The support fields of study from which students can choose are listed below. A Master's degree is required for admission. In addition, a student must have a GPA of 3.4 on all previous graduate work and a GRE score above 1000 in order to qualify for unconditional admission. Courses from other programs, including social work, city and regional planning, criminal justice, and education may also be applied to the core fields, if appropriate. Students generally take 12 hours of course work in the two support fields.
Research is one of the required support fields.
A proficiency examination is also required in this field of study by all students. To assist students in selecting courses, many courses in the urban and public affairs inventory have been cross-listed with the courses in the above fields. A student may also petition to have some other field of study substitute for one of those listed above. The examination will evaluate the student's progress in the program, and, if the faculty recommends continuation, the tentative program of work will be established. Students must successfully pass a comprehensive examination in each of the core fields during or after the semester in which they complete course work in the field.