Joint MPA/MIS

Students may obtain a dual Master of Public Administration (MPA) and Master of Information Science (MIS) degree with the Department of Public Administration in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences (CBSS) and the School of Library and Information Sciences (SLIS).  Graduate students must obtain admission to both programs separately before being considered a dual-degree candidate.  

Persons interested in obtaining a dual degree must follow the requirements as set forth by both the MPA and the MIS programs.  The MIS degree is granted after completion of a minimum of 24 semester hours of both required and elective MIS courses.  To obtain the MPA, the dual-degree candidate must complete a minimum of 24 semester hours of graduate courses with a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher.  Students must also successfully complete a mastery case study, submit a digital student learning portfolio of developmental experiences, and successfully present the portfolio to a panel of MPA and MIS faculty members.  Joint degree students have the option to specialize in Public Policy and Research in Information Society or Systems Design and Implementation in the elective MIS courses.

Prospective students must apply separately for the MPA/MIS program. These students must also meet separate admission standards in both the Department of Public Administration and the School of Library and Information Science. Applicants for this track must complete the GRE examination.

MPA students who did not complete an American Government course at the undergraduate level must complete PADG 5050, The American Governmental System/Quantitative Analysis and Program Evaluation.  Otherwise, the MPA program has no prerequisite courses.  Students must have successfully completed an undergraduate course in statistics.  Otherwise, the MPA has no prerequisite courses.

In the first two years of the program, students are required to enroll for one full year (18 credit hours) of study at the School of Library and Information Science and for one full year of study (18 credit hours) in the MPA Program; either can come first.  In the third and fourth years of the program, dual-degree students are enrolled in and take courses in both programs.  Both programs have their own requirements for these upper-level years.

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