The MPP degree normally requires two years of full-time study at the School, although reasonable accommodations can be made for students with disabilities. Eight of the 11 required courses in the core curriculum are completed in the first year. A required two-quarter seminar in Applied Policy Analysis guides students in researching and writing a major policy research paper. The program also requires candidates to participate in a 400-hour field internship with an approved government agency, nonprofit group or other approved organization.
Most students complete the internship during the summer between their first and second years.
This enables them to apply their academic training to real policy problems and to lay the groundwork for the policy research paper. Much of the coursework in the core curriculum assumes that students have a certain level of mathematical knowledge and are already conversant with such concepts as functional notation, algebraic manipulation, and graphic representation. Although there is no formal requirement, students are urged to take elementary college-level courses in statistics and economics and to be comfortable with quantitative methods and analysis before entering the program. Students can be dropped from the program for a variety of reasons. Other reasons include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree, and poor performance in core courses.