To apply, applicants must submit:

• A statement of purpose, outlining professional goals and motivation for pursuing the MPA degree. 
• A professional resume summarizing education, work, and volunteer experiences.
• Transcripts of all previous undergraduate and graduate work.

Applications for admission will be reviewed beginning on February 1st. Applications for admission will be considered on a rolling basis until May 1st or until the incoming cohort is full. Applicants passing initial review will be invited to participate in an interview as part of the admissions review process. 

Not at all! Our MPA students studied a wide variety of disciplines for their undergraduate degree, from business administration to political science to humanities to biology. However, what they have in common is a strong desire to have real, positive impact on the world through a career in public service.

While the student body includes students from all over the world, the MPA Program curriculum at JMU is grounded in American public and nonprofit administration. Students who have not completed a U.S. Government course in their undergraduate program will, if admitted, be required to participate in a non-credit U.S. Government course during their first semester of the program.

The MPA Program at JMU maintains a intimate learning community that averages five students per faculty member at any one time. This small size creates many opportunities for strong student/faculty relationships and valuable one-on-one mentoring. 

To maximize the strengths of a small, intimate learning community, the MPA Program at JMU is largely an in-person degree program on the main JMU campus in Harrisonburg, VA. While a few elective courses may be offered virtually and technologies allow for individual classes to move between in-person and virtual learning, the MPA Program at JMU does not offer an online-only degree.

All students completing their application for admissions to MPA Program at JMU by February 1st may indicate interest in a Graduate Assistantship with the Department of Political Science. The selection process for these limited assistantships is competitive and is based on a variety of criteria including demonstrated excellence, financial need, and the extent to which existing skills meet the work needs.  

Additional Graduate Assistantships outside the Department of Political Science may be found in the JMU Pageup campus employment posting system. Questions for these positions should be directed to the hiring department and not the MPA program. 

Finally, students in the MPA Program may also be eligible to apply for financial assistance through JMU's Office of Financial Aid. Please be sure to review eligibility requirements. 

The MPA Program at JMU schedules all core classes and many of the elective courses as once-a-week classes meeting in person from 6PM to 8:30PM. Most students who are working full time enroll in one of two classes a semester, including summer sessions, and complete the program within three to six years.

All students in the MPA Program who are either not working full time in a relevant public service profession or who do not have a certain number of years of prior relevant public service employment will enroll in PUAD 696: Internship in Public Administration. This course provides students real work-based learning opportunities in which MPA competencies will be developed and practiced. 

Students who believe that they have sufficient prior public service professional experience may apply to the MPA Program Directors for a waiver from this class. 

The MPA Program at JMU does not require a thesis. Instead, students develop a portfolio of work mapped to the JMU Program Competencies as the culmination of their studies. The awarding of the MPA degree is contingent on successful completion of all classes plus the submission of a satisfactory portfolio.

In a recent survey, our graduates indicated that they worked in a wide variety of organizations. Over 22% work in local government, 11% in state and federal government, 17% in nonprofit organizations, and 15% in for-profit companies.