Joint Bachelor's/Master's (BA/MPP) Program

The Joint Bachelor's/Master's (BA/MPP) Program in Public Policy provides students with a rich liberal arts education through one of the outstanding policy-related majors in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences (BSOS). Students can then jump-start their policy careers by earning a Master's degree in Public Policy from the Maryland School of Public Policy (MSPP). MSPP is the top-ranked policy program in the Washington region and ranked in the top-ten nationally in such fields as environmental policy, social policy, and budgeting and finance. The School is also home to a nationally recognized program in international security and economic policy and a new specialization in international development. Students must meet the following criteria to apply to the joint program:

• Have demonstrated a strong commitment to public service via involvement with policy-oriented organizations or individual efforts;
• Plan to pursue a major in African American Studies, Anthropology, Criminology & Criminal Justice, Economics, Geography, Government & Politics, Psychology, or Sociology;
• Are within two months of completing at least 60 undergraduate credits with a 3.5 GPA;
• Have received a combined SAT (verbal + math) or GRE (verbal plus quantitative) score of at least 1270.

Once admitted to the program, students will spend their junior year completing most of the undergraduate CORE and major requirements. Assuming they maintain at least a 3.5 undergraduate GPA, in the next two years they will take graduate-level public policy courses.  Up to 18 credits of these courses may count towards both the undergraduate and master's degrees. This is the maximum number of graduate level credits that can be taken by undergraduate students. The remaining 30 credits of graduate course work must be taken as a graduate student.  This allows students to complete both degrees in as few as 5 years and avoid several thousands of dollars in tuition charges and fees! Better yet, graduate courses taken during the senior year will be charged at significantly lower undergraduate rates, saving even more! Supplementing the formal course of study will be a rich potpourri of opportunities to broaden and enliven students' policy education

Both BSOS and MSPP bring to campus many outstanding policy leaders and scholars. Access to MSPP's extensive internship and career services will introduce students to hundreds of opportunities to engage in policy-related internships at the international, national, state and local levels in a multitude of policy fields in the private, public, and non-profit sectors.

Application Deadlines:

• Spring Admission: December 1
• Fall Admission: July 1

Application Requirements:
Send complete application to: Attn: BA/MPP Program, School of Public Policy, 2101 Van Munching Hall

0. Application (DO NOT use the electronic application; a paper application can be downloaded here)
0. Statement of Purpose Essay
0. Three letters of recommendation from faculty members
0. Latest transcript
0. SAT scores
0. Audit from BSOS (Academic/Departmental Advisor)
0. GRE scores if SAT verbal + math scores are below 1270
0. Resume (optional)

How to Prepare for the BA/MPP Program:

• Calculus: Math 140 or Math 220
• Economics: Econ 200 AND Econ 201
• Other quantitive courses such as statistics in addition to BSOS major requirements