CSSH Graduate Programs General Regulations
The Master of Public Administration (MPA) is the management and leadership degree for those seeking to serve the public good. The program seeks to equip its students with skills in policy analysis, program evaluation, research methods, and written and verbal communications.
Students have an opportunity to develop competencies in budgeting and human resources, organizational management and leadership, and the interplay between ethics and accountability in a diverse society.
Throughout the degree program, students gain career-oriented experience through internships, small group projects, and other interactions with professionals in the field. These experiences are designed to enable the Northeastern MPA graduate to move into a wide array of public and nonprofit sector positions at the local, state, national, and international levels. The Northeastern University MPA program is nationally accredited by NASPAA.
Mission Statement
The mission of the MPA program at Northeastern University is to serve the needs of the public affairs community, including students, working professionals, faculty, and researchers, by providing a practice-oriented and research-based graduate educational experience. The faculty pledges the best instruction available in a set of courses designed to integrate theoretical foundations with practical skills. The MPA program is designed to prepare students to be effective in a dynamic and increasingly diverse professional environment. We also commit ourselves to assisting students in every possible way to secure internships, postgraduate employment, and overall career advancement. Students, in turn, are expected to meet high levels of academic excellence combined with ethical and professional integrity. Committed to the ideals of public service and advancing the public interest, we seek students who share the same enthusiasm.
The MPA program requires all students to pursue an internship experience and offers an optional cooperative education experience (co-op) to eligible students. Cooperative education is central to both the Northeastern experience and to the experiential liberal arts framework of the College of Social Sciences and Humanities. Northeastern’s signature co-op ecosystem provides qualified master's students with six-month work experiences in businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies in Boston and across the United States.
Healthcare Management and Policy Concentration
This graduate concentration is available to students in the Master's of Public Administration (MPA) program in the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs. It is designed to enable students in the MPA program to develop a deeper understanding of the contemporary healthcare sector, including the intricacies of U.S. health policy, and competencies in healthcare management. The concentration is comprised of three courses, one from each of three focus areas, and an elective.
Please review the tuition and fees page as credit costs differ depending on the college the course is located in.
Academic Standing/Progress
Students in the program are monitored for academic progress. Those students whose cumulative grade-point average (GPA) falls below 3.000 are notified by and meet with the director of academic programs. They are counseled that if their GPA does not rise to 3.000 or higher, they run the risk of not graduating and are advised on strategies for improvement.
Complete all courses and requirements listed below unless otherwise indicated.
Core Requirements
A cumulative 3.000 GPA is required for the core requirements.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Quantitative Techniques | ||
| INSH 6500 | Statistical Analysis | 4 |
| Analysis | ||
| PPUA 6506 | Techniques of Policy Analysis | 4 |
| PPUA 6502 | Economic Analysis for Policy and Planning | 4 |
| Administration and Management | ||
| PPUA 6500 | Principles of Public Administration | 4 |
| PPUA 6505 | Public Budgeting and Financial Management | 4 |
| PPUA 6507 | Institutional Leadership and the Public Manager | 4 |
| Capstone | ||
| PPUA 7673 | Capstone in Public Policy and Urban Affairs | 4 |
Internship Requirement
An approved internship or waiver is required.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Internship Waived | ||
| Electives | ||
| Complete 12 semester hours from the course list. | 12 | |
| Internship Completed Not for Course Credit | ||
| PPUA 6861 | Internship | 0 |
| Electives | ||
| Complete 12 semester hours from the course list. | 12 | |
Concentration Option
A concentration is not required. Students may complete electives (from the elective list below) in lieu of a concentration.
Healthcare Management and Policy Concentration
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Health Management | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Health Organization Management | ||
| How Healthcare Works: Business and Policy Innovations | ||
| Strategic Management for Healthcare Organizations | ||
| Health Policy | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 3-4 | |
| Public Health Administration and Policy | ||
| Economic Perspectives on Health Policy | ||
| Health Policy and Politics | ||
| Electives | ||
| Health Elective | ||
| Complete one of the following: | 3 | |
| Race, Ethnicity, and Health in the United States | ||
| Public Health Administration and Policy | ||
| Environmental Health | ||
| Health Advocacy | ||
| Global Health | ||
| Principles and History of Urban Health | ||
| Society, Behavior, and Health | ||
| General Elective | ||
| Complete an additional course from the Health Elective list above or one of the following: | 2-3 | |
| Research Toolkit for Urban and Regional Policy: Project Management | ||
| Research Toolkit for Urban and Regional Policy: Data Visualization | ||
| Research Toolkit for Urban and Regional Policy: Grant Writing | ||
Electives
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| LPSC 5000 to LPSC 7999 | ||
| PPUA 5000 to PPUA 7999 | ||
| CRIM 5000 to CRIM 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
| ECON 5000 to ECON 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
| ENGL 5000 to ENGL 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
| HIST 5000 to HIST 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
| POLS 5000 to POLS 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
| SOCL 5000 to SOCL 7999 (by advisement only) | ||
Optional Co-op Experience
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Requires two consecutive semesters of Co-op Work Experience and Experiential Integration: | 2 | |
| Co-op Work Experience and Experiential Integration | ||
Program Credit/GPA Requirements
40 total semester hours required (42 with optional co-op)
Minimum 3.000 GPA