School of Public Affairs’ Masters Program Ranked No. 2 by Best Value Schools

Top ranking is accredited to affordability, caring faculty, and overall quality.

by Aleah Jarin

February 2, 2021

San Diego State University’s Masters in Public Administration (MPA) program came in at number two on the “Best 25 Masters in Public Administration Schools in 2021” list, curated by Best Value Schools. The list took into account each schools’ yearly in-state tuition and graduation rate to come up with each ranking.

According to Best Value Schools, SDSU’s MPA program makes the top due to its affordability and program quality. The yearly in-state tuition for the program is $7,510 and the graduation rate is 83%.

School of Public Affairs Associate Professor and Coordinator of the MPA program Joshua Chanin said the program’s value can be attributed to its committed people—faculty and administration, internship coordinator, and public affairs alumni who help “situate undergraduate and graduate students in the [San Diego] community” to gain “practical working experience.”

“We have an intellectually engaged, diverse, caring, thoughtful, and committed faculty,” Chanin said.

Chanin said the faculty’s commitment to research and advanced knowledge, as well as their commitment to teaching and building careers continues to inspire him.

“It is a really genuine interest of all of our faculty members to see our students succeed,” Chanin said. “Students in our program get attention, they have courses taught by full-time tenure and tenure-track faculty.”

In the masters program, classes are small and intimate, and they are based on discussion and exchange between student and faculty. Chanin said this makes for a “personalized experience” where faculty want to see the students do well.

The MPA program is offered online, administered through SDSU Global Campus, which can be completed in 16 months. The School also offers a traditional in-person program which is completed in two years, or four full semesters. However, this option is on hold due to the pandemic.

Chanin said the MPA program is also currently administering a 16 month “site specific” program in Carlsbad, which is primarily offered to Carlsbad city employees.

As for the School of Public Affairs as a whole, faculty are continuing to be flexible and consider students’ needs during the pandemic.

“There’s really been an effort to make sure students are doing well physically and emotionally, and to keep in mind that we’re all going through this,” Chanin said.

“[The School of Public Affairs] is really trying to move forward in a meaningful way that keeps everyone safe and still gets [students] to where they want to be in terms of their academic goals.”

Visit the School of Public Affairs website and learn more about all their programs.

The content within this article has been edited by Lizbeth Persons.

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