Robert J. Thompson, PhDAssociate Professor and Director, MPA Program

Department of Political ScienceEast Carolina University

August 1, 2014

Topical Overview

Decisions prior to applyingApplication and admissions processStructure of the MPA ProgramFinancing your graduate educationMPA FacultyWhat some former students are doingWebsite linksContact information

MPA Program Mission Statement

The MPA program's mission is: to prepare

professional to meet the needs and challenges of

public service; conduct scholarly and applied

research in public administration and policy; and to

engage students and faculty in partnerships with

governmental, non-profit, professional, and

educational organizations

About Graduate Education1. Understand the nature of graduate education. It

is not simply an extension of your undergraduate work

2. Do your homework before choosing a program. Think in terms of your career goals and the strengths of the programs under consideration

3. Each program makes admission decisions for its own students

4. Most programs use a variety of factors in deciding on admissibility

Researching Potential Programs

Here are a few websites that can provide you with information on various graduate programs.

www.naspaa.org www.petersons.com www.Gradschools.com www.Collegeview.com www.kaplan.com www.usnews.com

Requirements for AdmissionECU Graduate School

Application Application feeUndergraduate degreeAcceptable GRE or other standardized test

scoreTranscripts – all institutions of higher

education attended – official – sealed envelopesLetters of Reference

In addition - MPA ProgramStatement of PurposePersonal Data Sheet

Minimum GRE Scores and GPA Required By the Graduate School

What are the minimum GRE score required for admission?Answer: Score at or above the 30th percentile on

both the GRE verbal + quantitative sections

What is the minimum GPA score required for admission? Answer: Have a minimum overall GPA of 2.7 based

on a 4.0 scale or a minimum graduate GPA of 3.0.

When should I apply?The Graduate School has established these

deadlines for admission to graduate programsFall terms June 1Spring terms October 15First Summer Session March 15 Second Summer Session May 1

These deadlines are important for ensuring receipt of all materials and if financial aid applications are also being submitted

The MPA Program is relatively small and will be as flexible with its deadlines as feasible

Step 1 – Applicant Applies Online for Degree/Certificate Status

Step 2 – Applicant Sends Application Components to the Graduate School (Fee, Official Transcripts, Statement of

Purpose, Letters of Reference, and GRE Scores

Step 3 – Graduate School Send Complete Application to MPA Director

• MPA Faculty and director assess application

Graduate Application Process at ECU

Step 4 – Accept/Reject response from the MPA Program is forwarded to the Graduate School

Step 5 – The Acceptance/Rejection letter is generated and forwarded to the applicant by the Graduate School

• If positive, then Graduate School and MPA Program notifies student• If negative, then Graduate School notifies student

Graduate Application Process at ECU - 2

How and when are admissions decision made?

Admissions decisions for the MPA Program are

made upon receipt of each individual student’s

complete application

Each faculty member of the program reviews

each application and makes a recommendation to

the MPA Program Director.

Admissions Decisions may include:• Graduate Assistantship or Out of Tuition Remission

• Waiver of Internship Requirement

Categories of Admission’s DecisionsRegular AdmissionConditional Admission: Students not meeting regular

admission requirements may be considered for conditional admission with the support of the MPA program, plus review and approval by the Graduate School

Provisional admission (awaiting transcripts)Professional admission: Individuals whose baccalaureate

degree is more than ten years old and who have extensive professional experience related to the intended program of study may be eligible for admission through this policy upon recommendation of the MPA director

Additional Information on Admission

Conditional Admission: may stipulate admissions

conditions which must be met prior to full enrollment

into the MPA Program

Provisional admission (awaiting transcripts): may

take up to 9 s.h. of work pending receipt of transcripts

Non-Degree Students: may take up to 9 s.h. of work

that can be accepted toward the MPA degree.

Transfer of Credit: Students may transfer up to 15

s.h. of work from another regionally accredited

institution

Prerequisites

A firm understanding of American political

institutions and policy processes is required.

Students in need of a review may be required to

enroll in POLS 5000, an introductory survey course of

readings in American government and politics that

does not count toward the 45-semester-hour

requirement.

An understanding of statistics is strongly

recommended.

International Students

The MPA Program welcomes applications from international students.

The ECU Graduate School governs the admission process and requirements for international students. These processes and procedures can be found at: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/gradschool/International-Students.cfm

The MPA Program does have access to several out of state tuition remissions and graduate assistantships which can be awarded to international students.

Structure of the MPA Program

Our MPA program is a 45 hour program:27 hours of core courses12 hours in an area of emphasis of your choice3 hours of internship experience3 hours devoted to an MPA Professional paper

 Students may choose their area of emphasis

from among an established list or may request a personalized one providing adequate courses are available.

When and how are our classes offered

The bulk of our classes are currently offered in a face-to-face format 6:30-9:30 pm Monday-Thursdays.

Several courses are also offered each term online. These are generally elective courses.

Elective courses for the areas of emphasis offered outside the department may be either face-.to-face or online.

Most courses are offered only once per year.

Program DetailsOur program generally has about 40 students

enrolled in any one semesterOur student body has roughly an equal

number of full and part-time studentsOur classes range in size from about 5-15

studentsOur classes are usually offered once a yearAll of our core courses are offered once a

year and our elective courses are usually offered at least once every two years.

MPA Core CoursesPolitics and Management in Public Agencies (PADM 6100)

Analysis for the Public Sector (PADM 6101)Quantitative Methods for Public Administration

(PADM 6102)Human Resource Management in Public Agencies

(PADM 6110) Public Budgeting and Finance (PADM 6120) Public Policy Formulation and Implementation

(PADM 6160) Applied Policy Analysis and Program Evaluation

(PADM 6161)Leadership and Ethics in the Public Sector (PADM

6220) Management of Public Information Technology

(PADM 6260)

MPA Areas of EmphasisStudents may choose a general area of emphasis

from the following or request a personalized one providing adequate courses are available.

Management

Public Policy

Graduate Certificates

Public Policy students may use one of these

Graduate Certificates as their area of

emphasis electives.

Community Health Administration

Economic Development

Security Studies

Internship RequirementAll students without significant public sector work

experience are required to complete a public service internship.

The MPA Committee will review each student’s work history at the time of admission to determine if an internship will be required.

The requirements of the internship are: 300 hours of work (for 3 semester hours of credit) in a position approved by the Internship Coordinator, and a written report.

A student who accepts a full-time position involving significant administrative or policy making responsibilities after admission to the MPA program may petition for a review of the internship requirement.

Professional PaperFor this requirement, students must identify a real

management problem or policy issue that concerns some level of government or quasi-government agency and then develop problem-resolution strategies to resolve the problem or substantially ameliorate the situation.

Students will be expected to develop a set of alternative

strategies and evaluation criteria, and then analyze them in order to determine a preferred alternative based on selected criteria.

The student is expected to demonstrate that he or she has

acquired the skills necessary to solve problems in a practical sense and is ready to begin work in the public sector or to improve work conducted by those already in the public work force.

The student is also expected to assess any ethical issues associated with the proposed recommendations and implementation strategy.

Registration Procedures/Issues

Incoming students are required to consult the MPA director about their proposed courses of study and areas of emphasis.

Once students have received their Banner ID #’s they May register online for their courses.

If a student does not maintain continuous enrollment for each fall and spring, he/she will need to apply to the Graduate School for readmission.

Academic Progression All students are expected to maintain a 3.0 GPA

Students whose GPA falls below 3.0 may be dropped from the MPA Program.

No one may graduate with less than a 3.0.

Graduate students who take an Incomplete in a course have 1 calendar year to complete the work. Failure to complete the work satisfactorily in this time frame will receive an “F”

The University Calendar lists the deadlines for making up incompletes, dropping courses, and filing for graduation.

ExpectationsMPA students are expected to display the

same characteristics and behaviors as students as will be expected of them as public sector employees.

Therefore, they are expected to behave with as professionals with a high degree of commitment and integrity in their personal interactions and in their academic work.

They are also expected to ask questions and challenge their fellow student and the faculty.

Students, in turn, can expect the same behavior and professionalism from the faculty.

Typical full-time student scheduleYEAR ONE: Fall

PADM 6100 Politics and Management in Public Agencies

PADM 6101 Analysis for the Public SectorPADM Elective or Internship**

 Spring

PADM 6110 Human Resource Management in Public Agencies

PADM 6102 Quantitative Methods for Public Administration

PADM 6160 Public Policy Formulation and Implementation

Typical full-time student schedule- 2

Summer Session IPADM Elective or Internship**PADM Elective or Internship**

 Summer Session II

PADM Elective or Internship**PADM Elective or Internship**

Typical full-time student schedule - 3

YEAR TWO: Fall

PADM 6120 Public Budgeting and Finance PADM 6161 Applied Policy AnalysisPADM 6260 Management of Public Information

Technology Spring

PADM 6220 Leadership and Ethics in the Public SectorPADM 6900 MPA Professional PaperElective

Financing Your Graduate Education

• Graduate Assistantships

• Loans

• Out of State Tuition Remissions

• Federal Work Study

• Employment – sometimes in other academic units

• North Carolina City County Managers Association

Scholarship

www.ecu.edu/financial/

Graduation ProceduresAll incompletes and other degree requirements must

be successfully met before one can graduate.

The semester before students expect to graduate they should submit an Application for Graduation with the Registrar’s Office.

The MPA Program will confirm the student’s academic progress with the Registrar’s Office during the semester of graduation.

All students must be enrolled during the semester in which they graduate.

Honor Societies

There are a number of honor societies for which you may qualify as an MPA student.

Pi Alpha Alpha - Public Administration national honor society

Pi Sigma Alpha - Political Science national honor society

Phi Kappa Phi - a national academic honor society

Omicron Delta Kappa - a national academic honor society

Internship & Fellowship OpportunitiesThere are a number of opportunities for MPA

students to continue their learning beyond their degree and to gain valuable professional experience. These often lead to full-time positions afterwards.PMF - Presidential Management FellowshipPostgraduate Technical Assistant Program -

Government Accounting Standards Board New York State’s Public Management Institute

InternshipsLoudon County, VA, Management Training

ProgramMaryland Governor’s Policy Fellows Program

Internship & Fellowship OpportunitiesThese are important web sites listing internship opportunitieshttp://ourpublicservice.org/OPS/ This site is a partnership

between the US Office of Personnel Management and the Partnership for Public Service

https://www.usajobs.gov/StudentsAndGradsThis site is maintained by the US Office of Personnel Management.

NC Carolina State Government Internship Program: http://www.doa.nc.gov/yaio/interns.htm

http://www.firescience.org/public-administration-degree-programs-online/ This site addresses several public safety and service career fields.

Our accrediting body, NASPAA (National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration), www.naspaa.org, maintains a site on which various internships are posted. http://www.publicservicecareers.org/

MPA Faculty Dr. Robert J. Thompson, Director & Associate Professor

Health Policy; Leadership Dr. Bonnie Mani, Professor

Human Resource Management; Women in Public Administration

Dr. Younhee Kim, Assistant Professor Research Methods; Information Technology Management;

Performance Measurement Dr. Sharon Paynter, Assistant Professor

Non-Profit Management; Public Policy Dr. Carmine Scavo, Associate Professor

State and Local Administration; Intergovernmental and Interagency Relations; Public Policy

Dr. Olga Smirnova, Assistant Professor Transportation Policy; Public Policy

What some of our graduates are doing Federal Positions

National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) Department of the Navy Office of Personnel Management Department of Transportation Department of Housing and Urban Development Rural Electric Administration Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Homeland Security

State Positions North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation Virginia Department of Transportation Office of Budget and Management Department of Environment and Natural Resources State Department Human Health Services Community Insurance Office North Carolina Community College System NC Department of Transportation

What some of our graduates are doing

Local Positions County, Town, and City Manager County Director of Social Services Environmental Health Specialist Police Chief County Health Director Public Affairs Officer City Planning Director

Nonprofit and Private Sector Positions Research Triangle Institute Hospital Administrators

Important Websites

The basic information concerning the MPA Program: http://www.ecu.edu/polsci/mpa/index.html

The application for admission to the ECU Graduate School: http://www.ecu.edu/gradschool/

Graduate Catalog:

 Tuition and fee information: http://www.ecu.edu/financial_serv/cashier/tufee.cfm

ECU Financial Aid: www.ecu.edu/financial/

Contact Information

Dr. Robert J. ThompsonInterim Chair and Director, MPA ProgramDepartment of Political ScienceEast Carolina UniversityGreenville, NC 27858-4353 252-328-5686 (office)252-328-4134 (fax)thompsonro@ecu.edu