StudyQA — PhD: Public Administration — University of Illinois at Chicago

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Description Contents Requirements Funding

The doctoral program in the Department of Public Administration provides students with a rich and diverse education through a combination of hands-on research training and a foundation of coursework targeted at your specific areas of interest.

The doctoral program in the Department of Public Administration is designed in accordance with the “Policy on Doctoral Education in Public Affairs/Administration” of the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs/Administration which states:

Doctoral programs in public administration should prepare students to undertake significant research in their subsequent careers, whether in government, academic life, or other settings: the capacity to do significant research, rather than access to a particular career setting, is the appropriate goal of doctoral training… Whether in governmental, academic or other career settings, holders of the doctorate add to the ranks of those who are able to generate and share knowledge of public administration and its related fields…

The goal of doctoral training is [to equip] individuals to add to knowledge of public administration and related fields through disciplined research. When practicing professionals undertake the doctorate they should recognize the need to demonstrate substantial research skills and to interact with a research faculty on a continuing basis as they design and execute their dissertation projects.

Currently, we offer the following Specializations:

Public and Nonprofit Management
All PhD students selecting this area of specialization are required to take PA 527, Public Management Theory
Financial Management
All PhD students selecting this area of specialization are required to take PA 554, Advanced Seminar in Financial Management.
Survey Methods
All PhD students selecting this area of specialization are required to take PA 578, Surveys, Public Opinion and Public Policy.
Urban Governance and Networks
All PhD students selecting this area of specialization are required to take PA 562, Local, Urban, and Regional Institutions and Public Policy.

With the help of faculty, a student may also choose to create their own specialization using courses both within the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs and the University of Illinois at Chicago as a whole.

A minimum of 96 semester hours of coursework beyond the baccalaureate is required. Those holding the Master of Public Administration from UIC or an equivalent program will ordinarily receive a maximum of 32 semester hours toward the degree requirement. A cumulative grade point average of at least 3.00 (A = 4.00) in all graduate courses taken at UIC is required for graduation.

The required courses are listed below:

Students must satisfactorily complete the following courses for a total of 48 semester hours. Credit is not given for any course in which a grade of less than “B” is earned.

All courses are 4 credits unless indicated otherwise.

Core Courses – Theory (8 Hours)

PA 511: The History and Development of Public Administration (2 Hours)
PA 510: Organization Theory and Behavior in Public Administration (2 Hours)
PA 513: Collaborative Management and Governance Networks (2 Hours)
PA 515: Bureaucracy and the Policy Process (2 Hours)

Core Courses – Methods (20 Hours)

PA 540: Research Design for Public Administration
PA 541: Advanced Data Analysis I

Plus any of the following courses:**

PA 528: Public Program Evaluation
PA 544: Qualitative Research Methods in Public Administration
PA 542: Advanced Data Analysis II

Any of the survey courses listed in the Survey Method specialization section below with the exception of PA 578, which cannot be used to fulfill the methods requirement.

Core Courses – Applied Research Seminars (4 Hours)

PA 545: Applied Research Seminar I (2 Hours)
PA 546: Applied Research Seminar II (2 Hours)

Areas of Specialization (Minimum 12 Hours)
Students are required to select one of the following four areas of specialization

Public and Nonprofit Management
Financial Management
Survey Methods
Urban Governance and Networks

Public and Nonprofit Management
Ph.D. Specific Courses:

PA 527: Public Management Theory (required)
PA 534: Human Resources Development and Management

MPA-level courses that can be taken to fulfill this area of specialization: **

PA 521: Strategic Management: Planning and Measurement
PA 522: Ethics and Accountability (2 hours)
PA 524: Leadership in Public Sector Organizations (2 hours)
PA 526: Public Decision Analysis
PA 529: Change and Reform in Public Organizations (2 hours)
PA 530: History and Theory of the Non-Profit Sector
PA 532: Labor Management Relations in the Public Sector
PA 533: Managing Workplace Diversity (2 hours)
PA 561: Intergovernmental Management
PA 572: History and Theory of the Non-Profit Sector

Financial Management
Ph.D. Specific Courses:

PA 554: Advanced Seminar in Financial Management (required)

MPA-level courses that can be taken to fulfill this area of specialization: **

PA 521: Strategic Management: Planning and Measurement
PA 552: Capital Budgeting and Infrastructure
PA 553: State and Local Public Finance
PA 561: Intergovernmental Management
UPP 533: Development Finance Analysis

Urban Governance and Networks

PA 562: Seminar in Urban Governance (required)

Political Science courses that can be taken to fulfill this area of specialization**

POLS 500 Introduction to Policy and Governance
POLS 551: Introduction to Urban Politics
MPA-level courses that can be taken to fulfill this area of specialization: **
PA 506: Policy Development & Analysis for Public Administrators
PA 553: State and Local Public Finance
PA 561: Intergovernmental Management

Survey Methods

PA 578: Surveys, Public Opinion, and Public Policy (required)

Students must take at least one of the following:

PA 577: Survey Questionnaire Design (3 credit hours)
PA 582: Survey Data Collection and Methods
PA 588: Applied Survey Sampling and Analysis

Select remaining concentration courses from the following. (Unless listed otherwise, each course below is 2 credit hours. These courses will either meet for 1.5 hours per week or will only meet for 8 weeks.)

PA 579: Practicum in Survey Research (2 – 6 variable credit hours)
PA 580: Survey Non-Response
PA 581: Cross-Cultural Survey Measurement
PA 583: Cognitive Processing of Survey Information
PA 584: Internet Surveys
PA 585: Survey Research Ethics
PA 586: History of Survey Research
PA 587: Seminar in Special Issues in Survey Methodology

** Students may substitute other courses for any of the courses in these lists with the permission of the Director of Graduate Studies

Comprehensive Examinations
Students are required to take three comprehensive exams in the three areas of core theory, methods, and their area of concentration. Students are required to take all three exams within one year of completing all required PA coursework

Preliminary Examination
Within a year after completion of course work students must pass a preliminary examination designed to test their scholarly competence and knowledge. The doctoral preliminary examination is designed to assess the degree of mastery which degree candidates have achieved over a body of knowledge, to measure their ability to integrate that knowledge, and to apply it creatively in the analysis of problems to which it is germane. The preliminary examination will consist of three parts, the theoretical core and one for each of the two areas of specializations.

Dissertation
The student who satisfactorily completes the above requirements will be advanced to degree candidacy and will undertake the doctoral dissertation in public administration in accordance with requirements and procedures of the Graduate College. The dissertation will make a contribution to knowledge in public administration and will be publicly defended before the scholarly community and a committee appointed by the Dean of the Graduate College on the recommendation of the Program Director. Up to 28 semester hours may be awarded for dissertation research.

Requirements

Applicants are considered on an individual basis. In addition to the Graduate College minimum requirements, applicants must meet the following program requirements:

Prior Degrees Master’s degree required. Applicants must present evidence of having completed a graduate-level statistics course. Students with a deficiency in this area will be required to take additional course work as prescribed by the program director. Such course work will not apply to the degree requirements.
Grade Point Average At least 3.50/4.00 for all undergraduate and postbaccalaureate course work.
Tests Required GRE General. All applicants should have a combined score of at least 235 (tests taken August 2011 or after) or a combined score of 1100 (tests taken prior to August 2011) on the verbal and quantitative portions of the GRE. If an applicant fails to present a minimum GRE score of 235 or 1100 and a GPA of 3.50, the applicant may still be considered by the PhD Committee. The committee will review all evidence of high promise, including, but not limited to, trend of graduate grade, type of graduate program, and mature work experience.
Minimum English Competency Test Score
- TOEFL 550 (paper-based); 80, with subscores of Reading 19, Listening 17, Speaking 20, and Writing 21 (iBT Internet-based), OR,
- IELTS 6.5, with subscores of 6.0 for all four subscores, OR,
- PTE-Academic 54, with subscores of Reading 51, Listening 47, Speaking 53, and Writing 56.
Letters of Recommendation Three required from persons familiar with the applicant’s academic achievements or professional experience.
Personal Statement Required. Applicants must submit a brief statement of their professional goals and academic interests.
Other Requirements Applicants must submit a 3–5 page written essay, a resume, and may be asked to interview with one or more members of the faculty.