Master of Public Administration Program
The WKU MPA program prepares graduate students to be productive leaders and managers in public service by sharing knowledge, encouraging excellence in research and practice, and fostering an environment of professionalism within the diverse communities we serve.
If a career in public service—with its vast array of opportunities to engage with public problems and policy solutions—interests you, then a master’s degree in public administration can help you achieve your goals. The MPA is an excellent, flexible degree suitable to a variety of career opportunities in the public and nonprofit sectors. Housed within the Department of Political Science and Potter College of Arts & Letters (PCAL) at Western Kentucky University, the WKU MPA program provides an interdisciplinary, generalist approach to the study of public administration. We welcome the opportunity to talk with you about how an MPA from WKU could help you expand your options.
Graduate education is an investment toward your career goals, and the MPA is designed to prepare you for a vast array of career opportunities. The MPA is a practical, administrative degree, and the WKU MPA program is designed to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to succeed in the wide-ranging, challenging, and rewarding field of public affairs.
For more information, please email
Interested in being a GA? Apply here!
Graduate Assistant Application
Required Core Courses:
- PS 501 Research Methods in Public Administration
- PS 530 Public Sector Organizations
- PS 538 Public Service Ethics
- PS 541 Human Resources Management in Public Administration
- PS 542 Public & Nonprofit Budgeting
- PS 560 Public Policy Theory OR PS 562 Public Policy Implementation & Evaluation
- PS 590 Capstone in Public Administration
Electives:
Students select 15 hours from the following or may substitute courses with their advisor’s approval; some students choose to complete graduate certificates to fulfill all or part of the elective course requirements:
- PS 500 Workshops in Public Administration (1.5 hours, may be repeated for credit)
- PS 512 Kentucky Government and Politics
- PS 520 Elements of Public Administration
- PS 526 Local Government Administration
- PS 549 Special Problems in Public Administration
- PS 550 Cultural Competencies for Public Administrators
- PS 554 Cross-Sector Collaboration & Conflict
- PS 564 Nonprofits & Public Policy
- PS 566 Environmental Politics & Public Policy
- PS 580 Directed Study
- PS 597 Professional Seminar in Public Administration
Barren River Area Development District Local Government Employee Discount Program
July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2025
Consistent with WKU’s role as a regional lighthouse and recognizing the importance that local government employees play in the future success of the communities that we serve, Western Kentucky University has established the Local Government Employee Discount Program. Eligible local government employees will be offered a discounted tuition rate of $500/credit hour through June 30th, 2025.
The discount program pertains to admission and costs related to courses offered by the Department of Political Science for WKU's Master of Public Administration (MPA) program and Graduate Certificate in Local Government Administration program offered to full-time employees of the Barren River Area Development District (BRADD) and its member organizations. Member organizations include all local governments located in the 10 counties (Allen, Barren, Butler, Edmonson, Hart, Logan,Metcalfe, Monroe, Simson, and Warren county) that BRADD services.
Who is Eligible for the Discount?
Full-time employees of BRADD and its member organizations will be eligible to participate in the Local Government Employee Discount Program. To receive the discount, employees will need to:
- Apply and be accepted to the Graduate School.
- Be accepted for study in the MPA program or for the Graduate Certificate in Local Government Administration
- Submit signed verification of full-time employment. The signed verification of full-time employment should be e-mailed to polisci@wku.edu.
Information on admission to the Graduate School can be found at:
https://catalog.wku.edu/graduate/admission/
The Local Government Employee Discount can be applied to the Master of Public Administration (MPA) program or for the graduate certificate in Local Government Administration.
The Master of Public Administration (MPA) is the primary professional degree in both the public and nonprofit sectors. WKU's MPA program prepares graduate students from diverse backgrounds to be productive leaders and managers in public service by sharing practical and theoretical knowledge, encouraging excellence in both research and practice, along with fostering an environment of professionalism. Upon graduation from the program, students will have the skills necessary to lead and engage with a wide range of public organizations, programs, and policy areas.
The graduate certificate in Local Government Administration prepares students for careers in local government administration. The two (2) required courses rely on a foundation of Public Administrative theory relevant to the current issues and skills necessary for effective and responsible local government administration. In addition to the two (2) required courses, the program allows students to choose two (2) elective courses from a selection of courses for a total of 12 credit hours. Substitutions for these courses may be made with the consent of the advisor.
All employees of BRADD and their member organizations are eligible for the discount. If you have any questions about your eligibility to participate in the discount program, please e-mail polisci@wku.edu.
If you have any questions about the MPA program or graduate certificate in Local Government Administration please contact:
MPA@wku.edu or PoliSci@wku.edu
MPA Director: Shannon.Vaughan@wku.edu
Department Chair: Scott.Lasley@wku.edu
The application process involves the following:
Complete the Online Application for Admission found on the WKU Graduate School website.
Submit the required application fee.
Request that official transcripts of all undergraduate and graduate work (from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended) be sent directly to the WKU Graduate School.
Minimum cumulative undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 (on a 4.0 scale) is required for full admission to the WKU Graduate School. In certain circumstances, a program may request that a student with less than a 2.75 GPA be conditionally admitted. For the WKU MPA program, the admissions committee makes the decision whether to conditionally admit a student.
Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores must be sent directly to the WKU Graduate School. (Note: Applicants with a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher from an accredited undergraduate institution and/or 3 years of relevant work experience in public service are exempt from the GRE requirement.)
Applicant should send the following directly to mpa@wku.edu:
- Statement of Purpose outlining how the MPA degree will help accomplish career goals and objectives
- current resume
Applicant should request two (2) letters of recommendation from persons familiar with the applicant’s academic or employment experience and have the letters sent to mpa@wku.edu.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but applicants are encouraged to submit all application materials at least 4 weeks before the start of the semester in which they plan to enroll.
Program Options
Information on the courses included in the MPA curriculum is available here.
Many students pursuing a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree at WKU choose elective courses that allow them to also complete a graduate certificate. The Department of Political Science offers a graduate certificate in Local Government Administration for students interested in careers in local and regional planning and economic development as well as local government management. Other WKU graduate certificates that are particularly relevant for MPA students include:
The WKU MPA program does not offer scholarships. A small number of competitive graduate assistantships that provide a stipend and partial tuition assistance are available to qualified applicants; we do not currently offer any assistantships that would cover the full cost of tuition.
A small number of competitive graduate assistantships that provide a stipend and partial tuition assistance are available to qualified applicants. The Department of Political Science offers half-time and quarter-time assistantships. Half-time GAs are required to work approximately 20 hours per week while quarter-time GA are required to work approximately 10 hours per week. Half-time GAs receive a $6000 stipend and $3000 tuition waiver per semester. Quarter-time GAs will receive a $3000 stipend and $1500 tuition waiver. As a GA, graduate students may assist department staff and faculty members in research, teaching, and service functions. Please submit questions about graduate assistantships to the MPA director at mpa@wku.edu. Allocation of the assistantships for the upcoming academic year typically occurs in April, so completed applications are due by April 22th. Earlier applications are encouraged. GAs must be enrolled full-time during the semester they are serving as a GA.
Link to Application:
We are best at serving the public interest when we train students who reflect the public. Accordingly, a key aspect of our mission is to prepare graduate students from diverse backgrounds to serve our diverse communities. Our program maintains a healthy mix of full-time pre-service students and part-time students currently working in public or nonprofit organizations. Through our extended campus at Ft. Knox and other relationships, we are fortunate to have cultivated a long history of active-duty military personnel pursing their MPA with us. MPA classes regularly include international and underrepresented minority students and reflect a gender balance. These diverse backgrounds reflect the wide range of experiences and perspectives that our students bring to the program.
The WKU MPA program has a long history and proven track record of educating leaders and managers for positions in local, state, national, and international government and nonprofit sector agencies. In 2023, we will celebrate 50 years as a program that is:
Versatile
The WKU MPA degree requires completion of 36 graduate credit hours – 18 hours of required core courses, 15 hours of electives, and a 3-hour Capstone experience. Core courses and most electives are offered in person on our Bowling Green campus; remote students connect to those same courses via simultaneous, interactive Zoom sessions, creating a sense of community among all our students. Classes are offered in the evenings to make participation easier for students who also work full-time; we do not offer classes on Fridays or the weekends. Some electives are available via asynchronous online coursework.
Diverse
Our program has a history of attracting students from a diverse array of backgrounds, including traditional full-time students who just finished their undergraduate degree and mid-career professionals who return to school part-time. Students in our programs regularly include current and former military personnel, under-represented minorities, and international students. We consistently have a healthy gender balance approximating 50% female and 50% male students.
Professional
The WKU MPA program blends public administration theory and practice to provide students with the tools, skills, and knowledge necessary for a successful career as a public administrator. Students are required to complete an internship as part of the Capstone experience; for those students with sufficient public or nonprofit sector work experience, the internship requirement can be waived and replaced with a field-based research project. Our almost 50-year experience building relationships within the communities we serve has led to an extensive network of professional connections among students and alumni.
Accredited by NASPAA – the global standard in public service education – since 2009, our program has been preparing graduate students to be leaders and managers in public service since 1974. Alums of our program lead across Kentucky as well as other states and in several countries as employees of federal, state, and local government agencies, directors of nonprofit organizations, and as university faculty and administrators. We are proud of the many ways our alumni advance the public interest through regional planning, public safety, financial management, community development, arts administration, civic engagement, and more.
The MPA program at WKU offers instruction via in-person and remote instruction. All required courses (and many electives) are offered in person on the Bowling Green campus and are also accessible via live, synchronous Zoom sessions. Accordingly, students who are unable to commute to the Bowling Green campus can still complete their MPA at WKU. We believe that real-time interaction with professors and peers is an important aspect of graduate education, so we strive to build that sense of community among all of our students, whether they are physically or virtually in the classroom. To accommodate the schedules of busy professionals, most required classes and electives are offered in the evenings. Some elective courses are offered via asynchronous online instruction, usually during the Winter and Summer terms.
Information on graduation rates and the career paths of our alumni is available here.
WKU uses Degree Works to audit progress toward completion of the MPA and other graduate degrees. Use the Degree Works Audit Dashboard to track coursework and related progress toward degree completion. Click here to access the Dashboard; you will need to enter your student ID.
Many students pursuing a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree at WKU choose elective courses that allow them to also complete a graduate certificate. The Department of Political Science offers a graduate certificate in Local Government Administration for students interested in careers in local and regional planning and economic development as well as local government management. Other WKU graduate certificates that are particularly relevant for MPA students include:
- Communicating in Organizations
- Emergency Management Disaster Science
- Nonprofit Administration
- Organizational Leadership
Courses other than the ones specifically listed in the Graduate Catalog can sometimes be substituted for approved courses. Course substitutions must be approved by the MPA Director, PCAL Dean, and the Graduate School prior to enrollment in any alternative course work. The Graduate Curriculum Exception Form is available on the Graduate School – Forms site, accessible here.
Up to 12 graduate credit (semester) hours of transfer credit from an accredited institution may be accepted toward meeting the course requirements for the MPA degree. Courses accepted for transfer credit must fall within the 6-year limit for degree completion. Requests for transfer credit must be approved by the MPA Director and the Graduate School. All requests for transfer credit must include supporting documentation regarding course content and requirements. Course outlines, syllabi and reading lists are appropriate for this requirement.
To earn the WKU MPA degree, students must complete 36 hours of approved graduate coursework as outlined in the Graduate Catalog, complete the Capstone experience (PS 590), and file the application for degree form (along with the requisite fees) with The Graduate School. The Application for Graduation form is available on the Graduate School – Forms site, accessible here. Students are expected to file for graduation either during the semester prior to the semester of graduation or early in the semester they expect to graduate.
All necessary course work must be completed (no unresolved grades of "incomplete”) with a minimum GPA of 3.0, all relevant forms filed, and fees paid before the MPA degree will be officially awarded.
Helpful Links
The Graduate School | Current Graduate Catalog | Graduate Catalog Archive | Student Financial Assistance
Graduate Record Exam | Tuition & Fee Schedules- Previous Years | Current Tuition Rates