Public Policy (M.P.P.)
https://carsey.unh.edu/master-public-policy
The Master in Public Policy degree (MPP) offers you the opportunity to learn the skills you need to succeed in today’s public policy jobs—analytical expertise, strategic vision, clear and compelling communications, and the tools of leadership. This public policy master's program is ideal whether you will be completing your bachelor’s degree in the near future or are currently working in a policy-related field. You can choose a track focused on public policy analysis or strategy and communications—and select from a broad range of electives to personalize your degree. Built into the unique curriculum are a variety of experiential learning opportunities to deepen and broaden what you learn in the classroom, such as:
- Colloquium in Washington, DC: You will be immersed in the capital scene – meeting with leaders in Congress, the White House, government agencies, political parties, advocacy groups, think tanks, and more.
- Policy Internship: You will work in a policy-focused organization to gain practical, real-world experience and a valuable perspective on careers in public policy.
- Capstone Project: You will employ the MPP skills you have gained to delve deeply into a specific policy area to produce a comprehensive written report and oral presentation.
You can earn your MPP degree in as little as 14 months (or 12 months for UNH Accelerated Master's students). You can also choose to earn your MPP degree over a longer period by attending part time.
Program Delivery & Location: Academic courses are offered in person on the UNH Durham campus with a portion of the experiential learning taking place offsite: Washington, DC, for the Colloquium and at the Internship site location during the MPP Internship experience.
Accelerated Masters Eligible: Yes
Students enrolled in the Carsey School's Master in Public Policy program (MPP degree) are required to complete a forty (40) credit program, consisting of:
- Five (5) CORE Curriculum Courses
- Four (4) EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING Activities
- Two (2) PUBLIC POLICY TRACK Courses (Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track)
- Four (4) ELECTIVE Courses
These provide the foundational analytical, strategic, and communication skills for a successful career in the world of public policy making. Students focus their public policy studies by choosing either the Strategy and Communication Track or the Policy Analysis Track and completing two courses in one of the tracks. Courses in both tracks can also be taken as open electives. Further opportunities for depth and specialization in substantive policy areas are provided by open elective courses which vary by semester. As culminating graduate experiences, students apply what they've learned through an MPP internship at a policy-oriented organization as well as conducting a capstone project by delving deeply into a policy area of interest. Both of these experiences are provided with guidance from faculty mentors.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| MPP CORE Curriculum Courses (5 Courses): | ||
| PPOL 806 | Fundamentals of Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PPOL 902 | Strategy and Practice of Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 904 | Economics for Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 908 | Quantitative Methods for Policy Research | 3 |
| PPOL 910 | Policy Across Borders | 3 |
| MPP EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING Activities (4 Courses): | ||
| PPOL 950 | Washington DC Colloquium | 3 |
| PPOL 990A | Policy Capstone Planning | 1 |
| PPOL 990 | Policy Capstone | 3 |
| PPOL 998A | Policy Internship 1 | 0 |
| or PPOL 998 | Policy Internship | |
| PUBLIC POLICY TRACK (2 Courses): 2 | 6 | |
| Two (2) courses are selected based upon the chosen track: Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track | ||
| ELECTIVE Courses (4 Courses): 1,3 | 12 | |
| Four (4) open elective courses are selected in substantive areas approved by the MPP program (or 3 open elective courses if the Policy Internship is taken for credit, PPOL 998) 1 | ||
| Total Credits | 40 | |
Notes:
| 1 | In special cases and with your MPP Advisor's permission, the Policy Internship may be taken for credit (PPOL 998, 3 credits), supervised by a faculty member who will provide the academic structure to parallel the applied experience. If this is the case, the required number of MPP-approved elective courses is reduced to three (3) courses. |
| 2 | Students choose two (2) courses from either the Strategy and Communication Track or the Policy Analysis Track. Courses in both tracks can also be taken as open elective courses. |
| 3 | MPP-Approved elective courses are available in many substantive areas. Students may also propose additional electives if they make sense in terms of the student’s interests and academic plan. Discussion with your MPP Academic Advisor should inform this choice. |
16-MONTH FULL-TIME DEGREE COMPLETION PLAN (Typical)
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| PPOL 806 | Fundamentals of Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PPOL 904 | Economics for Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 908 | Quantitative Methods for Policy Research | 3 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| January Term | ||
| PPOL 950 | Washington DC Colloquium | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 902 | Strategy and Practice of Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 910 | Policy Across Borders | 3 |
| PPOL 990A | Policy Capstone Planning | 1 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved Elective Course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 13 | |
| Summer | ||
| PPOL 998A or PPOL 998 |
Policy Internship 1 or Policy Internship |
0 |
| Credits | 0 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PPOL 990 | Policy Capstone | 3 |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved Elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved Elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved Elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| Total Credits | 40 | |
14-MONTH FULL-TIME DEGREE COMPLETION PLAN
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Summer | Credits | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 6 | |
| Fall | ||
| PPOL 806 | Fundamentals of Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PPOL 904 | Economics for Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 908 | Quantitative Methods for Policy Research | 3 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Credits | 12 | |
| January Term | ||
| PPOL 950 | Washington DC Colloquium | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 902 | Strategy and Practice of Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 910 | Policy Across Borders | 3 |
| PPOL 990A | Policy Capstone Planning | 1 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 13 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Summer | ||
| PPOL 990 | Policy Capstone | 3 |
| PPOL 998A or PPOL 998 |
Policy Internship 1 or Policy Internship |
0 |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) | 3 | |
| Credits | 6 | |
| Total Credits | 40 | |
24-MONTH PART-TIME DEGREE COMPLETION PLAN
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| PPOL 806 | Fundamentals of Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PPOL 904 | Economics for Public Policy | 3 |
| Credits | 6 | |
| January Term | ||
| PPOL 950 | Washington DC Colloquium | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 902 | Strategy and Practice of Public Policy | 3 |
| PPOL 910 | Policy Across Borders | 3 |
| PPOL 990A | Policy Capstone Planning | 1 |
| Credits | 7 | |
| Summer | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 6 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PPOL 908 | Quantitative Methods for Policy Research | 3 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Credits | 6 | |
| January Term | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 6 | |
| Summer | ||
| PPOL 990 | Policy Capstone | 3 |
| PPOL 998A or PPOL 998 |
Policy Internship 1 or Policy Internship |
0 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 40 | |
36-MONTH PART-TIME DEGREE COMPLETION PLAN
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | |
| PPOL 904 | Economics for Public Policy | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| January Term | ||
| PPOL 950 | Washington DC Colloquium | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 902 | Strategy and Practice of Public Policy | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Summer | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| PPOL 806 | Fundamentals of Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PPOL 908 | Quantitative Methods for Policy Research | 3 |
| Credits | 6 | |
| January Term | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 910 | Policy Across Borders | 3 |
| PPOL 990A | Policy Capstone Planning | 1 |
| Credits | 4 | |
| Summer | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Third Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| January Term | ||
| Elective Course (choose an MPP-Approved elective course) 3 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Spring | ||
| PPOL 998A or PPOL 998 |
Policy Internship 1 or Policy Internship |
0 |
| Elective Course (choose a course from the Strategy and Communication Track or Policy Analysis Track) 2 | 3 | |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Summer | ||
| PPOL 990 | Policy Capstone | 3 |
| Credits | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 40 | |
NOTES:
| 1 | In special cases and with your MPP Advisor's permission, the Policy Internship may be taken for credit (PPOL 998, 3 credits), supervised by a faculty member who will provide the academic structure to parallel the applied experience. If this is the case, the required number of MPP-approved elective courses is reduced to three (3) courses. |
| 2 | Students choose two (2) courses from either the Strategy and Communication Track or the Policy Analysis Track. Courses in both tracks can also be taken as open elective courses. |
| 3 | MPP-Approved elective courses are available in many substantive areas. Students may also propose additional electives if they make sense in terms of the student’s interests and academic plan. Discussion with your MPP Academic Advisor should inform this choice. |