This program is designed to allow students to earn an MPA with one additional year of study beyond their bachelor’s degree.  Students who arrive at Syracuse with sufficient AP credit may be able to complete both their bachelor’s degree and the MPA within four years of study. 

Contacts:

Stephanie Worden, Director, Admission and Financial Aid, Department of Public Administration and International Affairs

Faculty: William Banks, Jonathan Beagles, Catherine Bertini, Robert Bifulco, Edwin A. Bock, Walter Broadnax, Stuart Bretschneider, Stuart Brown, Leonard Burman, Julia Carboni, Renée de Nevers, Thomas H. Dennison, Todd Dickey, Jay Golden, Vernon L. Greene, Sarah Hamersma, Colleen Heflin, Catherine Herrold, Johannes Himmelreich, Yilin Hou, Zachary Huitink, W. Henry Lambright, Leonard Lopoo, John G. McPeak, Robert Murrett, Tina Nabatchi, Sean C. O’Keefe, John L. Palmer, David C. Popp, Michah Rothbart, Sabina Schnell, Larry Schroeder, Amy Ellen Schwartz, Ying Shi, Saba Siddiki, David Van Slyke, Emily Wiemers, Peter J. Wilcoxen, Michael Williams, Douglas A. Wolf, John M. Yinger

Application process

Applications to enter the MPA portion of the combined degree program will normally be submitted during the spring semester of the junior year, and are allowed once a student has declared their major and completed 75 credit hours toward the bachelor’s degree.   

Interested students are encouraged to meet with the admissions director of the MPA program before applying.  The application package typically requires two letters of recommendation from Syracuse University faculty members, including at least one from a faculty member in the department of the student’s declared major, the student’s resume, a Statement of Purpose, and the student’s transcript. GRE and the TOEFL scores will be waived for Syracuse University students.

Student applications that show evidence of sufficient preparation in writing skills and quantitative analysis will have a greater chance of being admitted to the program.  The preferred way to demonstrate this competence is by completing a “writing intensive” course and a course that requires quantitative analysis with a grade of B or better prior to applying.  Examples of such courses include, but are not limited to MAX 123, MAX 132 and MAX 201.

Students accepted for graduate study as part of the combined BA/BS‐MPA program will typically begin the MPA portion of the program following completion of their third year of study (six semesters), but are not fully matriculated as graduate students until all requirements for the BA/BS degree have been met. The student would normally be certified for the bachelor’s degree at the end of the fourth year and for the master’s degree at the end of the fifth year, although other time tables are possible.