Master of Public Administration MPA

This module focuses on the various actors and institutions involved in the policy making process and their roles in different forms of governance. It addresses the design of policies, from deciding on the need for a policy (problem definition) through making the policy happen (implementation). Relationships between state and non-state actors and between state actors in multi-level governance structures will be discussed.

This module presents the context that forms the operating environment of public and social policy.

It discusses key concepts and theories that shape debates about policy, and presents critical perspectives on mainstream assumptions about policy.

Theories and perspectives include socialism, neo-liberalism, Marxism, feminism and environmentalism; key concepts include equality and social justice.

Learn how to:

• recognise and debate key theories and influences involved in policy making, operations and decisions
• understand and challenge mainstream assumptions, and present alternative perspectives
• collaborate with your classmates through group work
• find, summarise and synthesise various sources from diverse perspectives to inform thinking and arguments

This module focuses on the skills you need to carry out policy research.

It covers research design and methods that are appropriate to answer research questions about any element of policy, from its inception to its application.

Using these diverse research skills and methods will help you develop a research proposal for your dissertation project. 

This module is the final assessment of the programme, and is a culmination of all the learning that you will have done over the year.

The learning process and personal development as a reflective and continuous learner is expressed in a reflective diary that you will compile over the course of the year, with support from your personal tutor.

The knowledge and academic skills that you have gained are expressed in your dissertation, with support from your dissertation supervisor.

The dissertation is a sustained piece of research that is entirely student-driven, including setting your own research questions, deciding on your research design and methods, and carrying out the research and the dissertation writing.

This module focuses on how people within public sector organisations operate. It presents theories and concepts that explain difference perceptions of leadership and management, and how these influence practices to improve people’s performance and motivation. The module addresses the role of leaders and managers in the development of the organisation and its culture, as well as management approached to change and conflict within organisations.

This modules presents theories and models of strategic and financial planning in the public sector and the role of a range of stakeholders in these processes. It discusses sources of income and the budget cycle and how financial decision-making and controls enable organisations to respond to changes in their operating environment. The module addresses issues such as innovation and organisational learning, and how they contribute to organisations’ ability to deal with external challenges, such as health or environmental crises.

This module focuses on the practical elements of public service delivery, and how they are affected by the involvement of a range of different stakeholders.

Salient roles and relationships are those between different levels of government, between service users and providers, and between providers from the public, private and third sector.

Key issues are inequality of access to and use of services and assessing and improving the quality of services.

This module focuses on the influence of government ideologies on economic policy decisions.

It discusses the tension between social and private benefits, the relative benefits of supply-side and demand-side economics, and how profit incentives lead to market failure in the provision of social benefit.

Topics addressed include the balance between short- and long-term interests and decisions about spending that are made at various levels of government on services such as housing and welfare.

This module will equip you with the knowledge and understanding of the role international governmental organisations (such as the World Bank, World Health Organization, IMF, OECD) play in global governance. You will study how international organisations compete with each other and also cooperate in different fields of public policy to influence the global debate, shift ideas, set the agenda and formulate policy.

You will learn how they prepare, guide, and supervise international treaties on public policy issues and how they direct finance and implement public policy projects. You will learn about the inherent features of the major international organisations and how these determine the approach they take to influence policies. 

This module focuses on the welfare social policies in countries around the world.

Using a Social Problem framework, it discusses how problems that occur at local level are influenced by and influence problems at national and global levels.

Study how past and current colonial practices influence the persistence of social problems, and countries’ responses to them.

Topics vary widely and can include health and social care, housing, education, pension provision, needs of ageing societies.