MPA Program Overview
Create Your Own Path to a More Rewarding Career
Ready to move into or advance within a public or nonprofit sector career? UT Permian Basin’s online Master of Public Administration program offers great flexibility: Select 15 credits of electives (including up to two clinical courses) to align your studies with your professional aspirations and personal interests. Choose from elective MPA courses and from other UTPB courses in areas such as marketing, organizational behavior, public relations, law, education, health care, and criminal justice. The MPA core plus the electives aim to promote excellence in public and nonprofit service.
Our MPA program’s core courses will show you how to tackle organizational issues and policy questions in a practical, proficient, ethical, legal, and politically savvy manner while furthering your underlying goal of supporting the public interest. Graduates of our MPA program go on to apply their newly acquired expertise in a broad range of fields including criminal justice, economic development, fine arts, healthcare, human services, parks and recreation, public safety, and transportation.
Customize Your Public Administration Program With a Focus Area
Our MPA program empowers you to align your studies with your interests by choosing one of following focus areas. Please note the focus areas are available but not required.
- Education: Gain a deep understanding of the administrative, policy, and management aspects specific to educational institutions. The courses included in this focus area are:
- MPAL 6381 - Issues in Health and Human Services Policy and Management
- EDLD 6365 - School Public Relations
- EDLD 6361 - School Law
- Nonprofit: Develop the skills and knowledge required for unique challenges, management practices, and policy considerations specific to nonprofit organizations. The courses included in this focus area are:
- MPAL 6380 - Financial Management for Public and Nonprofit Organizations
- MPAL 6382 - Innovation in Public and Nonprofit Organizations
- MRKT 6310 - Marketing Management
- Healthcare: Gain a comprehensive understanding of the complex healthcare system and be equipped to navigate the dynamic and rapidly changing healthcare landscape, contribute to policy development, and manage healthcare organizations. The courses in this focus area are:
- MPAL 6381 - Issues in Health and Human Services Policy Management
- MNGT 4331 - Healthcare Management
- MRKT 4335 - Healthcare Marketing
Our online MPA program empowers you to:
- Cultivate a variety of in-demand career skills.
- Identify and address ongoing public administration challenges.
- Add a recognized leadership credential to your resume.
- Compete for rewarding leadership roles.
- Move into or between the public and nonprofit sectors.
Unequalled MPA Program Advantages
- Gear your studies toward your specific areas of interest.
- Finish your degree in as little as 12 months.
- Complete coursework anywhere, 24/7.
- Save with our competitive tuition rates.
- Receive a top-quality education 100% online.
- Learn from supportive faculty members with extensive practical experience in public and/or nonprofit service.
- Earn a graduate degree with no thesis or internship requirement.
- Choose from six start dates throughout the year.
- Finish fall and spring courses in eight weeks and summer courses in seven.
Career Options
The University of Texas Permian Basin's online MPA program provides a solid foundation for you to excel in a wide variety of industries in many roles, including:
21 Credits. The online MPAL courses explicitly listed in the plan immediately below are all required core courses that are part of the current standard schedule or “carousel” as shown. In addition to the current standard schedule, a few of the MPAL core courses (MPAL 6301, MPAL 6302, and MPAL6320) are presently offered twice per year.
If you are interested in working in the education industry, we recommend enrolling in the following three courses as a focus area in education. You will also need to select TWO ADDITIONAL COURSES to fulfill the requirement of five elective courses. You may select courses outside of your focus area for the two additional elective courses.
If you are interested in working in the nonprofit industry, we recommend enrolling in the following three courses as a focus area in nonprofit. You will also need to select TWO ADDITIONAL COURSES to fulfill the requirement of five elective courses. You may select courses outside of your focus area for the two additional elective courses.
If you are interested in working in the healthcare industry, we recommend enrolling in the following three courses as a focus area in healthcare. You will also need to select TWO ADDITIONAL COURSES to fulfill the requirement of five elective courses. You may select courses outside of your focus area for the two additional elective courses.
If you are not choosing to take courses within a focus area, you must select 15 credits (five courses). Regarding electives, students may choose from a variety of courses offered by MPAL and other programs at UTPB (e.g., the MBA program, the Master of Arts in Educational Leadership program, and others). Selection of electives is subject to review by the MPAL coordinator to ensure appropriateness. See example courses below. Other UTPB courses from the catalog may be acceptable as electives. A few of the elective courses listed below indicate a prerequisite. This does not apply to Master of Public Administration students.
MPA Program Admission Requirements
- Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
- Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
- Two years of full-time professional work experience in public, non-proft, or for-profit organizations
- Two letters of recommendation
- These letters should be from persons who have knowledge of the applicant's academic preparation and potential in the areas of public and community service
Conditional Admission Requirements
In addition to the requirements below, factors such as extensive professional work experience, completion of graduate courses, and relevant volunteer work will also be considered.
- Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
- Cumulative GPA of 2.50-2.99
- Two letters of recommendation
- Minimum GRE score of 280 may be considered, but is not mandatory
- Other evidence (at least one of the following):
- Completion of graduate courses
- Current or previous professional service in governmental, public service, nonprofit, or for-profit organizations
Official Transcripts
Official hard copies of transcripts must come directly from the school in a sealed envelope to this address:
UT Permian Basin
Graduate Studies Office
4901 E. University Blvd.
Odessa, TX 79762
Official transcripts in electronic format can be sent to gradstudies@utpb.edu.
Supporting Documents
All supporting documents related to a graduate program, such as letters of recommendation, essays, statements of interest, resumes, professional work experience, and awards should be sent to the Graduate Studies Office:
UT Permian Basin
Graduate Studies
4901 E. University Blvd.
Odessa, TX 79762-0001
Electronic versions of supporting documents may be emailed to gradstudies@utpb.edu.
Application Fee
The application fee is $40.
Veterans and Active Duty Military: Your application fee is waived for this program. Get details now.
Social Sciences Department Chair
Associate Professor
Master of Public Administration Program Coordinator
College of Arts and Sciences
abrams_h@utpb.edu
Dr. Abrams came to UT Permian Basin in 2008 for a second career in academia after working for years in managerial roles for a variety of public and nonprofit agencies in New York City and Boston. His service areas included child welfare, emergency medical services, mental health, education, and social services. He completed a doctorate in public administration from New York University in 1991. Dr. Abrams has published articles in peer-reviewed journals such as Public Performance and Management Review, the Journal of Public Affairs Education, and Resuscitation. His research centers on performance management, improving out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival rates, and issues in healthcare system policy and management.
Assistant Professor
College of Arts and Sciences
hijal_i@utpb.edu
Dr. Hijal-Moghrabi has been teaching at UT Permian Basin since 2016. She earned her PhD in public affairs from UT Dallas and a BA and MA in public administration from the American University of Beirut. She has been a financial controller responsible for promoting proper budget execution by diverse national public agencies in Lebanon. Her research interests include innovation and change, performance management, performance budgeting, government ethics, organizational stress, and other human resource management-related issues. Dr. Hijal-Moghrabi’s scholarly work has appeared in Administration & Society, Public Administration Quarterly, Public Performance & Management Review, Public Organization Review, Public Integrity, and Review of Public Personnel Administration.
Adjunct Professor
College of Arts and Sciences
mcmichael_t@utpb.edu
Dr. McMichael received his PhD from Texas Tech University in 2015. He is an expert in game theory, empirical modeling (econometrics), and public policy. Dr. McMichael has published in journals including the Japanese Journal of Political Science and Asian Survey and co-authored the forthcoming book Toxic Chemicals in America: Policies, Trends, and Controversies in Public and Environmental Health.
We’re pleased to offer program admission on a rolling basis.
Rolling admission refers to our process of accepting and evaluating applications as we receive them and moving any applications that miss the deadline to the next semester. However, if you want to enroll in courses for a specific semester, you will need to make note of the application deadlines found below. If you don’t complete your application and submit the required materials by the deadline, your application will be rolled over to the next semester.