Program: Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs
Neff Hall 260 ~ 260-481-6351 ~ ipfw.edu/public-policy
The student learning outcomes for the degree are as follows:
Students should be able to:
- Understand the importance of ideas and theory in the formulation and implementation of public policy.
- Understand the importance of politics in all substantive public policy areas.
- Appropriately utilize quantitative approaches for dealing with management and public policy challenges.
- Understand the origins, processes, and impact of law in the creation and implementation of public policy.
- Apply the knowledge gained in either criminal justice, environmental policy, health services administration, legal studies, or public management as a functional and contributing practitioner in contemporary society.
The BSPA degree program provides a background in the liberal arts and a focus on public affairs. This degree offers majors in criminal justice, environmental policy, health services administration, legal studies, and public management. Internships are available and strongly encouraged to provide qualified students with the opportunity to apply classroom theory and techniques to real-life experiences. The internship program is designed for maximum flexibility; internships can be full or part time, paid or unpaid, credit or noncredit.
The Public Affairs’ curriculum is divided into five categories - IPFW General Education area, Public Policy general knowledge area, public affairs core, a major area, and general electives. The BSPA requires a minimum of 120 credit hours with a 2.0 or higher cumulative grade-point average and a 2.3 or higher grade-point average in core and major courses. No more than 90 credits may be transferred from other accredited institutions (60 credits from a junior college). A maximum of 10 credits may be applied from military transfer experience, and a maximum of 12 credits may be awarded for police academy training completed within the past year. Up to 6 credits in Public Affairs Courses may be used to meet specific Public Affairs degree requirements to satisfy any other Public Affairs degree requirement. However, Public Affairs courses may be double-counted to satisfy the IPFW general-education distribution and public policy general elective requirements.
To earn the Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs at IPFW, students must fulfill the requirements of IPFW (see Part 8) and the Department of Public Policy, and complete the following requirements:
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