Master of Public Administration Degree Information

The required core courses in the MPA program are designed to provide a grounding in administrative approaches, policy, methods, and theory. These courses provide the foundation for students in the program to move into their areas of concentration – criminal justice administration, rural/local government administration, or general administration. The seven core courses are listed below and are designed to achieve these goals and allow students to master these five competencies: ethics, policy, finance, administration, and research methods. These courses involve examining core readings in public administration, administrative management, policy, ethics, statistics, research methodology, and financial administration. These courses will establish a framework for bureaucratic activity, policy formulation, decision making, and budgeting. 

Core Courses (21 hours; Required):

POSC 6350 Seminar in Public Administration

POSC 6351 Seminar in Public Policy (cross-listed as CRIJ 6351)

POSC 6388 Statistics for Social & Criminological Research (cross-listed as CRIJ 6388 and SOCI 6388)

CRIJ 6348 Seminar in Criminal Justice Ethics

POSC 6387 Seminar in Research Methods (cross-listed as CRIJ 6387)

POSC 6353 Seminar in Administrative Management

POSC 6355 Seminar in Public Financial Administration

The rural/local government concentration includes courses on demographics of rural communities, rural non-profit organizations, and state and local government. This emphasis fits the region surrounding WTAMU – the majority of the 26 counties within the Texas Panhandle are rural. Additionally, the WT125 plan stresses the mission of WTAMU is to meet the needs of these communities as the university strives to become a regional research university. These factors provide an opportunity to connect the program courses, research, and graduate students with rural needs that are common to areas of the Panhandle of Texas and similar rural regions. For students in the Panhandle and in similar areas around the nation, studying these unique communities and governance issues – such as bridging the digital divide and financial management and state oversight for rural communities – provides added value to their degree and make graduates attractive to potential employees.

Rural/Local Government Concentration (Select nine Hours):

SOCI 6315 Demographics of Rural Communities

POSC 6306 Advanced Topics in State & Local Government

POSC 6310 Emergency Management & Response

POSC 6356 Seminar in Rural Non-Profit Organizations and Management

The criminal justice concentration emphasizes criminal justice administration and criminal justice in rural communities. The second unique approach is to pair public administration with criminal justice. Although this approach is not common, it is taking place nationally, most notably at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, but is not a direct focus of any other MPA in Texas currently. Offering a criminal justice curriculum along with traditional MPA courses prepares students for administrative positions in criminal justice. Students who take this route will receive a concentration designation on the MPA degree. Students who choose to concentrate their graduate work in rural/local governments or criminal justice will receive a notification on their official transcripts.

Criminal Justice Concentration (Required nine hours):

CRIJ 6340 The Criminal Justice System: An Overview

CRIJ 6346 Seminar in Criminal Justice Administration & Public Policy

CRIJ 6355 Seminar in Rural Criminal Justice

The general concentration includes courses in administrative theory, data and information management, and government finance. Courses in the general concentration focus on traditional management, policy implementation and evaluation, and budgeting concepts.

General Administration Concentration (Select nine hours):

CIDM 6350 Data and Information Management

CRIJ 6346 Seminar in Criminal Justice Administration & Public Policy

ECON 6332 Problems in Government Finance & Fiscal Policy

POSC 6310 Emergency Management & Response

POSC 6354 Administrative Theory & Behavior

The MPA admissions committee is made up of the MPA director and two members of the faculty chosen on a rolling basis. Students can apply for admission on a rolling basis each semester. The number of students admitted is determined by student-to-faculty ratio and quality of the candidates. The following dates for submission of admission materials are for guaranteed review of applications:

Students should work to ensure submission of these materials by the preferred deadline. Applications received by the final deadline could be granted immediate admission pending on program availability or receive admissions for the following semester. An application received after the final deadline will not be considered. Materials will be held in the application system and students can reapply for another semester without paying an additional fee.  

Note: International students are advised to review the application deadlines set forth by International Student Services.

Detailed requirements for applying to the MPA at WT are as follows. Questions regarding application materials should be directed to the MPA program director. Application materials may be submitted online through the application portal at the graduate school website. An application FAQ is found here. 

Minimum application requirements and materials for regular admissions:

• Undergraduate transcripts showing completion of a bachelor’s degree with a minimum of a 2.75 GPA overall. An undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher is preferred. Students with less than a 3.0 overall GPA with a 3.25 GPA in the last 60 hours will be given consideration. 

• Official transcripts are required from all colleges and universities that you have previously attended. This includes dual credit coursework during high school, community colleges, trade/vocational schools, military training, foreign institutions, undergraduate and graduate coursework, and any institutions that you attended where a degree was not received, if applicable.

• Statement of intent/purpose showing the student’s intent to study public administration and their goals regarding public service of no more than two (2) pages. These statements can include explanations of public service, job experience, and/or potential areas of research interests as well as a potential intent regarding a concentration. 

• Three (3) letters of recommendation. These can be a combination of professional and academic recommendations. At least one letter from a faculty member with knowledge of the student’s academic performance is preferred but not required. 

• Writing sample that can include any of the following: an academic paper, term paper, publication, or other demonstration of writing ability.

• No GRE score is required.