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Background for Prospective Students
Program Informational Session
To learn more about our program, please watch the informational session we held with Professer and Chairperson, Dr. Shane Nordyke. We have also provided the PowerPoint presentation below.
GRE Requirement Suspended Indefinitely!
The PPA Department has decided to suspend the requirement for GRE scores for all applicants to the MPPA Program for all future admission cycles. Applicants for Fall 2025 DO NOT need to submit GRE scores with MPPA applications.
Applicant Eligibility
Applicants must possess a baccalaureate degree as specified by the Office of Graduate Studies with a minimum GPA of 2.75 on a 4.0 scale. Our graduate degrees are interdisciplinary in nature, so we welcome applicants from all majors.
Grade Point Average
We require that both MPPA and MSULD applicants have a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 or above.
- Applications may be considered when the GPA for the last 60 semester units or 90 quarter units attempted is 2.75 or above.
- GPA is calculated on a 4.0 scale.
- Applicants with foreign documents should contact the Office of Graduate Studies for further instruction.
Prerequisites
Applicants need a grade of B or better in all required prerequisite courses prior to starting the program.
The graduate program in Public Policy and Administration has two required prerequisites; government/political science and microeconomics; and one recommended prerequisite, statistics.
- MPPA Prerequisites
- Introduction to U.S. Government or Political Science
- Introduction to Microeconomics
- Recommended - Introduction to Statistics
Students are required to complete prerequisite courses prior to their first semester in the program. The courses must be completed with a grade of B or better. Applicants to the program may complete prerequisite courses while making their application. Please list in the supplemental application your plan to complete. However, those applicants who have successfully completed prerequisites prior to applying to the program are considered stronger candidates for admission, but may be accepted conditionally.
Prerequisite courses in the Sacramento Region
This table contains a sampling of acceptable prerequisite courses offered in the Sacramento area. This is NOT a comprehensive list and courses offered at other accredited institutions are also acceptable. (In no way should the appearance of an institution on this list be considered an endorsement of that institution.)
Applicants may also complete prerequisites online at any California Community College.
| Community Colleges | Political Science | Microeconomics | Statistics* |
|---|---|---|---|
| American River College | POLS 301: Intro to Govt - United States (3 units); POLS 304: Intro to Govt - California (3 units) | Econ 304, Principles of Microeconomics (3 units) | STAT 300, Introduction to Probability and Statistics (4 units); STAT 480: Introduction to Probability and Statistics - Honors (4 units) |
| Cosumnes River College | |||
| Folsom Lake College | |||
| Sacramento City College | |||
| Sierra Community College District | POLS 1: American Govt (3 units) | ECON 1B: Fundamentals of Economics (3 units) | MATH 13: Elementary Statistics (4 units) |
| Yuba College | POLSC 1: Intro to American Govt (3 units) | ECON 1B: Fundamentals of Economics (3 units) | STAT 1: Introduction to Statistical Methods (4 units) |
| Woodland Community College | |||
| Public Universities | Political Science | Microeconomics | Statistics* |
| Sacramento State Catalog | POLS 1: Essentials of Govt (3 units); POLS 150: American Govts (3 units); POLS 180: CA State and Local Govt (3 units) |
Econ 1B: Introduction to Microeconomic Analysis (3 units) | STAT 1: Introduction to Statistics (3 units) |
| CSUS Open University (CCE) | |||
| University of California, Davis | POL 001: American National Govt (4 units); POL 104: CA State Govt and Politics (4 units) | ECN 1A, Principles of Microeconomics (4 units) | STAT 13 and 13V: Elementary Statistics (4 units) |
| UCD Open Campus | |||
| Private Colleges and Universities | Political Science | Microeconomics | Statistics* |
| National University | POL 201: American Politics (4.5 units) | ECO 203: Principles of Microeconomics (4.5 units) | MTH 210, Probability and Statistics (4.5 units) |
| University of Phoenix | POS 110: American National Govt (3 units); POL 215: State and Local Political Processes (3 units) | Eco 365: Principles of Microeconomics (3 units) | MTH217: Statistics I (3 units) |
| *Statistics recommended for MPPA. | |||
How to Apply
The graduate application consists of one component:
- Cal State Apply graduate application (or Cal State Apply International graduate application)
The PPA program applications will be available on October 1st so please return to submit these materials after that date. Priority applications must be submitted before end-of-day December 1st.
Sacramento State operates under completion deadlines. Applications must be complete and all documents, including transcripts, must be received by the deadline in order to be considered for admission.
Applications available online October 1 to March 1 for Fall admission.