PhD programs in public administration / public policy are academic degrees. This degree is intended for students with administration and public policy interests who want to develop the capacity to perform advanced research and policy analysis. The PhD programs prepare students to generate knowledge that will contribute to an understanding of the dynamics of administration and public policy, to pursue careers as researchers and teachers, and to inform the practice of public policy / administration at local, state, national and global levels.
Many PhD programs require completion of certain number of courses/credits plus an original dissertation to qualify for a PhD degree. Students who have already completed a master’s program are required to complete less coursework than those who hold only bachelors’ degree.
ADMISSION
Admission procedures and requirements for PhD programs are very similar to those of MPA programs. All applicants are required to submit a completed application form, transcripts from all universities attended, two/three recommendation forms, official GRE scores, statement of purpose and a writing sample. Usually the average minimum for consideration is a grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in all previous academic work. Students may be admitted to a PhD program full-time or part-time, yet preference in admission is given to full-time students.
CURRICULUM
Each PhD program has a unique curriculum. However, the curriculum of all PhD programs are tailored to provide students with the skills and capacity
- to critically analyze and define the broader economic, institutional, social and political issues of public administration / public policy
- to pursue original research questions
- to immerse in the essence of research traditions and applied frameworks of a policy/management specialization
- to innovate methods/approaches to effectively deal with increasingly complex public policy/public management issues
PhD programs normally require two years of full-time coursework beyond the masters degree and one to two years of full-time work on the dissertation. The time required may take longer depending on the field of PhD study, academic background, course load and dissertation topic. Some programs may require written examinations from students at the end of the first year to become PhD candidates.
The PhD is fundamentally a research degree. Therefore PhD students are required to take certain number of courses to master tools of quantitative and qualitative research. Sample of research related courses are as following:
- Research Methods for Public Administration
- Advanced Quantitative Research Methods
- Statistics
- Qualitative Research Methods
PhD students have opportunity to concentrate in policy analysis, public administration, public budgeting and finance, comparative politics, non-profits and any other related field depending on their interest.
Doctor of Public Administration
(DPA)
The other post-graduate degree in public administration is the Doctor of Public Administration. Only a few universities offer this degree. The Doctor of Public Administration is the first professional degree program for persons who have a Master’s degree in Public Administration or a related discipline and enough managerial experience to understand the fundamentals of budgeting, human resource management and related managerial functions.
The emphasis of the DPA degree is on public management techniques that have been developed to address the challenges of the increasingly complex and multi-sectoral world of public service.
Please use the searchable database of this web portal
to find universities that offer PhD and doctorate degrees in public administration / public policy.
