The School of Public Policy is one of the nation's leading graduate programs devoted to the study of public policy, management and international affairs, with particular expertise in the fields of environmental policy, energy policy, international development, international security and economic policy, health policy, education policy, social policy, non-profit management, public management and leadership, acquisitions, and public finance. The School offers a wide variety of master's programs, joint degree programs, graduate certificate programs, and one of the nation's premier doctorate programs. The School's location just outside of Washington, D.C. attracts a stellar faculty of scholar-practitioners who are experts in the theory and practice of public policy and management and influential participants in the nation's policy-making process. The location and faculty in turn attract outstanding students by providing them, not only an in-depth, rich curriculum, but extensive exposure to and interaction with the real-life world of policy-making, the federal government, the international diplomatic community, state and local governments, and a host of non-governmental and multinational organizations. It is one of the few policy schools to combine state, national and international policy study under one roof, and to take into account policy interests in all sectors of the economy, thus allowing both faculty and students to study the full range of issues in all courses and in all research.
In your coursework, you'll develop the critical thinking and analytical skills to enhance your abilities as a decision-maker and policy leader, while participating in opportunities to dive into specific areas of interest. Providing a strong foundation in policy tools and methods and a deeper understanding of particular policy issues, the Master of Public Management prepares you to take on the next challenge in your career.
Nonprofit organizations, philanthropy, and social entrepreneurs are major players in how public policy gets developed and implemented as well as how change occurs in our society. In the United States, the nonprofit sector encompasses more than a million organizations, annually reports trillions of dollars in revenue and assets, represents approximately 10 percent of the workforce, annually generates more than 400 billion dollars through donations and volunteers, and is primarily funded by government resources. MPP students of all professional interests will find a number of interesting career opportunities in the nonprofit sector, ranging from social or environmental policy, to international development. Since policy students will likely become nonprofit leaders in a particular policy field, the specialization in Nonprofit Management and Leadership (NML) will require at least four courses, and the focus will require at least three courses. This three-course package will allow MPP students to potentially specialize in a policy field and still achieve a NML credential.
