2011-2012 Bulletin 
    
    Mar 28, 2024  
2011-2012 Bulletin [ARCHIVED BULLETIN]

Public Policy, MA


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Academic Program

The MAPP is a 48-unit degree program that builds knowledge of current government programs and debates about them. Students learn the technical skills to assess how politics influences policy choices as well as how to design more effective programs and how to evaluate the impact of existing programs.

Though the skills of the MAPP can be applied to a wide variety of policies, we are particularly strong in urban issues. Our location in the Los Angeles metropolitan area provides firsthand exposure to the most pressing social and economic issues in the country - the growth of immigrant populations, suburban sprawl and traffic congestion, transformation of the economy from manufacturing to international trade and finance, education reform, and restructuring government to increase responsiveness. A concentration on local education policy is possible by working with faculty in the School of Educational Studies.

Working with the Evaluation Program in the School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, students can also develop expertise in a variety of evaluation approaches – including stakeholder empowerment, organizational learning, or implementation evaluation. These approaches complement the emphasis on modeling program impacts and assessing causal effects of government policies covered in the public policy courses. Note:  All students are required to obtain faculty advisor approval for courses.

Core Courses (8 units):


 

  • PP330  Public Policy Process
  • PP338 Policy Design and Implementation

 

 

Research Methods (12-16 units)


 

  • PP481 Quantitative Research Methods
  • PP482 Advanced Quantitative Research Methods
  • PP487 Computer Applications in Data Analysis

OR

  • ECON308 Mathematics for Economists
  • ECON381 Econometrics I
  • ECON382 Econometrics II OR ECON383 Econometrics III 

Note: one (1) additional Methods course can be taken to support the Track

 

Cost Benefit (8 units)


 Choose two (2) courses from the following list: 

  • SPE315 Game Theory AND
  • SPE471 Strategic Models for Politics Economics & Business Decisions

OR

  • SPE318: Cost Benefit Analysis, AND
  • PP331 Policy Evaluation 

Note: one (1) additional cost benefit course can be taken to support the track

 

 

Track 1: State and Local Economic Development (16 units)


 

  • PP346 Community and Economic Development
  • PP348 Urban Seminar 

Choose two (2) courses from the following list (8 units): 

  • POM 253 Urban and Regional Economics
  • POM 264 Technology and Growth
  • SPE410 Foundations of Political Economy
  • SPE360 American Political Economy
  • SPE349 Energy and Environmental Policy

Track2: Environmental Policy (16 units)


 

  • SPE 349 Energy and Environmental Policy
  • Econ272 Environmental Economics (PIT) Note: by permission of Instructor Only 

Choose two (2) courses from the following list (8 units): 

  • SPE348 Regulatory Policy
  • SPE350 International Environmental Politics and Policies
  • BIO259 Natural Resource Management (POM)
  • GOVT220 Environmental Law (CMC)
  • ECON227 Environmental & natural Resource Policy (POM)

Track3: Computational Modeling (16 units)


 

  • SPE320 Foundations of Complex Adaptive Systems
  • SPE316 Seminar in Computational and Agent Based Modeling 

Choose two (2) courses from the following list (8 units) 

  • PP447 Seminar in Social Network Analysis
  • SPE471 Strategic Models for Politics Economics and Business Decisions

 Note: cannot double count for credit in Cost Benefit Section

 

Track4: Evaluation with SBOS


 

  • PSY315b Foundations of Evaluation (2 unit course)
  • PSY315z Comparative Evaluation Theory
  • PSY354 Evaluation Procedures
  • SPE348 Regulatory Policy

Track5: Education with SES


 

  • EDUC525 The Politics of Inequality in Education
  • EDUC537 Issues in Contemporary Urban Education
  • EDUC450 Dilemmas in American Higher Education
  • EDUC456 Public Policy Dimensions of Higher Education

Track6: Health Policy with SGH


 


  •  CGH300 Theoretical Foundations in Health Promotion and Education
  • CGH302 Epidemiology 

Choose two (2) courses from the following list (8 units) 

  • CGH303 Health Services in the US and Abroad
  • CGH304 Environmental and Occupational Health
  • SPE348 Regulatory Policy 

Please note: Courses from Methods or Cost Benefit Sections ABOVE MINIMUM REQUIREMENT

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