Education: The Long View
at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Robert Moore (L to R) with Shereen Bhan, administrative coordinator for the International Studies Program, and Paul Kagunda, Ph.D. student in economics.

The students of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies are among our most outstanding attributes. They come from around the globe with challenging questions and the desire to make the world better tomorrow than it is today.

We think our programs have something meaningful to offer to these students; they must think so as well. Student contact hours have grown over 60 percent in the last five years. Graduate applications are up 25 percent over last year and are even higher in degrees like the Masters of Public Administration (up 30%). We have the fastest-growing undergraduate degree program on campus, Human Resource Policy and Development; a degree that did not exist at Georgia State a couple of years ago. In both student space and instructional capacity we are bursting at the seams.

International programs are increasingly seeking to place sponsored students in our school. As a result, we have hosted students from the Mandela, Muskie and Humphrey programs.

When our students graduate, recognition of their unique training helps them get placed in positions with real impact. A cadre of AYSPS alumni are making significant contributions in federal, state and local governments in the United States and in an increasingly large number of foreign countries. For example, our alumni in South Africa are in key positions in the National Treasury Department, the Financial and Fiscal Commission, and the Industry and Trade Department. A group of our former students in Indonesia will do joint research with us on their country’s reform. In Washington, DC, we have placed alumni in the International Monetary Fund, the Congressional Budget Office, the Congressional Research Service and the Environmental Protection Agency. Many of our Ph.D. graduates now hold faculty positions in other academic institutions as well.

The Andrew Young School takes the long view of education. In addition to our traditional undergraduate and graduate programs, we offer summer training workshops to mid-career professionals from transitional and developing countries and provide technical assistance to leaders of countries experiencing policy difficulties. A steady stream of visiting foreign scholars has come to learn from us and partner with us in research.

The wonderful thing about a truly successful educational program is that it is a two-way street. Each student brings something new to the school. We gain a broader and deeper understanding of world cultures and associated issues and concerns. We are challenged with fresh ways to approach old problems. We are finding that our programs are enhanced by the great diversity of students who come here to study.

Robert E. Moore
Associate Dean