LSE's Institute of Public Affairs is a multi-disciplinary initiative established in July 2011. It draws on faculty from across the school to support and enhance LSE's public policy training through its flagship MPA Programme.
The MPA Programme
The MPA is an interdisciplinary degree devised to meet the needs of government departments and public agencies in many countries for highly skilled and professional policy-makers. It also meets the needs of people working with governments but in the private sector, for instance in consultancy, public-private partnerships, public affairs, media non-governmental organisations and interest groups.
The Programme is designed to provide students with rigorous and inter-disciplinary training in economics and political science, complemented by a wide range of electives, to prepare them for professional careers related to public service. It brings together LSE's unrivalled expertise in the social sciences with individual and group working experience of public sector problems, policies and management.
The degree is taught over 21 months in two academic year blocks. In the first year, students take a set of core courses which develop the skills required for in-depth political and economic analysis. During their second year, students work in groups on a "Capstone" project in which they advise a public sector organisation, international body, or private sector consultancy on a current policy challenge, and also have the option to prepare a 10,000 word dissertation.
Across both years students take additional compulsory and optional courses specific to the MPA stream they enrol on. Follow the links below to be taken to further stream-specific information.
Five MPA streams:
In addition to the core training common to all MPAs, each student undertakes further compulsory courses depending on which stream they are enrolled on.
Programme availability and information on how to apply |
Benefits:
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Equips talented students with professional skills and knowledge to undertake and advise on public policy-making and implementation in a wide range of contexts.
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Relevant both for students entering government service careers and those intending to work in the private sector, dealing with government.
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Combines rigorous academic development with strong practical applications in individual and group based work.
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A wide choice of options from across LSE's postgraduate courses for students to choose their own area of specialisation.
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Excellent contact with governmental and international organisations.
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The option for some students to gain ten months experience with one of the following institutions: the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) at Columbia University in New York; Sciences Po, Paris; the Hertie School of Governance, Berlin; or the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, at the National University of Singapore.
Further Information