The National College of Public Administration & Governance (NCPAG) of the University of the Philippines Diliman offers the Master of Public Administration (MPA) with thesis and non-thesis options and the Doctor of Public Administration (DPA) programs. For more information on admission and curricula, please click here.
Master of Public Administration (MPA)
Three plans are offered under the MPA program:
Plan A is designed to provide researchers, teachers, and prospective college instructors with the knowledge and research skills in public administration. Students are required to prepare and defend a thesis.
Plan B aims to provide students with the theoretical background and technical skills needed for the effective implementation of public policy in a developing country. Students under Plan B may choose from the following fields of specialization: public policy and program administration, organization studies, fiscal administration, local government and regional development, voluntary sector management, public enterprise management, and spatial information management.
Plan C, or the mid-career MPA program, is specially designed for public servants who have at least five years of managerial work experience and who desire to accelerate their professional growth through a program of graduate study. This program aims to broaden the knowledge of mid-career public administrators about theories and techniques of public management, and to give them the opportunity to interact with other administrators in the university setting. Students under Plan C take 30 units. In lieu of the thesis, an oral defense of two outstanding papers is required.
Doctor of Public Administration (DPA)
Graduate degree holders in public administration and/or management and other social sciences may apply for admission to the doctoral program. Applicant’s credentials are evaluated by the DPA Admissions Committee. Applicants go through an interview.
DPA students must take a Qualifying Examination after passing 12 units of formal coursework. The examination covers the general field of the theory and practice of public administration and governance and the role of the public administrator in national development. To pass this examination, students are required a grade of 1.75 or better. An average of 1.25 in the first 12 units exempts students from having to take the qualifying examination.
Failure to take the examination due to the students’ inability to remove grades of “INC” shall bar students from further enrolment in the program.
DPA students may continue taking courses in the doctoral program after passing the qualifying examination. The total number of units required to complete the degree depends on the background of students. However, students are required to take 12 (or 15) units of PA and national development courses, 6 units of History/Theory, 6 (or 3) units of advanced courses in methodology, and 6 units of cognates.
Students may apply for the comprehensive examination after completion of all formal course requirements. After passing the comprehensives, students may enroll in the doctoral dissertation course (PA 400) under the guidance of a faculty adviser.Upon presentation of the doctoral dissertation to the Dean of the College, and together with the favorable recommendation of the adviser and the critic, students shall take a final oral examination on their dissertation and the entire field of public administration.