Program Overview
Broaden your impact on your community with the MPA online program
Prepare for supervisory positions in the public sector when you earn a Master of Public Administration online. This program’s curriculum aligns with industry best practices and emphasizes skills that are immediately applicable in public service environments, so you can gain the knowledge, experience and credentials civic organizations are seeking.
Core courses will provide broad knowledge of budgeting, policy analysis and grant writing, while the range of elective choices will empower you to study specialized areas that match your passion. Understand how to solve challenges in various levels of government and present innovative solutions that support your community. You will also learn how to interpret data to make evidence-based decisions using financial tools. Apply new learning through projects, case studies and simulations that reflect real-world challenges.
Graduates who earn this online degree in public administration will:
- Use research effectively in spoken and written contexts while acting ethically to uphold the public trust and cultivate global, regional and local awareness
- Produce original expressions of ideas while pursuing the public interest with accountability and transparency
- Evaluate information for relevancy, usefulness and accuracy
- Compare historical and cultural value perspectives, recognizing similarities and conflicts
- Clarify and articulate a personal value system in relation to cultural perspectives
- Consider multiple perspectives, recognize biases, deal with ambiguity, and form and defend reasoned positions
- Promote participation and inclusiveness by demonstrating respect, equity and fairness in dealings with members of society, stakeholders and fellow public servants
- Develop effective and ethical collaborative relationships
- Recognize opportunities for leadership and the strategies for leading in a variety of contexts while serving professionally with competence, efficiency and objectivity
- Use research effectively in spoken and written contexts while acting ethically to uphold the public trust and cultivate global, regional and local awareness
- Produce original expressions of ideas while pursuing the public interest with accountability and transparency
- Evaluate information for relevancy, usefulness and accuracy
- Compare historical and cultural value perspectives, recognizing similarities and conflicts
- Clarify and articulate a personal value system in relation to cultural perspectives
- Consider multiple perspectives, recognize biases, deal with ambiguity, and form and defend reasoned positions
- Promote participation and inclusiveness by demonstrating respect, equity and fairness in dealings with members of society, stakeholders and fellow public servants
- Develop effective and ethical collaborative relationships
- Recognize opportunities for leadership and the strategies for leading in a variety of contexts while serving professionally with competence, efficiency and objectivity
Public administration career opportunities include:
- Policy Analyst
- Grant Writer/Grant Manager
- Budget Analyst
- Nonprofit Program Director
- City Manager
- Public Affairs/Government Relations Manager
- Community Development Manager
- Policy Analyst
- Grant Writer/Grant Manager
- Budget Analyst
- Nonprofit Program Director
- City Manager
- Public Affairs/Government Relations Manager
- Community Development Manager
Also available:
Northwest offers a variety of specialized online graduate studies program options. Check out our other online graduate studies programs.
Total Tuition
$14,652*
Program Duration
As few as 12 months
Credit Hours
36
Accreditation:
Northwest Missouri State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org), an institutional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Tuition
Learn more about your tuition and payment options
Our Master of Public Administration online program offers affordable, pay-by-the-course tuition, which is the same for in-state and out-of-state students.
| Program | Per Credit Hour | Per Course | Per Program* |
|---|---|---|---|
| MPA | $407 | $1,221 | $14,652 |
Important Refund Information
| 2nd day of class | Last date for 100% refund for dropped course |
| 4th day of class | Last date for 75% refund for dropped course |
| 6th day of class | Last date for 50% refund for dropped course |
| 8th day of class | Last date for 25% refund for dropped course |
Tuition breakdown:
Total Tuition
$14,652*
Per Credit Hour
$407
Calendar
Take note of these upcoming online program dates and deadlines
Northwest online programs are delivered in an accelerated format ideal for working students, conveniently featuring multiple start dates each year.
| Term | Program Start Date | Application Deadline | Document Deadline | Registration Deadline | Payment Due | Last Class Day |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 1 | 1/12/26 | 1/5/26 | 1/6/26 | 1/7/26 | 1/8/26 | 2/27/26 |
| Spring 2 | 3/9/26 | 2/20/26 | 2/25/26 | 2/27/26 | 3/3/26 | 4/24/26 |
| Summer 1 | 5/11/26 | 4/27/26 | 4/30/26 | 5/4/26 | 5/6/26 | 6/26/26 |
| Summer 2 | 6/29/26 | 6/12/26 | 6/17/26 | 6/22/26 | 6/24/26 | 8/14/26 |
Now enrolling:
Next Apply Date:
1/5/26
Next Class Start Date:
1/12/26
Ready to take the next steps toward
earning your degree?
Admissions
Take the next step and apply for your online Master of Public Administration program
At Northwest, we've streamlined the admission process to help you get started quickly and easily. Please read the requirements for the Master of Public Administration online, including what additional materials you need and where you should send them.
To apply for this program, you must meet these requirements:
- A bachelor’s degree from an institution accredited by agencies recognized as Institutional Accreditors in the U.S. Department of Education’s Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions and Programs
- A minimum cumulative undergraduate grade point average of at least 2.50 on a 4.00 scale
- Students who have a cumulative GPA between 2.20 and 2.49 may be admitted on a conditional basis
If you are a non-Missouri student, you should determine whether this program fits the certification requirements for your state.
Official transcripts can be emailed to [email protected]. To submit official documents by mail, send them to:
Graduate Records Specialist
Northwest Missouri State University
800 University Drive
Maryville, MO 64468-6001
Have a question? Call us at 844-890-9304.
Click here for State Authorization information.
Admission Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree from an institutionally accredited institution
- Official transcripts from all institutions attended
- GPA of at least 2.75 on a 4.0 scale
Courses
Gain career-relevant knowledge with MPA online coursework
For the Master of Public Administration online, the curriculum is comprised of 12 courses (36 credit hours).
POLS 34601: Foundations of Public Service
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides students a broad introduction to public service in the United States. It focuses on the design and administration of American public organizations as well as examining the basic theories, functions, actors, and policy processes that shape and inform public service. The course also introduces the workings of inter-governmental relations, public finance, and reform that shape academic and professional interests in public administration and service.
POLS 34602: Research Methods for Public Administration
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines an array of data analysis tools that, when mastered, will increase students’ abilities to analyze, synthesize, think creatively, solve problems, and make decisions. It covers concepts of research design, probability, inferential statistics, and introduces quantitative approaches to examine public management and public policy decisions.
POLS 34603: Ethics and Legal Environment of Public Administration
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course reviews the theory and application of ethics in the public sector, identifying public values and how they apply in the administration of government. It reviews sources of values employed in public sector decision-making, and reviews how values in public administration are managed and applied. Through discussion, cases, and classic readings, the course studies moral reasoning and values as they apply to social responsibility in the leadership of public, private, and non-profit entities in increasingly diverse organizational and social contexts.
POLS 34604: Policy Analysis
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course exposes students to the conceptual foundations and applied techniques associated with identifying, describing, and seeking solutions to public policy problems. Recognizing that it often occurs where competing values and perspectives are usually strongly held, students will learn the designs and methodologies to conduct policy analysis systematically and with minimal bias.
POLS 34606: Organizational Theory and Management in Public Administration
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The course focuses primarily on the organization and management of public and nonprofit organizations and systems. Most of the material covered is drawn from the literature in organization studies and management, public administration, and nonprofit management. We will examine the generalizability of concepts, which have been studied most often in a business context, to public and nonprofit organizations and management. Key areas of discussion within this course will be: organizational effectiveness, organization and environment, strategic management, bureaucracy, organizational structure and culture, inter-organizational collaboration, leadership styles, communication, and change. management.
POLS 34618: Capstone in Public Administration
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
The purpose of this course is to allow students to integrate their graduate public administration course experiences into a project that reflects the cumulative knowledge gained from their class instruction.
Students will select 6 courses from:
POLS 34605: Public Budgeting
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course introduces public budgeting and financial management practices from economic, political, and organizational perspectives. Given the current fiscal environment many governments face, the course specializes in the issues and implications related to fiscal stress and long-term financial planning. Hence, the course examines the roles and practices of the budget office not just from the financial control perspective but also from the strategic analysis and managerial perspectives.
POLS 34610: Urban Politics
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines the issues and challenges confronting American local governments. There will be an emphasis on the historical development of local government institutions and the formal and informal political processes that shape the power structures within cities and metropolitan areas.
POLS 34611: Grant Writing and Management for Public Administration Professionals
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course introduces students to processes of proposal, grant writing, and grant management pertaining to the public administration sector. The course will involve the writing of a grant proposal eligible for submission to a grant administrator.
POLS 34612: Cases in Public Administration
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
Governments rely on a force of workers, collectively known as “bureaucrats” to administer the functions of government institutions. Bureaucrats are critical actors in the process of implementation of policy. This course provides an overview of research on the politics of bureaucracies, with an emphasis on the political foundations of bureaucrats’ effectiveness and accountability, using both classic and new cases to evaluate bureaucratic function.
POLS 34613: State & Local Tax Policy
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines the various approaches that state and local governments take to generate revenue. There will be an emphasis on the structure of state and local taxes as well as alternative revenue sources.
POLS 34614: Nonprofit Organizations & Management
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course provides an overview of the U.S. nonprofit sector, its history, scope, diversity, and its positioning among and between the private and public sectors of the U.S. economy. The course explores the legal framework under which nonprofit organizations operate and are regulated. Economic, political, social, organizational, and giving theories of the sector are reviewed to understand the sector's existence, roles, and activities with particular attention to philanthropy and voluntarism. Distinct contributions to society as well as contemporary challenges faced by the sector are examined.
POLS 34615: Intergovernmental Relations
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines the relationship between the different levels of government in the American federal system. There will be an emphasis on the relationship between state governments and their local governments and on the relationship between the different local governments within a metropolitan area.
POLS 34616: Law, Courts, & Public Policy
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
With Marbury v. Madison (1803) establishing the judiciary’s power of judicial review, the relationship between the three branches of government transformed. Though public policy is not created by the judiciary, it is the courts that help shape public policy after the executive and legislative branches create it. This course explores the impact the judiciary has had on United States public policy over time, focusing primarily on federal policy. With a focus on religious freedom, healthcare, and racial desegregation legislation, students by the end of the course should understand the judiciary’s role in the evolution of policy in these areas.
POLS 34617: Healthcare Policy
Duration: 8 Weeks weeks
Credit Hours: 3
This course examines healthcare policy at the federal, state, and local levels, focusing on the policy making process as well as the implications of policy decisions.
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