The La Follette School of Public Affairs provides selected UW-Madison undergraduates an opportunity to jumpstart the Master of Public Affairs or Master of International Public Affairs program. If accepted, a student can take a small number of advanced courses in the last year of their undergraduate program. After the student completes their undergraduate requirements, students begin a fifth graduate year, devoted to full-time graduate study with the La Follette School.
Application Process
Application for admission to the accelerated program for MPA or MIPA must be made directly to the La Follette School after five semesters of undergraduate study. Applications received by January 1 will have priority consideration; later applications will be considered on a rolling admissions basis until the final deadline of March 15th.
Students enrolling in the accelerated program also must formally apply for regular Graduate School admission during their final year of undergraduate study by filling out the Graduate School online application and submitting an updated résumé.
The following items are required for consideration for the accelerated degree. Applicants do not need to resubmit them when seeking formal Graduate School admission:
- Accelerated degree program application
- Personal statement of purpose
- Two academic letters of recommendation
- A University of Wisconsin–Madison transcript showing a grade point average of 3.6 or higher
- Résumé
Prerequisites
MPA Prerequisite Courses (A strong MPA applicant has taken these courses and earned a B or above.)
- Introduction to microeconomics
- Introduction to statistics or calculus
- Introduction to American government
MIPA Prerequisite Courses (A strong MIPA applicant has taken these courses and earned a B or above.)
- Introduction to microeconomics
- Introduction to macroeconomics
- Introduction to statistics or calculus
- Comparative politics or international relations
- Three semesters of language study (or a year or more experience of living abroad)
Curriculum
Final Undergraduate Year: In addition to courses needed to complete a BA or BS, students take 3-4 courses depending on their undergraduate course work:
- Fall: 4-7 credits, students choose from core courses
- Spring: 3-6 credits, students choose from core and elective courses.
Graduate Year:
- Summer: Optional internship (0-3 credits)
- Fall: 9-12 credits
- Spring: 9-12 credits