Master of Public Administration

History and Theory of Public Administration

This course traces the historical development of the intellectual and theoretical foundations of modern public administration beginning with Woodrow Wilson's essay concerning the politics administration dichotomy through the multitude of more modern theories. It includes an overview of the responsibilities of public administration professionals within a democratic society, a description of the history and development of the field of public administration, and an introduction to ethical issues faced by public administrators. (3 units)

Leadership and Management

This course is designed to create a deeper understanding of leadership at the cognitive, experiential, and implementation level. Students will integrate and apply theoretical concepts, improve collaborative management skills, and explore their individual philosophies of leadership. (3 units)

Public Finance and Budgeting

This course analyzes theories and strategies of resource allocation as a basis for managing revenues and debt in government. It focuses on budgeting as a tool for controlling both operations and policy at all levels of government. Students will gain knowledge of the role of government in a market economy, how local, state and federal governments raise the money they spend, and why expenditures are channeled toward certain critical areas in the economy under conditions of market failure. (3 units)

Public Personnel Management

This course provides a solid groundwork for the study of labor-management negotiations grounded in theory by analyzing and describing the nature and extent of labor-management negotiations, the suspected causes of conflict, and the internal and environmental influences on these changes. It covers what most experts believe are the critical issues in labor-management negotiations and collective bargaining in the public sector, and analyzes crucial policy issues. (3 units)

Conflict Resolution & Labor Negotiations

This course provides a comprehensive approach to conflict resolution with an emphasis on public sector labor negotiations. Students will evaluate and will critically analyze theoretical, collaborative and practical approaches associated with conflict resolution, negotiation and consensus building in the workplace. Case study examinations will include root causes and dynamics of conflict, various methods of conflict analysis and resolution techniques, reflective practice, third party roles, and ethics as it applies to the position of the legitimate and accountable administrator. (3 units)

Statistical Analysis for Public Administrators

This course provides an introduction to statistical analysis and its application to research and decision-making for public administrators. The emphasis is on the collection and analysis of quantitative data using PASW and Excel. Topics include descriptive statistics, probability concepts, confidence intervals, data collection, and data analysis - including parametric and nonparametric data analysis using PASW and Excel. (3 units)

Public Policy Analysis

This course examines the activities of government and the consequences of these actions. Through the application of analytical techniques, the student will gain an understanding of the nature of public policy and various ways in which it may be approached. (3 units)

Legal and Ethical Issues

This course examines the basic legal and ethical concepts and challenges facing public administrators. The lectures, readings, and class discussions will be used to identify principles that might guide legal and ethical choices, and to show the practical impacts of these principles. (3 units)

Political Economy

This course examines the interrelationship of political and economic factors that influence both public political and economic outcomes. Key means of analysis will include application of micro- and macro-economic theories to obtain better understandings of political and administrative decision-making processes. (3 units)

Organizational Theory

This course is a graduate level introduction to organizational theory. Students will explore the structure and function of public and nonprofit organizations and the behavior of people in them. Exposure to a variety of major theories and perspectives as well as a review of recent research in the discipline will be discussed. (3 units)

Professional Presentation

This course examines and prepares students for professional presentation skills within an organization. This course provides students with effective ways of integrating technology, data, narrative information and persuasive oral presentation skills. Practical application and demonstration of skills will be required.(3 units)

Comprehensive Examination Seminar

This course introduces students to the concepts, approaches and methods of completing a comprehensive exam. Focus will be placed on proper scholarly examination writing techniques as well as a comprehensive review of public administration coursework themes, theories, best practices and applications. Pass/Fail. (3 units)

Research Project

Students will be engaged in a faculty supervised and approved project that is contoured to their particular career objectives. The format is flexible but should result in a major paper of approximately fifty pages in length. Pass/Fail. (3 units)

Courses will be available in a future semester.

Research Thesis

This course is a guided development of a research thesis. This course may be repeated once for credit. Students cannot take MPA 598A until their final semester of coursework. Pass/Fail. Prerequisite: Program Director Approval. (2 units)

Courses will be available in a future semester.

Research Thesis Continuation

This course is a continuation of the research thesis and may be repeated once for credit. Pass/Fail. Prerequisite: MPA598A. (1 unit)

Courses will be available in a future semester.