Master of Public Administration (MPA)
An MPA degree can provide you with an opportunity to influence the communities you live in – the cities, states, and nations around the world. Employment demand for professionals with leadership, financial management, policy analysis, and other skills imparted by the MPA degree has never been stronger.
Recognizing the multidisciplinary nature of the field, the UIC MPA program faculty represent mastery of many disciplines. Their academic training and research interests cover a broad range of relevant areas including law, management, political science, statistics and research methods, survey research, sociology, economics, business, organizational theory and decision making, human resources, budgeting and finance, and information technology. The program’s full-time faculty is complemented by several distinguished adjunct professors who are recognized practitioners in the areas of public policy, law, and administration.
MPA Mission Statement Heading link
The UIC MPA program promotes excellence through professional education in a diversity of public service careers in public, nonprofit, and private sectors, informed by scholarly research, engaged with administrative and policy communities, and dedicated to ethical and equitable practice.
Alumni Testimonial Heading link
The MPA program helped me obtain a skillset that includes Data Analysis, Strategic Management, Budgeting, and Personnel Management. All of these have allowed to me advance in my career. I would highly recommend the UIC MPA program to someone interested in pursuing a degree in public service. The program does a superior job at providing a varied and deliberate curriculum to students, allowing them to obtain the necessary skills to be successful in the field.
| MPA Alum
Read More Alumni Testimonials Here
Online MPA Heading link
The Online Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree prepares students for public service careers in government at the federal, state, and local levels, as well as for careers in nonprofit organizations, research and policy institutes, and other agencies devoted to meaningful societal change.
Learn more about the Online Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree.
Accelerated MPA Heading link
The accelerated MPA is a full-time degree program designed to provide you with all of the requirements for an MPA while preparing you for a career in the public sector.
Classes are scheduled so that full-time students can complete the program in 15 months. These courses will be offered during the daytime and are available to both domestic and international students. Currently, the majority of our courses are offered in-person, on campus, and we currently offer select electives online.
Applicants that are interested in the accelerated MPA program should follow our standard application procedure.
Admissions for MPA Heading link
The Department of Public Policy, Management, and Analytics requires an undergraduate grade point average of at least 2.75 (A= 4.00) for the final 60 semester (90 quarter) hours of baccalaureate study, including all of the work taken in the term in which the student began the final 60 semester hours of study. If your GPA is below 2.75, your application will still be considered for limited standing admission.
Degree Requirements Heading link
As of Fall 2019, there are 108 students enrolled in our MPA program.
Students are required to complete a minimum of 54 credit hours. Students must select one of four areas of concentration:
- Public Management includes courses in organizational theory and public management, innovative management practices, program evaluation, and special topics courses in decision-making, strategic management, and leadership.
- Nonprofit Management provides specialized expertise in the nonprofit sector including theory, history, management, and fundraising and financial management in nonprofit organizations. Students examine the relationships between nonprofit organizations and government such as the civic base of the nonprofit sector, intergovernmental and inter-sectoral relations, advocacy, lobbying, and nonprofit budgeting for government contracts and grants.
- Financial Management includes courses in budgeting, the management of the financial affairs of government, accounting, economics, and special topics courses in areas such as public finance.
- Urban Governance and Management includes courses in intergovernmental management, topics in management and leadership in public organizations, civic engagement, and urban public policy.
- Local Government Administration Track- includes courses in local government management, intergovernmental management, and urban expertise across the university in courses such as urban policy, urban politics, and local economic development.
The majority of our MPA courses are offered on weeknights from 6pm-9pm to accommodate our students who work full time.
Failure to Progress Statement
- For programs (MPA/MPP/MSCA) requiring 41 to 64 semester hours of graduate work, the time limit is six consecutive calendar years. Students pursuing more than one degree at the same time will be given an additional two years. Students who do not graduate by these deadlines will be dismissed from the program for failure to progress. Time spent on a leave of absence approved by the program and the Graduate College is not counted toward the degree time limit.
MPA Advisors:
Deborah Carroll
Department Head, Professor, & Director of the Government Finance Research Center
Public Policy, Management & Analytics, CUPPA Hall 324
deborahc@uic.edu
Allyson Holbrook
Director of Graduate Studies, Professor
Public Policy, Management & Analytics, CUPPA Hall 134
allyson@uic.edu
Megan Daly
Academic Advisor
mdaly3@uic.edu
Plan Your Degree Heading link
Students can map out their MPA degree using the draft schedules provided on the link below. The MPA degree can be pursued on a full-time, part-time or accelerated basis.