Admission to this program is suspended.
Advisor: Dr. Daniela Schroeter
Room 220E
Walwood Hall
The mission of the Doctor of Philosophy in Public Administration program is to give students a deep and extensive knowledge of the history, theory, practice, and future of the field. The curriculum encourages broad intellectual inquiry with a scholarly perspective and seeks to prepare students for careers in teaching, research, administration, and consulting. The doctoral program is designed for those who have experience in a supervisory or administrative position with a federal, state, or local government or nonprofit agency and those wishing to teach public administration in a college or university setting. The program is structured to provide decision makers, researchers, and future professors with a more sophisticated understanding of the governing process.
The curriculum incorporates a diversity of viewpoints, gathered from classical and contemporary readings in the discipline, examination of the contributions of its seminal thinkers, analysis of the institutions and processes of governance, exploration of emerging theories and trends, and an investigation of the challenges of leadership and public management in a democracy. Public administration is multidisciplinary and so during the coursework phase each student will be able to develop substantive and/or methodological knowledge in one or more of the many related disciplines, including sociology, economics, educational leadership, interdisciplinary health sciences, political science, statistics, and communication.
Integral to the program is the development and refinement of the skills to conduct both qualitative and quantitative research, practice in statistical and quantitative analysis, and experience with applied skills of leadership and ethical decision-making.
Students should graduate with the ability to perform independent research on theoretical public administration concerns and substantive issues, to analyze a wider range of alternative policies, and to weigh competing choices in the decision-making process.
Admission Requirements
Applicants can obtain doctoral student information by going to the School of Public Affairs and Administration website (wmich.edu/spaa) for complete details concerning admission to the Ph.D. program. The following criteria will be used to make admissions decisions. In order to be competitive, applicants must:
- Have an undergraduate degree with at least a 3.00 grade point average.
- Have a master's degree in public administration or a related academic discipline with at least a 3.25 grade point average in all graduate coursework.
- Have at least four years of supervisory or administrative experience, preferably in public serving organizations.
- Provide three letters of recommendation, at least one of which should be from a person acquainted with the applicant's professional work and at least one of which should be familiar with the applicant's graduate-level academic work (use the WMU Graduate Reference Form).
- Submit the completed University online application for Graduate Admission, with paid application fee.
- Responses to the required essay questions.
- Submit a complete and up-to-date professional resume.
- Provide Graduate record examination (GRE) scores for the quantitative, verbal, and analytical written parts of the examination.
All application materials should be submitted by Feb 1 to ensure consideration for the Fall semester. Late applications may be considered on a space available basis while earlier applications may be required for a student to meet university financial aid deadlines. An interview with members of the School's faculty may be requested as part of the admissions process.