Concentration in Public Administration

          "I wish I could find a program that I could complete during my free time."                    "I want a graduate education that I can readily apply to my workplace."                    "I want to enjoy my next degree and not feel pressured to compete with other students."                    "I don't have time to come to campus every week for classes, so my classes have to be designed for the distance learner."     

Program Description

The increasing scope and complexity of problems facing American society have placed substantial demands upon public and private sector leaders. It is a broad sentiment that our social institutions (and their leaders) have failed to provide the "good life". Our society is entering an era in which the traditional boundary between public, private and nonprofit sectors is becoming increasingly blurred. Thus, it is even more important that today's public administrator understand and work effectively within the context of these social changes. Public administrators require particular knowledge and skills to provide the highest standards of leadership in their communities, and the MLS in Public Administration provides those essential qualities. Students completing their MLS program with this concentration will have the following notation on their transcripts: "Liberal Studies (Social Sciences)"

Program Curriculum

Every student is required to take the 10 hours of Core Classes. These include:

• IDS 801 Introduction to Graduate Liberal Studies
• IDS 802 Ways of Knowing in Comparative Perspective
• IDS 803 Origins and Implications of the Knowledge Society
• IDS 804 Information Literacy

In addition, every student emphasizing in the Public Administration area should take 18 credit hours from the following list of courses (or other substitutions as deemed appropriate):

• Policy Analysis (available through distance education)
• Administrative Process (available through distance education)
• Public Personnel Management (available through distance education)
• Seminar: Budgeting (has been available through distance education; could do a 'readings' course on budgeting)
• History of Political Thought (may not be available through distance education; could do a 'readings' course on political thought)
• Seminar: Public Policy Ethics and Information Networking (available through the INT department)
• Constitutional Law (has not been available through distance education; might be able to do a 'readings' course on Constiutional Law)
• Readings
• From the Department of Leadership Studies: Advanced Leadership Theories
• From the Department of Communications: Conflict Management Through Communications; Organizational Communication and Leadership; Nonverbal Communications

Program Contact

Contact Dr. Art Morin now to see if the Master of Liberal Studies concentration in public administration could be right for you. Once you have been admitted to this concentration, please follow the MLS Checklist and carefully read The MLS Student Handbook.