Emphases
Students may specialize in one of the following emphasis areas: public management, public policy analysis, health administration or criminal justice. Dual emphasis areas are also offered.
Public Management
The public management emphasis is designed for those working for, or planning to work for, executive agencies of local, state and federal government; for private, nonprofit organizations; and in government relations units of private corporations. It provides basic tools of public management, understanding of structure and processes of public organizations, and the history and context of the field of public administration.
Public Policy Analysis
The public policy analysis emphasis offers professional staff of executive and legislative departments of local, state and federal governments the capability to analyze the effects of a broad range of actual and hypothetical government policies. It emphasizes application of economic analysis and other quantitative and qualitative methods to Alaska and national policy issues.
Health Administration
The health administration emphasis prepares students as health administrators in local, state or federal agencies; nonprofit organizations; and private companies that do health-related work. Students develop knowledge and skills necessary for effective public management in the health care area: planning, decision making, and managing people, money and programs.
Criminal Justice
The criminal justice emphasis provides a theoretical basis for management careers in criminal justice. Students develop knowledge and skills necessary for effective public management: planning and decision making, and managing people, money and programs. These skills are applicable to a wide spectrum of employment areas in law enforcement and the criminal justice system, and they prepare students seeking to earn a terminal degree in justice administration.
Dual Emphases
The dual emphasis in public management and public policy analysis is designed for those who work for, or plan to work for, both executive and legislative agencies of local, state and federal government; for private, nonprofit organizations; and in government relations units of private corporations. It combines the basic tools of public management with the capability to analyze the effects of a broad range of actual or hypothetical government policies. It provides an understanding of the structure and processes of public organizations, the history and context of the field of public administration, and emphasizes the application of economic analysis and other quantitative and qualitative methods to Alaska and national policy issues. This dual emphasis requires an additional 9 credits.
Various additional dual emphasis areas may be created by combining individual emphasis areas. Interested students should speak with their advisor.
Master of Business Administration as a Second Degree
Students who have earned the MPA may earn a Master of Business Administration (MBA) by completing a minimum of 21 resident credits not used for any previous degree. Specific course requirements are at the discretion of the CBPP director of graduate programs and will be reflected in the student’s MBA program plan prior to beginning coursework toward a second degree.