THE Ph.D. PROGRAM

Ph.D. Overview

The Public Administration Ph.D. program is designed for those interested in scholarly careers as researchers and teachers. The Ph.D. program requires a minimum of 72 credits of coursework, including up to 36 credits earned in the process of completing the MPA degree or its equivalent, plus nine credits for the dissertation for a total of 81 credit hours. (An applicant with a Maxwell MPA may apply 39 credits toward the 72-hour coursework requirement.)

All students who enter the Ph.D. Program must either have already completed courses in the core and advanced areas required for the Maxwell School's MPA degree (e.g., quantitative skills, microeconomics, budgeting, public management, organization theory, public administration and democracy, and computer and information management), or they must take appropriate courses after they enter the Ph.D. Program.

Ph.D. students are expected to complete coursework in the following areas:

• Intellectual history of public administration (3 credits)
• Theory and research of public organization (3 credits)
• Research design and methods (9 credits)
• Fields of specialization (Minimum of six credits in each of two fields)
• Electives (9 credits)
• Dissertation (9 credits)

In addition, all doctoral students are required to serve research apprenticeships during their residency for a minimum of four terms. Participation in the University's TA Training Program is also required just prior to the start of the initial fall semester.

See the  Ph.D. Handbook  for further information.