Evans School of Public Policy & Governance

Improve Public Policy, Development Management Skills

Turn your desire to do good into a career that makes a real, life-changing impact. Whether you are ready to advance your career within the public and nonprofit sectors or are looking to grow your skills as a public policy researcher, the Evans School MPA program equips you to improve public policy and launch your leadership journey.

Study at the Intersection of Theory and Practice

The Evans MPA pairs the quantitative and analytic skill-building often found in programs specific to public policy with management courses that ensure you are prepared for leadership opportunities. The core curriculum provides a solid basis of knowledge from which you can pursue many different professional opportunities in public policy and management, while our electives allow you to personalize an academic path tailored to your specific career goals.

At the Evans School, we believe that applying classroom concepts in real-world settings is critical to students’ success. Beyond our rigorous core curriculum and ample elective offerings, we support students through internships, capstone projects, and engagement on campus and in the community where they can practice new skills and learn the art of public leadership.

As practitioners and educators, our faculty bring cutting-edge scholarship and deep issue expertise to help students tackle challenges in public policy and governance. Faculty work closely with students in and out of the classroom to create a diverse educational community that translates beyond the classroom and into practice.

Degree Length and Format

Most students pursue the MPA program as full-time students and complete the program in two years. Students may also enroll in the MPA program as a part-time or concurrent student and complete the program in an average of three to five years. Our MPA program is offered in-person in Seattle on the University of Washington campus.

Our student services staff closely tracks the progress of each MPA cohort and a recent analysis (the cohort entering in autumn 2017) showed that 88% of the entering class of 196 successfully completed their MPA degree in two years or less. 96% of the entering class of 196 successfully completed the MPA degree in four years or less.