MPA Curriculum

The Master Degree in Public Administration prepares individuals interested in public service and third sector careers for professional and management policy positions. Persons already employed or preparing to enter public service are encouraged to apply for admission. The interdisciplinary nature of the program is designed to utilize faculty resources in departments and colleges across the University and to offer students a wide choice in their professional preparation.

Current

MPA students must complete a minimum of 42 credit hours for the degree. The curriculum (effective Fall 2023) includes:

  • Core (21 credit hours)
  • MPA Practicum (3 credit hours)
  • Electives (15 credit hours or 12 credit hours if doing a thesis)  
  • Capstone (3 credit hours) or Professional Paper (3 credit hours) or Master's Thesis (6 credit hours)

*All PADM courses require department permission to register.

Please see Concentrations for specified program checklists.

Core

The following core curriculum of 21 credit hours:

Practicum

Students must have completed at least 21 credit hours to enroll in PADM 555 MPA Practicum (3 credit hours):

Electives

Electives consist of any PADM courses outside the core, practicum, and capstone/professional paper/thesis curriculum. See Concentrations for specified electives. If you are interested in a graduate course outside of PADM course offerings, please submit an elective substitution form for approval to spadvise@unm.edu.

Capstone / Professional Paper / Thesis 

Three options to complete your M.P.A graduate degree.

Legacy

Curriculum below for those that were admitted before Fall 2018
MPA Course Completion Checklist

Curriculum below for those that were admitted before Fall 2023
MPA Course Completion Checklist

Contact

Rachel Torano-Mark
Graduate Advisement
spadvise@unm.edu / rtoranomark@unm.edu 
505-277-1095