The program is especially appropriate for deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing professionals who work with or supervise deaf colleagues working in federal government agencies. This level of appropriateness was validated by the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Government (DHHIG) support group in a letter of support for the program where Mark McKay (former DHHIG president) said:

"DHHIG regards this program as a way to fill a need for Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals seeking a professional graduate-level degree for managers and aspiring managers in the executive levels of Federal, state, and local government."

The need for this program was also confirmed by the Federal Office of Personnel Management's Center for Leadership Development.  The OPM's Center for Leadership Development has created a formal partnership with the MPA program that allows federal employees accepted into the program to take their electives through the center for leadership development.

Mission

The Master of Public Administration Program prepares deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing professionals to lead in public sector and non-profit organizations with a sense of direction, to focus on results, to develop others' capability to perform, and to serve with integrity.

Vision

The Master of Public Administration Program is the premier graduate program in the United States and throughout the World for preparing deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing professionals who work with deaf and hard of hearing colleagues, to manage and lead in public sector organizations. Our vision for the program is driven by a set of core values. We value:

We value learner-centered teaching and learning. We collaborate with our students to help them design a personalized program of studies that will support their aspirations to move up into managerial and leadership positions in their organizations.

We value direct communication with our students. We seek to admit students who already possess sign communication skills so they can communicate directly with their peers in classes, on campus, at work, and in social events. However, we recognize that there are Deaf, hard of hearing, and hearing non-signers who may apply for admission to the program. Those non-signers who are admitted to the program will be required to learn ASL as a graduation requirement. Interpreters or CART services are provided in those courses with non-signers enrolled.

We value diversity defined in its broadest sense to include diversity of gender, disabilities, sexual orientation, age, hearing status, among other dimensions of diversity. In valuing diversity, we expect our faculty, staff, and students to interact with each other with a high degree of civility while at the same time enforcing ethical codes of conduct that do not tolerate bigotry, hatred, violence (verbal or physical), character assassination, rumor-mongering, and illegality.

We value the highest principles of professional and academic integrity among our faculty and students. We strictly enforce professional and academic codes of conduct, including academic integrity policies and procedures.

We value a culture of teaching and learning. We take these twin dynamics seriously and we assess student learning outcomes to ensure that we are living up to this value.

We value faculty members who are teachers first and researchers second. We recognize that it is the teaching and learning process that will enable our students to develop or enhance their managerial and leadership knowledge and skills. Because of this value we expect our faculty members to be highly effective classroom teachers.

We value faculty members who have up-to-date knowledge and skills.  Maintaining state of the art knowledge requires our faculty to engage in scholarly activities that create research projects, books, articles, and other media. Maintaining state of the art skills requires our faculty to participate in professional development opportunities such as workshops, advanced graduate courses, and attending national conferences.

Requirements

  • Completed application form. See Application Instructions to learn how.
  • A non-refundable application fee of $75.
  • A minimum 3.0 grade point average (on a four-point scale) in all previous undergraduate and graduate study. (Occasionally, applicants with a GPA lower than 3.0 may be admitted conditionally upon the recommendation of the department.)
  • Official transcripts of all undergraduate study, including evidence of having received a bachelor's degree from an accredited university. (Those applying during their final undergraduate year will be required to submit a final transcript after completion of their bachelor's degree and before enrolling in their first semester of graduate study.) See Application Guidelines and FAQ for more information.
  • Official transcripts of all graduate study. See Application Guidelines and FAQ for more information.
  • TOEFL is required from all international applicants from non-English speaking countries. (Use 5240 for the ETS institutional code)

Additional Program Requirements

  1. A 500 word essay describing career goals and how this program will help achieve those goals.
  2. At least 1 year of paid professional experience in a public sector or non-profit organization.