PAUS Department
M.P.A.-JD Degree Requirements
Note: Applicants must be separately admitted to both the J.D. and M.P.A. programs and must request admission to the joint program.
Degree Requirements
The M.P.A. component of the joint degree curriculum consists of 21 hours of required courses, a minimum of 15 hours of electives, and a 3 hour internship. The J.D. component of the joint degree consists of 43 hours of required courses and a minimum of 47 hours of electives. Students should visit the College of Law website for up-to-date J.D. course requirements. Courses are 3 credit hours unless otherwise indicated.
- Required M.P.A. Core Courses: (21 hours)
PAUS 8111 Public Administration and Organizations
PAUS 8121 Applied Research Methods and Statistics I
PAUS 8131 Applied Research Methods and Statistics II
PAUS 8141 Microeconomics for Public Policy
PAUS 8161 Public Budgeting and Finance
PAUS 8171 Public Management Systems and Strategies
PAUS 8431 Leadership and Organizational Behavior - M.P.A. Electives: (15 hours)
Students in the joint program use credit hours earned in one program to satisfy elective course requirements for the other program. The College of Law accepts up to 15 semester hours of approved 8000-level M.P.A. coursework with grades of "B" or better, and the M.P.A. program accepts up to 15 semester hours of approved law coursework. Typically, the student completes the first year of law courses prior to taking any public aministration coursework. This is consistent with the College of Law requirement that sudents complete their first year without outside electives. Public administration courses are taken as electives during the second year and/or during summer sessions.
- Internship: (3 hours)
An internship is required of M.P.A./J.D. students who do not have significant prior administrative experience in a public or nonprofit agency or related organization. The internship is expected to provide the student with an opportunity to apply concepts and skills associated with their M.P.A. curriculum. This opportunity for professional growth and development requires enrollment in three hours of PAUS 8941. Students in the joint M.P.A./J.D. program can fulfill this requirement through internships in legal affairs and administrative law offices and law firms. Students who are taking an externship through the College of Law may be able to use that work experience to fulfill the requirements of the M.P.A internship. That option should be discussed with the M.P.A./J.D. faculty adviser and the M.P.A. internship coordinators prior to beginning the externship.
Students with substantial prior administrative experience may petition to waive the internship requirement. Forms are available through the Office of Academic Assistance. Alternatively, students with more of a research orientation may elect to conduct a practicum in lieu of an internship. The practicum is an applied research project conducted under the supervision of a faculty member. Students interested in this option must write a proposal to be submitted to the PAUS practicum coordinator prior to beginning work on the project.
All plans for the internship, including waiving it or substituting a practicum for it, should be discussed with the M.P.A./J.D. faculty advisor prior the beginning of the term in which the student would like to take action.
To obtain application forms for the College of Law, contact the admissions office:
Georgia State University
College of Law
P.O. Box 4049
Atlanta, GA 30302-4049
Phone: 404/651-2048