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Hi, i was thinking of going back to school and getting a second BA degree when I spoke to a friend of mine and he told me about getting an MPA. I do have some aspirations to work in the public sector, but my question is besides the public sector, where else can one work with an MPA and what sort of jobs does it qualify you for?
The first question you need to ask yourself is whether or not you want to be a "policy wonk?" Whether you are in the public or private sector, as a consultant, that kind of work would be insufferable to me. I imagine it would entail a lot of bureaucratic reading and writing ...and not a lot of "concrete" work. If you want more "concrete" work, then I think you will have to really hunt it down, and seek a job where you could be more of a "quant jock."
With an MPA you can get a job in any City Planning Office. Sadly people often associate City Planner as must having either a Masters of City & Regional Planning or a Masters of Urban Planning & Policy but more often than not they have either an MPA or MPP.
With an MPA you can get a job in any City Planning Office. Sadly people often associate City Planner as must having either a Masters of City & Regional Planning or a Masters of Urban Planning & Policy but more often than not they have either an MPA or MPP.
I would agree with this and also add that you can become an upper-level manager or department director for a city or county. A lot of the job descriptions I've seen for city or county managers require an MPA or MBA plus experience of course. You may have to get entry-level jobs and gain experience before you get the upper-level jobs.
I would recommend either doing a joint MPA/MBA if you aren't sure of your route since some schools have a programs like this or get an MBA and work in public sector. I'm in public sector and see more MBA's than MPA's and it is much easier to be an MBA degree holder in public sector than try to get a job with an MPA in the private sector if you are not finding a job in the public sector.
I would recommend either doing a joint MPA/MBA if you aren't sure of your route since some schools have a programs like this or get an MBA and work in public sector. I'm in public sector and see more MBA's than MPA's and it is much easier to be an MBA degree holder in public sector than try to get a job with an MPA in the private sector if you are not finding a job in the public sector.
Logical advice, though I've never seen joint MPA/MBA programs. Are they that common? The MBA offers more versatility.
Hi, i was thinking of going back to school and getting a second BA degree when I spoke to a friend of mine and he told me about getting an MPA. I do have some aspirations to work in the public sector, but my question is besides the public sector, where else can one work with an MPA and what sort of jobs does it qualify you for?
Nonprofits, public and private universities, and probably any company that has a government relations department.
Hmm, not sure. I saw a few when I was researching MBA program. I saw maybe around 5 of them and maybe 2 or 3 of them were online.
I've seen a few MBA programs with a concentration in public administration.
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