The core courses of public administration programs focus on teaching students the fundamentals of leadership in different sectors. Students take at least two economics courses that provide them with a strong background in business planning and development. They also study policy management and analysis, and complete a specialty workshop during the final semester of the program. The primary goal of the core courses is to provide students with the skills they need to evaluate policies and make decisions about how to improve them.
Students in public administration programs choose an area of specialization upon enrollment. The elective courses that are selected provide students with a deeper understanding of their specialty area. Typically, specializations are available in emergency management, nonprofit management, health, criminal justice, homeland security and local government. All public administration graduate degrees prepare students for an elite level of service across all branches of government, as well as nonprofit and private sector businesses.
Public affairs programs provide students with the knowledge and training they need to work successfully in different levels of government. This is not usually the degree of choice for students who want to work in the private sector. Typically, the core of these programs is designed to sharpen the ability of students to analyze and resolve a variety of complicated problems. They study management, economics, law and finance as part of their basic degree program. Generally, one or two statistics courses are also required as part of the core curriculum.
Commonly, areas of specialization include policy analysis, public management, economic development, environmental policy and nonprofit management. Some programs offer students the option to choose multiple areas of specialization. This increases the marketability of students after graduation. At some schools, students can develop their own degree specializations, and this offers students the opportunity to create a unique course of study. Specialty concentrations are developed by students and their faculty advisers, and they must receive school approval before completion.