Law and public service - Leadership, policy and urban planning

This MPA program prepares you for impactful public service leadership roles across all levels of government, nonprofits and private organizations. Throughout your courses, you'll delve into a core curriculum focusing on managerial and analytic skills essential for careers dedicated to the public good. You’ll learn how to integrate managerial, political and legal approaches to policy changes, as well as analyze ethical dilemmas and navigate the scrutiny faced by public organizations. Upon graduation, you’ll be equipped with crucial research and data analysis skills needed to evaluate organizational and public policies effectively. Topics you’ll cover include:

• Diversity
• Ethics
• Financial management
• Human resource management
• Leadership strategies
• Management
• Organizational behavior
• Policy analysis
• Power, legitimacy and authority
• Program evaluation
• Public management
• Public sector motivation

Who’s a good candidate for this MPA degree?

If you're about to graduate with a bachelor’s degree or have recently graduated, and you're looking to expand your education to prepare you for the professional world, then this MPA degree could be a great fit for you. Additionally, if you're currently working in a government or a nonprofit role and seeking career advancement, or if you're a private sector worker looking for more meaning in your work, this program could help you achieve your goals.

Additionally, military personnel looking to transition to civilian roles aligned with their values could also benefit from this program. However, if you're solely interested in professional and analytic skills without an application to public problems, you might be interested in our online Master of Science in program evaluation and data analytics program.

In this master’s in urban and environmental planning program, you’ll learn how to create healthier, safer and more vibrant communities. You’ll also engage with practical planning problems and contemporary planning challenges. Upon graduation, you’ll have the theoretical foundations, professional skills and practice-centered experience needed to become an urban planner or work in an allied field. This can include roles within urban design, architecture, engineering and development.

Additionally, you’ll be prepared to sit for the American Planning Association’s (APA) American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) exam. Working toward this credential can give you a leg up when applying for roles.

The knowledge and skills you’ll develop

With faculty members drawing from expertise in research and practice, you’ll receive a robust education that covers planning knowledge and skills, planning values, ethics and emergent planning issues. You’ll also gain critical thinking abilities related to problem definition, solving and evaluation. Additional transferrable skills you’ll develop to support a career in the planning profession include:

• Graphic communications.
• Professional writing.
• Project management.
• Public participation and community engagement.
• Public speaking and presentation.
• Research and data analysis, including quantitative and qualitative methods.

Who’s a good candidate for this master’s program?

Urban planning professionals enter the field with a wide array of backgrounds. Ideal candidates are individuals with undergraduate degrees in urban planning, urban studies, public policy, geography, geographic information systems or related disciplines. This program can also be a great fit for those with professional planning experience or an interest in cities, neighborhoods and communities.

This program prepares students for careers in a broad range of international affairs fields, while also building character-driven leadership skills to ensure success. You’ll learn directly from our all-practitioner faculty of distinguished leaders who have extensive experience working in the fields they teach. Our faculty includes numerous current and former ambassadors, generals, admirals, U.N. officials, congressional staff, NGO leaders and more.

Working in small classes, engaged and accessible professors share insights into current challenges in critical regions around the globe. Key learning areas include diplomatic tradecraft, human rights, international negotiations, international law and many other subjects designed to prepare the next generation of character-driven leaders.

Gain hands-on international affairs experience

In this program, you’ll have ample opportunities for optional hands-on and experiential learning. One such opportunity is Washington Week in Washington D.C. During this in-person, weeklong experience, you’ll meet with a variety of professionals and institutions working on complex and high-profile foreign affairs challenges. This includes experts from USG agencies, international organizations, foreign embassies, think tanks and NGOs. You’ll also learn about pathways into rewarding careers.

Additional voluntary opportunities you can choose to participate in include:

• Collaboration with foreign students — Collaborate with students at ASU's partner universities abroad, including the American University Kyiv.
• Independent research — Earn degree credit while conducting research on an international affairs topic under the guidance of a faculty member.
• Internships — Earn degree credit while completing internships related to international affairs.  
• Study abroad — Earn degree credit while studying at foreign universities.
• Weekly Zoom sessions — Build relationships with professors and fellow students and delve deeper into course content and current affairs.

As an additional benefit, you can also access ASU’s Leadership, Diplomacy and National Security Lab.