Department of Public Administration: The College at Brockport

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Her Workplace Can Be a Real Zoo

As Executive Director of the Seneca Park Zoo Society, Rachel Baker August has to balance the needs of a unique non-profit with the needs of county government and the needs of thousands of visitors each year. A Masters Degree in Public Adminsitration from The College at Brockport gave her skills and ways of thinking that she's applied on a daily basis. Read more about her Brockport MPA experience.

About the Program

The mission of the Master of Public Administration program is to prepare individuals for management and leadership positions in public service organizations (such as government, nonprofit, and health care) and to do this in a responsible, accountable and transparent manner.

The program is committed to improving the management and leadership of public service organizations.

Most students come from the Western New York region.

The program mission is accomplished by providing students with the opportunity to gain the core competencies required for an MPA degree as determined by NASPAA, our accrediting agency, which are as follows:

To lead and manage in public governance
To participate in and contribute to the public policy process
To analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems and make decisions
To articulate and apply a public service perspective
To communicate and interact productively with a diverse and changing workforce and citizenry

Public administration is a program of graduate professional study for the Master of Public Administration (MPA). It is nationally accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA). As an institutional member of NASPAA, the program is committed to quality in public affairs education and ascribes to the NASPAA Member Code of Good Practice.

The program, instituted in 1974, develops competencies in management and governance for governmental, nonprofit and other public service organizations. Students acquire basic knowledge and skills through the program’s core courses, while individual career objectives are met through one of three emphases: general public administration, health care management, and nonprofit management. To receive the MPA, students complete 42 credits of graduate course work including the Portfolio or Project Paper. Any undergraduate major course of study provides acceptable preparation for the study of public administration.

The MPA program also offers two graduate certificate programs: a Certificate in Nonprofit Management, which is available to MPA students and as a stand-alone certificate, and a Certificate in Arts Administration (in conjunction with the MFA degree offered by the Visual Studies Workshop).

MPA courses are three credits, meeting once a week for a semester. Some courses are offered online. Courses are generally offered in the evening in downtown Rochester at the College at Brockport MetroCenter.

For Admissions Information