Ph.D. in Public and Urban Administration
See also:
PUAD Student Manual 
The Ph.D. Program in Public and Urban Administration (PUAD) provides students a rich core of substantive and procedural knowledge concerning public policy and administration by integrating the academic disciplines of social sciences and management.
The Program combines theoretical inquiry and analysis with application, offering students diverse approaches to policy and administration issues. Faculty interests include economic, social, environmental, administration, international, and political specializations.
Students are encouraged to pursue dissertation research using either or both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, and the Program offers extensive preparation in these modes of inquiry. The Program prepares doctoral students for careers in university teaching and research, and also for senior public or non-profit sector positions.
Students follow a curriculum of coursework and research tailored to individual needs and goal. Specific courses are determined through consultation with faculty advisors during the Diagnostic Exam that is held near the end of the second semester.
The Program generally requires 60 credit hours of which course work is 51 hours and a minimum of 9 hours of dissertation. Each of the two core fields of urban public policy and public administration contains 18 hours and the research support field contains 15 hours. Appropriate courses in the urban policy core field are listed below under “Public Policy.” Appropriate courses in the public administration core field are listed below under “Public Administration” (for course descriptions, see the UTA Graduate Catalog).
Courses from other programs, such as social work, political science, sociology, architecture, business, environmental science, etc. may be substituted for core field courses if appropriate. Appropriate courses for the research support field are listed below under “Research and Analysis.”
Coursework prepares students for written and oral comprehensive examinations in the core areas of study and for a written proficiency exam in the research support area. Following successful completion of exams, students devote the remainder of their time in the program to conducting research and writing the dissertation.
New Ph.D. students are admitted to begin in the fall semester. Application deadline is April 1 for the following fall.
Applications may be submitted online. A complete application includes transcripts from previous graduate work, GRE scores, TOEFL scores (for non-native English speakers only), 3 letters of recommendation from academic sources, a personal statement about why you want to earn a doctorate in Urban Planning and Public Policy, plus all additional materials required by the Graduate School.
To qualify for unconditional admission, applicants must have a graduate GPA of 3.6 or above, a Verbal GRE of at least 500 and a Quantitative GRE of at least 500, strong letters of recommendation, a strong personal statement, and 550 or higher on the TOEFL (213 or higher on the computer-based test). Applicants who do not meet these minimum qualifications may be admitted on a probationary basis if space permits.
Ph.D. in Public and Urban Administration Degree Components and Courses
Public Policy (18 hours) Choose at least two of the following:
URPA 5304 Urban Politics
URPA 5305 Theories of Urban Society
URPA 5306 The Urban Economy
Choose at least four of the following:
URPA 5307 Urban Geography
URPA 5308 Urban History
URPA 5309 Intergovernmental Relations
URPA 5310 Urban Policy and the Law
URPA 5311 Social Policy Formation
URPA 5312 Economic Policy
URPA 5314 Health Policy
URPA 5315 Urban Education Policy
URPA 5317 Urban Environmental Policy
URPA 5318 Social Welfare Policy
URPA 5363 Civil Rights and Urban Minorities
URPA 5364 Institutional and Other Radical Economic Theories
URPA 5365 Foundations of Environmental Policy
URPA 5366 US Immigration Policies and Planning for Immigrants
CIRP 5313 Urban Growth Policies
CIRP 5315 Transportation Policies, Programs and History
CIRP 5353 Housing Planning and Policy
CIRP 5364 Economic Base and Industrial Development Policy
Depending on the background of the student, other courses may be substituted for the above.
Public Administration (18 hours minimum)
Required:
URPA 6315 Public Administration Theory
URPA 6320 Advanced Organization Theory
Choose at least four of the following:
URPA 5320 Public Organization Theory (Prerequisite for URPA 6320)
URPA 5323 Public Organizational Change
URPA 5324 Urban Public Finance
URPA 5325 Administrative Law
URPA 5326 Public Budgeting
URPA 5327Comparative Administration and Policy
URPA 5350 Principles of Public Administration (Prerequisite for URPA 6315)
URPA 5351 Human Resources
Depending on the background of the student, other courses may be substituted for the above.
Research and Analysis (15 hours)
Required:
CIRP 5346 Qualitative Research Methods
URPA 5342 Strategies for Urban Research (Also offered as CIRP 5317)
URPA 5345 Evaluation Research
URPA 6301 Theoretical Foundations of Urban Affairs
URPA 6346 Advanced Data Analysis (Also offered as CIRP 6346)
General Academic Schedule
The Program is designed for the working student and most students enroll for six hours per semester. The following schedule is a general calendar a student could expect to follow over four academic years.
Fall #1
URPA 6301 Theoretical Foundations of Urban Affairs.
Policy or administration course.
Spring #1
URPA 5345 Evaluation Research.
URPA 6315 Theories of Public Administration.
Students sit for Diagnostic exam near end of semester.
Summer #1
Policy or administration course.
Policy or administration course.
Fall #2
URPA 5342 Strategies of Urban Research.
CIRP 5346 Qualitative Research Methods.
Spring #2
URPA 6346 Advanced Data Analysis.
Policy or administration course.
Written Research Proficiency Examination.
Summer #2
Policy or administration course.
Policy or administration course.
Fall #3
Policy or administration course.
Policy or administration course.
Spring #3
Policy or administration course.
Policy or administration course.
Summer #3
Policy or administration course.
Policy or administration course.
Fall #4
URPA 6305, Seminar in Urban Policy Processes.
Written Public Policy Comprehensive Examination.
Spring #4
URPA 6306 Seminar in Public Administration.
Written Public Administration Comprehensive Examination.
Summer #4
Oral Comprehensive Examination
Begin Dissertation
Program Advisor: Rod Hissong