Public Affairs

University of California, Berkeley

About the Program

Expand and deepen your leadership for the advancement of public good

The Berkeley Master of Public Affairs (MPA) program is a 30-unit one-year program designed to benefit mid-career professionals in the public, private, and non-profit sectors.  MPA students are seeking advancement in their careers and are poised to take on greater leadership and policy-focused roles in their workplace and professional communities.

Learn the skills to make an impact

The focus of the degree is on policy analysis combined with deep engagement with questions of organizational leadership and ethics, innovation, economic analysis, and strategy. Students also undertake individual and group assignments that emphasize both short turnaround analyses and in-depth studies of policy issues. Students conclude the program by designing a Capstone project with a real world client. During the Capstone students conduct a thorough analysis of a major policy question facing the organization while applying the interdisciplinary methods, approaches, and perspectives studied in the MPA curriculum. 

Learn from distinguished Goldman School faculty and a global community

Classes are taught by top faculty, researchers and practitioners who are on the leading edge of today's most pressing public policy issues: energy & climate change, national security & international development, information technology, education, race, equity & social justice and urban policy & labor.

Throughout your studies, you will enjoy personal attention in small classes, and join a network of professionals and executives leading the charge to shape government, business and nonprofits. 

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Admissions

Please visit our departmental website for comprehensive Admissions information.

Master's Degree Requirements (MPA)

  • Complete a minimum of 30 units (14 core units earning a grade of ‘B’ or better plus 16 elective units)

  • Complete a Capstone project (included in the 14 core units)

MPA Core Courses (14 Units)

PUB AFF 205Policy Frameworks and Challenges1
PUB AFF 235Research Methods for Policy Leaders1
PUB AFF 215Economics for Public Policy Makers3
PUB AFF 287Innovation, Strategy and Leadership: Making Change in Public Organizations. (3 units, 1 unit of which may be awarded as a companion PUB AFF 290 course)2
PUB AFF 245Inferential Statistics for Policy Makers1
PUB AFF 207The Capstone4

MPA Elective Courses (16+ Units)

MPA students may satisfy the degree’s elective requirements by taking graduate or upper division undergraduate level courses at the Goldman School or any other department at the University. Goldman School Public Affairs courses that can be used to satisfy the elective requirement include the following:

PUB AFF 225Policy Communications1
PUB AFF 265Financial Management and Budgeting1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs ( Make It So! The real-life challenges of policy implementation that delivers results.)1-2
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Politics and Development in the Global South)1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Design Thinking)1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Strategies to Reach and Sustain International Climate Accords: Tools and Pathways to Success)1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Public Budgeting for Policy Leaders)1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Data Visualization, Principles and Techniques)1-2
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Storytelling for Leadership )1
PUB AFF 290Special Topics in Public Affairs (Digital Economy: Public Policy-Making in the Fourth Industrial Revolution)1-4
 

Courses

Public Affairs

Public Policy

Contact Information

Goldman School of Public Policy (GSPP)

2607 Hearst Avenue

Phone: 510-642-4670

mpa@berkeley.edu

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Associate Director of the MPA Program

H. Simon Bryce

2607 Hearst Avenue

Phone: (510) 642-1481

simonbryce@berkeley.edu

Senior Assistant Dean of Academic Programs and Dean of Students

Anne Campbell Washington

2607 Hearst Avenue

acw@berkeley.edu

Faculty Director

Jane Mauldon

2607 Hearst Avenue

jmauldon@berkeley.edu

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