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3
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HTH 660. Health Economics
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3
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HTH 661.
Financial Administration of Health Service Organizations
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3
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HTH 669. Modern Health Care Administration
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3
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Public Sector Communication Concentration
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Choose one of two:
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3
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TSC 510. Seminar in Technical and Scientific Communication
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TSC 520. Technical and Scientific Communication for Nonnative Speakers
of English
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TSC 530. Research Methods in
Technical and Scientific Communication
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3
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TSC 540. Technical and Scientific Editing
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3
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|
Choose one of three:
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3
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TSC
625. Government Writing
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TSC
640. Proposal and Grant Writing
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TSC
650. Electronic and Online Publication
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Individualized Concentration
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Four graduate
courses selected in consultation with the M.P.A. coordinator
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12
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Total Credits
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Five-Year Degree Program
The five-year plan offers a
program for the JMU undergraduate that, if the student performs satisfactorily,
leads to the M.P.A. in five years - four undergraduate years and one graduate
year of study. The five-year M.P.A. requires 30 graduate credits in academic
course work. A student interested in the five-year M.P.A. should meet with the
M.P.A. coordinator early in the sophomore year and complete a Five-Year Degree
Application. At this time, the student and the M.P.A. coordinator will adopt a
plan of study for the next three years. The plan will include a schedule of
public administration courses and the choice of a concentration. The
concentration should be tailored to support the student’s career goals. The
plan is tentative and may be modified by the student with the permission of the
M.P.A. coordinator. The student should meet with the M.P.A. coordinator
periodically to review the plan and modify as appropriate.
Students entering the five-year
M.P.A. program are not required to major in public administration as
undergraduates: they may major in any field. However, they are required to
complete the public administration courses listed below while undergraduates
and will be required to complete 6-9 hours of reserve graduate credit (see
“Reserve Graduate Credit) while still undergraduates. Students wishing to
continue in the program must earn a 3.0 (B) grade point average or better in
those courses.
In addition, the student must
take one or more courses in the student’s chosen area of concentration, earning
a 3.0 grade point average or better. The student should do sufficient work in
the area of concentration to qualify for graduate courses in that chosen area.
Graduate work done in the area of concentration may include 500 level courses
subject to the constraint that at least half of the student’s total course load
should be numbered 600 or higher.
The student must formally
apply for acceptance into the graduate M.P.A. program during the spring of his
or her junior year. A five-year program student must begin the program in the
fall semester. The student must submit a transcript of all courses taken at
James Madison University and other colleges and universities. The student must
also submit Graduate Record Examination (GRE) or Graduate Management Admission
Test (GMAT) scores for review. The student may also submit recommendations from
two James Madison University faculty members. The M.P.A. admissions committee
will not act on an application until the committee receives a completed
application. The completed application includes grades of B or above for all
undergraduate courses required for acceptance into the five-year program.
Acceptance into the five-year program is conditional. The
student must receive acceptable GRE or GMAT scores and earn a B or higher on
the three reserve graduate courses taken during the student’s fourth year of
undergraduate study.
Five-Year Recommended
Schedule
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Undergraduate Curriculum
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Credit Hours
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Freshman or Sophomore
Year
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GPOSC 225. U.S. Government
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4
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PUAD 265. Public Administration
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3
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Sophomore Year
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POSC 295. Research Methods
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4
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Sophomore or Junior Year
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POSC 302. State and Local Government
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3
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PUAD 381. Public Budgeting
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3
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Junior Year
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MGT 365. Human Resource Management
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3
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Junior or Senior Year
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POSC 405. Seminar in American Government
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3
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PUAD 415. Legal Environment of Public Administration
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3
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Concentration
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|
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The student should do sufficient work in the area of
concentration to qualify for graduate courses in that chosen area (See
individual concentration listings for specific credit information).
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|
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Total
Undergraduate Credits
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|
Reserve Graduate Courses
Undergraduate students nearing completion of their
undergraduate degrees may take up to nine hours of graduate course work for
reserve graduate credit during their senior year after being fully accepted to
the College of Graduate and Professional Programs in the usual manner.
The student will need to complete three graduate courses for
reserve credit in the senior year. The reserve graduate credits do not count
toward the undergraduate degree or toward any undergraduate major or minor:
they are held in reserve for the graduate M.P.A. Thus the student must meet all
requirements for the undergraduate degree without counting these courses.
Written permission to take reserve graduate courses must be
obtained from the M.P.A. coordinator and the dean of the College of Graduate
and Professional Programs prior to enrollment. The student should apply for
permission during the junior year. The student should complete the following
three courses.
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Fourth Year Reserve Graduate Credit
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Fall
of Senior Year
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PUAD 620.
Seminar in the Politics of the Administrative Process
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3
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Spring
of Senior Year
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PUAD 641.
Public Budgeting
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3
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PUAD 625.
Seminar in Public Management Issues
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3
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Total Reserve Graduate Credits
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Fifth
Year Graduate Credit
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Fall
of Fifth Year
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PUAD 605.
Research Design for Policy Evaluation
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3
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MBA 650.
Managing Human Resources
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3
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Two graduate
courses in the student’s concentration
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6
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Spring
of Fifth Year
|
|
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PUAD 606.
Program Evaluation in Public Administration
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3
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Two graduate
courses in the student’s concentration
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6
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Take M.P.A.
comprehensive examination
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|
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Total Graduate Credits
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|
|
Internship
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Summer
of Fifth Year
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|
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PUAD 696.
Internship in Public Administration
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6
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|
|
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Total Graduate Credit
|
|
Financial Assistance
A limited number of graduate assistantships are available on
a competitive basis for the fifth year. However, students with assistantships
are limited in the number of credits taken per semester and ordinarily will not
be able to complete the program in five years.
All relevant regulations in the undergraduate and graduate
catalogs are applicable.
Further Information
Please contact:
Dr. Douglas Skelley, M.P.A.
Coordinator
skellebd@jmu.edu
Dr. Glenn Hastedt, Chair, Political Science Department
hastedgp@jmu.edu
Political Science Department, MSC 1101
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA 28807
(540) 568-6149 or (540) 568-3737
http://www.jmu.edu/polisci/mpa/
Course Offerings
Public Administration
PUAD 515. Legal Environment of Public Administration. 3 credits.
Study of the constraints imposed on public
administrators by law and judicial oversight. The course will address federal
and state constitutions, judicial review, organizational and personal legal
accountability, personnel law, and procurement law.
PUAD 583. Emerging Issues in Public Administration. 3 credits.
A detailed, research-oriented study of an emerging
issue in public administration. The course will examine new or emerging topics
in the public administration profession with extensive readings and research
focused on the contemporary academic and professional literatures. The course
may be repeated for credit with a change in subject matter. Prerequisite:
Permission of instructor.
PUAD 605. Research Design for Policy Evaluation. 3 credits.
Application of social science methodology to program
and policy evaluation. Research design and data collection, as well as planning
techniques, are covered.
PUAD 606. Program Evaluation in Public Administration. 3 credits.
Application of systematic analysis to program and
policy evaluation. Students will complete a computer-assisted research project.
Prerequisite: PUAD 605 or permission of instructor.
PUAD 620. Seminar in the Politics of the Administrative
Process. 3 credits.
A study of public administration as part of the
political process. Includes administration and politics, organizational
structure and behavior, and patterns of management and decision making. Serves
as the introductory course to the Master of Public Administration program.
PUAD 625. Seminar in Public Management Issues. 3 credits.
A study of contemporary issues and problems facing
the public manager. Contemporary management systems, techniques and devices
will be discussed and case studies will be extensively used.
PUAD 641. Public Budgeting. 3
credits.
Public budgeting practices and skills with an
emphasis on the federal budget process. Topics include politics of the budget
process, budget types and analytic techniques for budgeting.
PUAD 680. Reading and Research. 3 credits.
Under faculty supervision, independent study of a
specialized area of public administration. Prerequisite: Permission of
instructor.
PUAD 683. Special Topics in Public Administration. 3 credits.
A detailed study of a selected area in public
administration. May be repeated with a change in subject matter. Prerequisite:
Permission of instructor.
PUAD 696. Internship in Public Administration. 3 - 6 credits.
Supervised professional administrative experience
with a public or nonprofit agency. Credit for 200 or 400 hours of work is three
or six credits. Assigned readings, reports and a research paper are required. Prerequisite:
Permission of instructor.
PUAD 698. Comprehensive Continuance. 1 credit.
Continued preparation in anticipation of the
comprehensive examination. Course may be repeated as needed.
Political Science
POSC 561/HIST 561. Seminar in Marxist-Leninist Theory. 3 credits.
A study of the most significant ideas concerning
politics, society, economics and philosophy which have shaped Communism and
Marxist varieties of socialism.
POSC 680. Reading and Research. 3 credits.
This course offers the
individual student the opportunity for reading and research under faculty
supervision in the areas of public and nonprofit administration that are of
special interest to the student.
