Graduate School Bulletin

Degree Requirements M.A. in Public Policy

In addition to the minimum Graduate School requirements, this degree requires the successful completion of:

• POL 501: Introductory Statistics (3 credits)
• POL 502: Intermediate Statistics (3 credits)
• POL 535: Public Policy Analysis & Evaluation (3 credits)
• POL 596: Capstone Preparation Seminar (1 credit)
• POL 597: Capstone Internship in Public Policy (6 credits) or POL 598: Capstone Thesis Project in Public Policy (6 credits)

Students will take additional restricted courses (15 credits) offered by the Department of Political Science, including:

• POL 503 Survey Research Methods (3 credits)
• POL 504 Research Design (3 credits)
• POL 508 State and Local Public Budgeting and Finance (3 credits)
• POL 509 National and International Public Budgeting and Finance (3 credits)
• POL 514 Personnel Systems & Bureaucracies (3 credits)
• POL 515 Health Economics (3 credits)
• POL 516 Storms & Seas: Coastal Land Management (3 credits)
• POL 519 State & Local Politics (3 credits)
• POL 520 Applied Economics & Public Policy (3 credits)
• POL 521 Behavioral Economics & Public Policy (3 credits)
• POL 522 Economic Issues & Public Policy (3 credits)
• POL 524 Housing Policy (3 credits)
• POL 530 Topics in Public Affairs (3 Credits)
• POL 531 Planning and Public Affairs (3 Credits)
• POL 532 Moral Politics & Public Policy (3 credits)
• POL 534 Intergovernmental Relations and Policy Delivery (3 credits)
• POL 536 Public Management and Organizational Behavior (3 credits)
• POL 537 Administrative Law for Policy Analysts (3 credits)
• POL 538 The Politics of Local Economic Development (3 credits)
• POL 539 Introduction to International Law (3 credits)
• POL 540 Data Applications in Public Policy (3 Credits)
• POL 542 Regional Planning (3 credits)
• POL 543 Environmental Politics and Policy (3 credits)
• Or other course with advanced Program Director approval

Note that POL 530: Topics in Public Affairs may be repeated for credit as the topic changes.

With advanced approval from the Program Director, students may take one course outside of the Department of Political Science in place of one of the restricted POL courses.

B.A./M.A. Track

In the accelerated B.A./M.A. in Public Policy, students complete the B.A. in Political Science and the M.A. in Public Policy in five years. To be eligible for admission, students must be:

• A major in political science at Stony Brook
• have completed 60 credits toward their degree
• have a minimum GPA of 3.0
• have two courses (six credits) remaining in the Study Within the Area of the Major, Political Science electives during their senior year.

In the program, students take up to two graduate courses (six credits) during their senior year which also count towards the POL major’s Political Science elective requirement. 500-level POL courses may be applied to:

• The Political Science elective program of study requirement, and will count under the American Government, Law, and Public Policy program, and/or,
• The Political Science elective open credit requirement (not confined to a program of study).

Upon admission to the program, the student takes two courses in their senior year, one each semester. Generally, students should begin with fundamental courses such as policy analysis (POL 535) but with approval from the MA in Public Policy program director they can choose any master’s courses in public policy (POL 500 – POL 559). Students then complete the remaining graduate courses during the fifth year.