Course summary
Overview Are you a professional looking to step up into public sector leadership and management? A Master's degree in Public Administration can give you the knowledge, skills and experience you need to advance your career and take on ambitious roles in areas such as national policymaking and ministerial advice. You can study this MPA Public Administration degree course full-time or part-time alongside work via distance learning, so you can fit your studies around your work schedule and apply your learning to your role in real time. You'll cover public policy, service delivery and administration from an inter-cultural, inter-professional and inter-organisational perspective. You'll unpack specialist subjects, such as procurement, project management and corporate governance. You'll also learn transferable skills that will be valuable throughout your career. We'll provide public sector expertise, support and work-based strategies so you can become an expert in your field and take your skills and knowledge straight into your job. Once you graduate, you'll be able to explore new opportunities in public administration leadership and management, or to seek promotion in your current line of work. Eligibility This course accepts UK, EU, and international students. What you'll experience
- Gain the specialist public sector knowledge and skills you need to advance in your career, including public policy, strategic management, leading change and new ways of working
- Compare policy processes and outputs within specific fields, including health, education, welfare, economic development, defence, policing and intelligence
- Complete a live strategic plan based on your own workplace that you can put into action in your existing or next role
- Learn from academics with frontline public sector experience and hear from industry expert guest lecturers, including Members of Parliament and local authority experts
- Have the opportunity to do a work-based placement with a local authority or public sector institution, such as Hampshire County Council or Portsmouth City Council
- ministerial advice
- central government policy units
- government partner organisations
- charitable foundations
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation (OECD)
- European Union (EU)
- Local Government Association (LGA)
- 1 year (full-time study)
- 2 years (part-time study)
- 1 optional live online seminar each week for each module you study, held at times when as many students as possible can attend. These will also be recorded. All core material is available online at all times so you can create your own study schedule.
- 20 to 25 hours of independent study each week if you study full-time, or 12 to 14 hours each week if you study part-time.
Modules
Full-time Core modules
- Comparative Public Policy (Dl) (30 credits)
- Partnerships, Problems and Probity: Solving Complex Social Issues (30 credits)
- Public Management and Administration (Dl) (30 credits)
- Strategic Public Management and Leading Effective Change (Dl) (30 credits)
- Dissertation/Major Project (Masters Public Administration) (Dl) (60 credits)
- Project Management: Tools and Techniques (30 credits)
- Work Based Project (30 credits)
Assessment method
You'll be assessed through:
- work-related assignments
- essays
- online presentations
- reports
- dissertation or report
Entry requirements
A minimum of a second-class honours degree or equivalent in a relevant subject, or equivalent professional experience and/or qualifications. Preferably, applicants will have experience of working in a managerial role in a public sector organisation. Applicants may be invited to attend an interview.
English language requirements
Test | Grade | Additional details |
---|---|---|
IELTS (Academic) | English language proficiency at a minimum of IELTS band 6.5 with no component score below 5.5. | |
TOEFL (iBT) | 91 with a minimum of 18 in Reading, 17 in Listening, 20 in Speaking and 17 in Writing. | |
PTE Academic | An overall score of 65 with a minimum of 59 in each skill. | |
Cambridge English Advanced | Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) (taken after January 2015). An overall score of 176 with no component score less than 162. | |
Cambridge English Proficiency | Cambridge English: Advanced (CPE) (taken after January 2015). An overall score of 176 with no component score less than 162. |
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
EU | £4700 | Year 1 |
International | £4700 | Year 1 |
England | £4700 | Year 1 |
Northern Ireland | £4700 | Year 1 |
Scotland | £4700 | Year 1 |
Wales | £4700 | Year 1 |
Channel Islands | £4700 | Year 1 |
Republic of Ireland | £4700 | Year 1 |
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
Provider information
University of Portsmouth
University House
Winston Churchill Avenue
Portsmouth
PO1 2UP