Masters in Public Administration Capstone

Catalog description

In this course, students apply concepts, theories, best practices, knowledge, and principles as learned throughout the program. Additionally, students will grapple with the complexities of public sector work by testing concepts, strategies, and approaches in real-world contexts. Through a site-based immersion project completed through options such as fieldwork, internships, civic practice labs, or simulations, students will demonstrate mastery of program objectives and course competencies. Mastery will be shown through the creation of a final written report that provides findings and focusing on civic practice implications. Report findings will be presented; presentations may incorporate design approaches and elements appropriate to audiences found in real-world public sector practice environments. MPA program students with less than three years of relevant work experience will participate in a capstone with an experiential site-based component where a project is shaped on-site and applied. Elements include issue/problem identification and related factors, strategic recommendations, key considerations, implementation approaches, analysis and evaluation, applied research methodologies, research design, data collection, and analysis and presentation.