M.S. in Public Affairs/Community Development – Department of Public Policy and Administration

MS in Public Affairs/Community Development

The MS in Public Affairs/Community Development is an ideal degree for those striving to “do the work” of community development. Our degree is tailor made to support professionals who need additional training to effectively leverage the resources and world around them to do so. The rich content in our community development classes helps our students to see the big picture — how the struggles in one city and one place are tied to the struggles of many cities in many places.

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The MS in Public Affairs/Community Development is built for professionals with experience in:

Health care nonprofits,
City schools,
International policy,
Community partnerships

Graduates are competitive for a wide variety of jobs in community development:

Research oriented nonprofits and think tanks;
City-based nonprofits
Housing Nonprofits and Community Development Corporations: New Kensington CDC, Project Home, St. Josephs Carpenter Society
State and local government

“There is an increased demand in cities for sophisticated workers who can speak to the challenges of communities through a social and racial justice lens, understand and implement wider research on specific issues, and conduct research on community development initiatives. We believe our curriculum, alongside experiential learning opportunities in Camden and Philadelphia, provide an ideal opportunity for that type of education.”

Professor Stephen Danley
Faculty in the M.S. and Ph.D Program

Introductory Courses
(3 courses/9 credits):

824:701 Theory and History of Community Development
824:703 Logic of Social Inquiry
824:710 Planning, Markets, and Community Development

Research Methods Courses
(4 courses/12 credits)

824:702 Quantitative Methods I
824:714 Qualitative Research Methods
and, choose two:

- 834:608 Geographic Information Systems
- 824:708 Categorical and Limited Dependent Variables (Prerequisite – 709)
- 824:709 Quantitative Methods II (Prerequisite – 702)
- 824:718 Data Management

Elective Courses
(2 courses/6 credits)
The elective course requirement consists of two graduate level courses relevant to community development and/or the student’s core research interests. Related courses may be taken at the Rutgers–Camden School of Law or School of Business, or any department in the Rutgers–Camden Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (i.e., Childhood Studies, Social Work, Criminal Justice, Economics, etc.).

Applied Research Course/Capstone
(1 course/3 credits)

The Practicum is usually (but not always) offered in the spring semester, and may be conducted as a studio class by faculty associated with the Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs (WRI) or the Community Leadership Center (CLC), two agencies associated with Rutgers–Camden and the Department of Public Policy and Administration. It serves as the capstone course for M.S. students (and an applied research course also open to MPA and Public Affairs 9 doctoral students). When opportunities are available, it could engage students in grant-funded or contracted work for a public or non-profit client.