MPA 6670 - Special Topics in Public Affairs

Credits: 4

The “Special Topics in Public Affairs” course is designed to allow faculty to present courses that may not exist as part of the regular MPA curriculum, but are desired because of special interest in an evolving topic in the field, or in response to an issue of special import at a particular point in time. For instance, an increased interest among practitioners and students in Collective Bargaining may lead to a special topics course to explore that topic. In time, such a course might be proposed as a “regular” part of the MPA curriculum. Another example would be a course looking at the public sectors response to a particular event or crisis. The special topics course would allow students to study the administrative response to such an event, and to look at future policy implications in detail. This type of course would most likely be a “one- off” course that has immediate interest and importance, but does not meet the criteria for regular curriculum status.