Associated Faculty Leanne Brecklin, Barbara Hayler, Beverly Rivera, Ryan Williams
Emeritus Faculty Willa Bruce, Phillip Gregg, Naomi B. Lynn, Lon Mackelprang, Kenneth Oldfield
Adjunct Faculty Tammy Craig, Owen Dratler, William Hall, John Hartnett, Beverly Neisler, John Petter, E. Norman Sims, Lisa Whelpley
Accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA), the MPA program, within the Department of Public Administration, offers professional graduate education. The program works with many elements of state government to integrate academic and experiential components of the educational process.
M.P.A. curricular requirements are designed to impart knowledge and skills essential to meet pressing public problems and to be successful in professional and administrative employment in public and nonprofit sectors. The knowledge and skills address understanding of legal, political, and administrative processes, organizational structures, and the context of public sector and nonprofit organizations; the development of leadership capabilities; and knowledge of state government in Illinois.
Students may elect to pursue one of two graduate certificates as part of their MPA program: the Graduate Certificate in Public Sector Labor Relations or the Graduate Certificate in the Management of Non-Profit Organizations.
In addition to the 40-hour M.P.A. degree, the program offers a 48-hour concentration in criminal justice. (In Academic Year 2007-2008, admissions into the Community Arts Management (CAM) concentration have been suspended.) Also, the public administration (M.P.A.) degree program and the public health (M.P.H.) degree program have established a joint degree program.
Students entering the program without significant professional work experience in the public or private sector are encouraged to undertake internships as part of their program of study through UIS' Graduate Public Service and Illinois Legislative Staff Internship programs.
The Public Administration Program faculty reviews and accepts candidates for the M.P.A. degree. Prospective students must also complete a separate application for graduate admission to UIS and provide transcripts of all previous undergraduate and graduate course work in order to be considered for admission. The UIS application form and the transcripts should be submitted to the Admissions office. An overall undergraduate grade-point average of 2.50 or better is necessary to be considered for MPA admission. International students for whom English is not the native language must, in addition, provide TOEFL scores (at least 550 for the paper test, or 213 for the computer-based test).
Applicants to the MPA program must provide a: 1) completed MPA application form; 2) resumé; and 3) statement describing their career goals and how the MPA program would enhance their professional development. These items should be submitted to the MPA office.
Full admission to the program requires admission to UIS and successful completion of all the following prerequisites: 1) one undergraduate political science course in American government; 2) one undergraduate descriptive/inferential statistics course, completed within five years of entry into the program; 3) one undergraduate course in microeconomics or a market economics survey course (other than macroeconomics); and 4) competence in one computer spreadsheet applications package, such as LOTUS or EXCEL. A grade of C (2.00) or better must have been earned for each undergraduate course used to meet these prerequisites.
Students may be granted conditional admission to the program, which permits enrollment in up to 12 semester hours of prescribed PAD courses during the first full academic year. Full admission to the program is required before students can enroll for more than 12 hours creditable to the M.P.A. degree.
Prospective students are strongly encouraged to obtain application information well in advance of their first term in the program. Initial consideration will be given to applications that are complete by March 1 for fall admissions and October 1 for spring admissions. Applications received after those dates will be considered on a space availability basis. Application materials may be obtained from the MPA Program, PAC 418, University of Illinois at Springfield, One University Plaza, Springfield, IL 62703-5407; or through the telephone number and e-mail address listed above.
The online Public Administration Program is identical to the on-campus program except for the range of electives offered. The online program allows students to participate actively in dynamic, diverse, and interactive online learning communities and to complete their degrees via the Internet. The online format enables them to complete coursework using the latest networked information technologies for increased access to educational resources, advisers, and materials.
Note: In Academic Year 2007-2008, admissions into the Community Arts Management (CAM) concentration have been suspended.
Acceptance to the M.P.A. concentration in community arts management requires, in addition to the MPA application materials, an autobiographical statement of at least 300 words, including a description of previous experience in the arts such as study, performance, participation, or management. Applications to the CAM concentration are usually received by February 1 for admission the following fall; however, applications received later may be considered. For more information about the community arts management concentration, call 217/206-6310.
These materials should be forwarded to PAC 418, University of Illinois at Springfield, One University Plaza, Springfield, IL 62703-5407.
Application to the M.P.A. concentration in criminal justice does not require a separate program application. Students intending to pursue this concentration should indicate this on the UIS application. Although program applications are submitted to the M.P.A. program, students interested in the CRJ concentration may contact the Department of Criminal Justice at the phone number listed above for more information about the uses and career applications of this concentration.
The MPA degree program and the UIS Department of Public Health have established a joint degree in accordance with university policy. Students interested in this joint degree can contact either the MPA or MPH offices.
Public administration students may apply up to eight credit hours of C work toward the M.P.A. degree, provided that each credit hour of such work is offset by a credit hour of A work earned in a 500-level PAD course. All course work applied toward the M.P.A. under this arrangement must be earned at the University of Illinois at Springfield while the student is enrolled in a graduate program at UIS.
Faculty identify writing deficiencies during courses and refer students to the Center for Teaching and Learning.
The curriculum of the MPA degree requires the following:
Core Courses
PAD 501 Introduction to the Profession 4 Hrs.
PAD 502 Organization Dynamics 4 Hrs.
PAD 503 Analytical Tools 4 Hrs.
PAD 504 Budget and Finance 4 Hrs.
PAD 505 Human Resource Management 4 Hrs.
Total 20 Hrs.
PAD 571 Capstone Seminar 4 Hrs.
Electives (see program handbook) 16 Hrs.
Total 20 Hrs.
Total 40 Hrs.
Note: In Academic Year 2007-2008, admissions into the Community Arts Management (CAM) concentration have been suspended.
Students pursuing the M.P.A. community arts management concentration earn a total of 46 credits to complete the M.P.A degree. The CAM concentration provides specialized skills in leadership, management, and planning pertinent to public and nonprofit arts organizations. In addition to the M.P.A. foundation, core, and capstone courses (24 credit hours)*, students in the CAM concentration also enroll in:
MPA Core and Capstone 24 Hrs.
PAD 543 Marketing for Public and Nonprofit Organizations 4 Hrs.
PAD 544 Fund Raising for Public and Nonprofit Organizations 4 Hrs.
PAD 546 Arts Administration Seminar 4 Hrs.
PAD 547 Public Policy and the Arts 4 Hrs.
PAD 548 Arts Management Internship(s) 2 Hrs.
Elective 4 Hrs.
Total 46 Hrs.
*See Master's Closure Options.
Students taking the concentration in community arts management may choose from the following for their 4-hour elective:
PHI 432 Philosophy of Art
PAD 448/LES 486 Legal Aspects of Nonprofit Organization Management
HIS 511 Museum/Historic Sites Methods
Students in the M.P.A. criminal justice concentration earn a total of 48 credits to complete the M.P.A. degree. In addition to the M.P.A. foundation, core, and capstone courses (24 credit hours), students in the CRJ concentration also complete 24 hours of additional courses as indicated below. CRJ electives are described in the criminal justice department section of this catalog. Students should consult with a criminal justice faculty adviser before selecting their CRJ electives.
MPA Core and Capstone 24 Hrs.
PAD electives as part of Advanced Professional Coursework 8 Hrs.
CRJ 500-level electives (choose four) 16 Hrs.
CRJ 523 Criminal Justice Policy Process
CRJ 531 Drug Abuse in America
CRJ 541 Law Enforcement Administration
CRJ 551 Correctional Policy and Administration
CRJ 565 Race, Class, and Social Justice
CRJ 572 Law and Criminal Justice
CRJ 590 Special Study at the Graduate Level
CRJ 599 Tutorial
Total 48 Hrs.
Application to the M.P.A.-M.P.H. joint degree program requires meeting entrance requirements for each academic organization. The articulation agreement allows a student to complete a joint degree with a total of 68 credit hours, compared to a total of 88 for the two degrees separately. Students pursuing this joint degree will be required to complete an appropriate closure exercise in each of the two degree organizations. Upon completion, one diploma will be granted.
Elective courses in the MPA curriculum are advanced professional development courses in particular areas of expertise and career opportunities. Sixteen hours of elective course work are taken in advanced areas of study; at least eight hours are public administration courses. Recognizing the diversity of student goals, the program allows students who wish to pursue individualized areas of study to do so in consultation with their advisers. Others may wish to pursue one of the professional development areas of study specifically identified here.
Students pursuing the M.P.A. typically follow one of two advanced professional development patterns. One pattern involves course work chosen from PAD offerings, often including fields such as personnel, budgeting, policy analysis/program evaluation, or organizational change/development. The second pattern involves completing advanced coursework in PAD offerings in conjunction with course work offered by other UIS academic programs, such as legal studies (administrative law), management information systems, environmental studies, accountancy (public financial management), or human services (social services).
The Master of Public Administration Handbook contains detailed information on planning elective course work, as well as information on the two graduate certificates.
M.P.A degree candidates are expected to fulfill the campus closure requirements by earning a grade of B- or better in PAD 571 Capstone Seminar; or students can petition the chair of the Department of Public Administration to complete a master's thesis by registering in PAD 573 Thesis. PAD 571 and PAD 573 are open only to M.P.A. majors who have already completed the program core courses (20 credit hours). The faculty strongly recommends that majors enroll in the capstone seminar after completing PAD 501-505; however, majors may enroll simultaneously in the capstone seminar with no more than one core course yet to be completed during their last semester in the program.
Students who choose the thesis option must accumulate a minimum of four, but not more than eight, credit hours in PAD 573 Thesis. These hours may be accumulated incrementally at a rate of at least one credit hour per semester.
Campus policy requires that PAD majors who enrolled in PAD 571 Capstone Seminar, but who did not complete the course in one semester, must enroll in PAD 572 Capstone Seminar Continuing Enrollment (zero credit hours, one billable hour), each fall and spring semester until the work is completed. Likewise, M.P.A. majors who select the thesis option, but do not complete the thesis within the originally agreed-upon number of credit hours (4 to 8), must enroll in PAD 574 Thesis Continuing Enrollment (zero credit hours, one billable hour), each fall and spring semester until the approved thesis is completed.