Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Department of Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning

Master of Public Policy (mid-career)

The Master of Public Policy is not currently accepting applications. We encourage interested applicants to explore the MA in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning, the MS in Environmental Policy and Planning or the MS in Sustainability.

 

The Master of Public Policy is designed for practitioners with at least 7-years of significant, relevant experience – “practical visionaries” who are advancing more just, inclusive, and sustainable communities. The program helps mid-career practitioners take the next steps in their career and life, whether that is enhancing professional practice, pursuing a shift in career, or simply creating space for reflection and rejuvenation. The program enables students to broaden and deepen personal interests, policy knowledge, and professional skills. MPP students come from diverse careers in community development corporations, advocacy organizations, government agencies, grassroots neighborhood groups, human service agencies, environmental organizations, and more.

Mid-career students can choose to study either full-time or part-time, attending many courses during the evenings and on weekends. Full-time students typically complete the program in one year, while part-time students complete in two to three years, depending on student pacing.

Program Requirements and Policies

  • The Master of Public Policy requires a total of 30 credits (10 courses).
  • At least 4 elective courses need to be policy-focused.
  • In addition to our course offerings, MPP students may select courses from other Tufts departments and schools, and Boston-area consortium universities.

Course Requirements

Core Courses

UEP 251: Economics for Planning and Policy Analysis. This course introduces economic concepts and tools of analysis relevant to public policy and planning. Microeconomic and macroeconomic approaches to understanding economic behavior and to generating solutions to economic problems are explored. Applications include policies related to the environment, housing, individual and family income, and community development.

UEP 254: Quantitative Reasoning for Policy and Planning. This course presents basic concepts of statistical analysis and research, and develops related skills that are indispensable to agency directors, policymakers, and advocates alike. Students learn to select among available data sources, measures and indicators, and statistical techniques in order to best answer questions of interest.

UEP 288: Reflections on Public Policy Practice (Fall) and, UEP 289: Integrative Seminar (Spring). The MPP Seminar, open only to MPP enrolled students, is comprised of the above two partial-credit courses. It helps students examine their own professional experiences in the context of prevailing theories about policy and program development, implementation, and evaluation.

Public Policy Areas

Each student, working closely with his or her academic advisor, identifies an area of public policy interest(s). The student then selects at least four policy courses that deepen his/her theoretical and practical understanding of policy within their area(s) of interest.

All our courses focus on urban, social and/or environmental policy issues. You can choose from one or more of these areas or you can choose to focus on the intersection(s) between these areas, for instance the arena of sustainable development.

Examples of Public Policy Courses

  • Community Development Planning and Policy
  • Housing Policy
  • Community Economic Development
  • Land Use Planning
  • Food Justice
  • Climate Change Policy and Planning
  • Developing Sustainable Communities

Professional Practice Electives

Students also have opportunities to enroll in courses that enhance their professional practice skills, such as:

  • Program Evaluation
  • Negotiation, Mediation, and Conflict Resolution
  • Leadership and Organizational Development
  • Financial Analysis and Management
  • Geographic Information Systems

Quantitative Prerequisite

Students admitted to UEP degree programs are required to show evidence of basic algebra and graphing skills prior to registering for the department's quantitative courses (UEP 251 and UEP 254). This prerequisite must be fulfilled in one of the following four ways:

  1. Score 153 or above on the quantitative section of the GRE within the five years prior to entry into the UEP program.
  2. Pass a college algebra or equivalent course (with a B- or higher) within the five years prior to entry into the UEP program.
    • The course must be at the college algebra level or above (calculus, etc.) and focused on algebra concepts. An introduction to statistics or similar ‘quantitative-leaning’ course without without significant algebra or calculus coverage in the syllabus will not count. If you are unsure, please email uep@tufts.edu 
  3. Pass a UEP math screening exam with a score of 80% or above (this exam must be taken in person at UEP).
  4. Complete the non-credit semester-long math preparation course offered by UEP during the fall semester.

Students must fulfill the prerequisite before matriculation or have an approved plan submitted to the academic advisor and department chair to complete the prerequisite by the end of the first semester. Please contact the UEP office if you have questions.