Universities have devised programs that educate students on the theory and practice of public administration and also develop essential analytical thinking and decision-making abilities. While an undergraduate education in the specialty provides a good start, graduate study further improves the career prospects. It is worth mentioning that admission to an M.P.A program is not limited to students with a particular undergraduate major. The curriculum comprises core courses in applied microeconomics, policy analysis, fiscal planning, and public organization and management theory. A choice of emphasis areas, for instance, Municipal Management or Non-profit Management are available for aspirants to specific paths within public administration.
Academic coursework is complemented with supervised fieldwork and internship programs.
The experience gained serves well in landing a future position. Public administrators manage virtually every aspect of public service. Although the availability of government positions depends on the area and level of government in question, budgetary considerations and public demand, the sheer scale of the setup creates a marketplace of job openings. As for the earnings of public administrators, salaries vary state-wise and according to the size of the governmental unit. Thus a manager of a county has a higher salary than, say, a city manager.