Program Almanac 2009
The following data are from institutional responses to NASPAA’s Fall 2009 Enrollment and Academic Year 2008-2009 Degrees Awarded Survey, administered by NASPAA in Spring 2010. The data reflect only survey-participating institutional members. Of the 268 NASPAA institutional members as of spring 2010, 189 responded to the survey as of July 1, 2010, giving the survey a response rate of 66 percent, an increase of 7 percentage point in comparison with last year.

Master's Degrees

(N=189) (Response Rate=66%)

Degree Programs Offered Fall 2009

Degree Type Program Offered
by Respondent
Percent of
Respondents
Master of Public Administration 152 82.6
Master of Public Policy 20 10.9
Master of Public Affairs 9 4.9
Executive Master 23 12.5
Other Master Programs 53 28.8
Offering Joint Degrees 88 47.8
Total Program* 345  

* It is normal for institutional members to offer multiple Master degree programs, hence the total number of programs is larger than the total number of survey respondents.

** NASPAA institutional members were provided four spaces in which to enter “other” degrees. The most common of these “other” degrees is Master of Science in Public Policy and Management, Master of International Development and Master of Government Administration. Other reported master’s degrees include, but are not limited to, Health (Care) Administration, Criminal Justice, Political Science, Transportation Policy Operations and Logistics, Economic Policy Management, Higher Education Administration, Nonprofit Management, Environmental Science, Public Service Management, and Enterprise Engineering and Policy.

Degree Program Highlights

  • About 78 percent of the respondent institutions offer MPA degrees. About 47 percent offer joint-degrees.
  • About 29 percent of the respondents offer Master degrees other than MPP, MPA, MPAff or Executive MPA.

Student Enrollment Fall 2009

Degree Type Enrolled
Full-Time
Percent
Full-Time
Enrolled
Part-Time
Percent
Part-Time
Enrolled
Total
Master of Public Administration 9,121 49.5 9,294 50.5 18,415
Master of Public Policy 2,032 78.4 561 21.6 2,593
Master of Public Affairs 907 71.9 354 28.1 1,261
Executive MPA 713 36.8 1,223 63.2 1,936
Other Master Degrees 2,982 58.4 2,120 41.6 5,102
Total Student Enrolled 15,755 53.8 13,552 46.2 29,307

Enrollment Highlights

  • More than 78 percent of MPP students enrolled full-time and more than 63 percent of Executive MPA students enrolled part-time.
  • MPA program enrolled nearly 63 percent of Master-degree seekers in Public Affairs and Administration.

Degree Awarded AY 2008 - 2009

Degree Type Degrees Awarded
by Respondents
Percent of
Degree Awarded
by Respondents
Master of Public Administration 5,843 56.8
Master of Public Policy 923 9.0
Master of Public Affairs 424 4.1
Executive MPA 797 7.8
Other Master 1,939 18.9
Joint Degree 357 3.5
Total Degree Awarded 10,283  

Degree Awarded Highlights

  • More than 10,000 students received their Master's degrees in Public Administration and Public Services during the 2009-10 Academic Year. About 3.5 percent had joint degrees.
  • The most common degree offered jointly with the MPA/MPP is the JD. Other joint/dual master’s degrees offered with an MPA/MPP include, but are not limited to, Social Work, Business Administration, Urban Planning, Regional Planning, Law, Criminal Justice, International Affairs, Nursing, Doctor of Medicine, Mental Health, Public Health, Divinity, Latin American Studies, and Environmental Science.

Undergraduate Courses Offered Fall 2009

Course Subject Institution Offering
the Courses
Percent of
Respondents
Courses in Public Administration 140 76.1
Courses in NonProfit Mngmt. 77 41.8
Courses in Health Mngmt. 58 31.5

Undergraduate Course Offering Highlights

  • More than 77 percent of the respondent's institutions offer undergraduate courses in Public Administration or Public Affairs.
  • Nearly 42 percent of the respondent's institutions offer undergraduate courses in Non-profit Management.