MPA Learning Outcomes

Students earning a Master of Public Administration (MPA) will be able to:

1. Manage human resources and organizational processes effectively by applying policies, concepts, and skills of human resource management and understanding the contemporary issues facing public/nonprofit personnel management.
2. Apply collaborative practices in teamwork to resolve problems and accomplish tasks, both intra-organizationally and inter-organizationally.
3. Appraise the organizational environment, both internal and external, as well as culture, politics, and institutional setting.
4. Prepare and analyze budgets in a public context in order to evaluate organizational effectiveness and assist in decision making.
5. Lead effectively by recognizing and assessing a variety of leadership techniques and styles and valuing different perspectives.
6. Apply their understanding of the policy-making processes as part of a policy analysis with strategies for implementation and evaluation, applying public service values.
7. Value the responsibilities of public service by demonstrating responsiveness to their publics and recognizing the legal and ethical responsibilities for engaging in professional behavior.
8. Consistently apply critical thinking to a public issue (e.g. policy, ethics, HRM, etc.) in order to decide what, if any, action to take.
9. Frame research questions, identify and gather appropriate information, and recognize applicable research methods for systematically analyzing evidence in order to answer the research questions.
10. Communicate effectively in oral and written forms by tailoring their approach to the modes of communication appropriate to diverse audiences and a wide range of professional communicative situations.