http://www.utdallas.edu/dept/socsci/
Professors: Ronald Briggs, Euel Elliott, L. Douglas Kiel, Murray Leaf,
Larry Redlinger, Richard Scotch, Larry Terry, Douglas J.Watson
Associate Professors: Pamela Brandwein, Marie
Chevrier, Simon Fass, Susan McElroy
Assistant Professors: Roxanne Ezzet-Lofstrom, Scott Robinson
The Doctor of Philosophy in Public Affairs degree is an interdisciplinary
doctoral program that prepares graduates to assume either positions in academe,
research producing organizations or positions of administrative authority in
public (government, public school districts), quasi-public (healthcare,
insurance), and nonprofit (providers, foundations) organizations. The degree
combines innovative and traditional methods of educational delivery and
emphasizes the integration and application of theory to practice. The guiding
philosophy of the degree is that �public affairs� involves more than mere
functional administration, policy implementation or quantitative policy
analysis. Rather, doctoral education in public affairs requires an interface
between the traditions of public management, decision science, and policy
analysis and processes with a practical appreciation for the challenges of
maintaining and building institutions of governance and a civic culture in a
complex, democratic society.
The Ph.D. degree is nontraditional in that it requires all students to
conduct applied, field-based research as the foundation for the production of
their dissertations. Students will be required to engage in a genuine effort in
a public, quasi-public or non-profit organization to improve organizational
performance. Organizational performance can be improved in many ways consistent
with enhancing institutions and civic culture. Examples of such field-based
research efforts may include efforts to improve outreach to clientele groups or
to develop new methods of interorganizational/intersectoral
functioning. These efforts, performed under the guidance of a Economic, Political and Policy Sciences
faculty member, will be theory-driven, produce evaluative data and analysis,
and expand the body of relevant knowledge.
The PhD program in Public Affairs is a cohort program. The program requires
45 hours plus relevant doctoral dissertation hours. Well-prepared students (for
example, those with a master�s degree in public administration, public affairs,
public policy, business administration, health administration, or education
administration) may be able to complete the course requirements and the
dissertation within 3 years from their initial enrollment. Students in each
cohort take 6 hours of classes each fall, spring and summer semester. This
allows students to complete the core courses, electives and 9 hours within the
analysis/research tools area in 7 consecutive semesters of enrollment. Students
will generally start the production of the dissertation during the seventh
semester of enrollment. Entering cohorts begin each fall semester. This
approach produces shared experiences and progress through the program that
enrich student learning and student research. Students admitted to the program,
but lacking some pre-requisites, may take those classes in the spring or summer
semester prior to starting with a fall cohort.
A unique set of courses is also presented in this program as a means of
expediting student learning and information sharing during the dissertation
phase. The goals of these courses are to foster a research environment that is
practical and focused on real problems, to enhance student learning via the
sharing of learning experiences, and to allow students the opportunity to learn
from the experiences of seasoned actors in the field of public affairs. Prior
to the dissertation students must complete courses in evaluation research and
advanced research techniques.
The PhD program in Public Affairs also requires that students select
professional specializations in either public management or non-profit
management. These professional specializations allow those interested in
working in the academy to develop a specialty to guide their research and
teaching interests. Students focused on the practice of public affairs will
choose a specialization based on their career interest in either public
management or the non-profit arena.
Students have access to the computing facilities in the
Application Deadlines: The PhD program in Public Affairs is a cohort program
allowing new groups of students to start each fall semester. Cohorts only start
during fall semesters. Students intending to start with a fall cohort must
submit their applications by July 1 of that year. Prospective students who do
not hold a master�s degree in public affairs, public administration, public
policy or a related field should apply by November 1 of the year prior to
enrollment. This allows those students admitted to the program to complete
pre-requisite courses in the spring or summer prior to joining a fall cohort.
Students admitted to the program, but who do not hold one of the master�s
degrees noted above, will generally be required to take master�s level courses
in public management, basic statistics, financial management, budgeting or
economics.
Application/Admission Requirements: Prospective students must complete the
University�s graduate application form and arrange to have GRE scores and
transcripts of all college coursework sent to UTD. A graduate GPA of 3.0 or
better and a minimum combined math and verbal GRE score of 1000 are expected.
Three letters of recommendation are also required. Applicants must submit a
written statement that should, at a minimum, include: (1) the nature of the
student�s current work situation and responsibilities; (2) responsibilities for
large scale/strategic issues in their work environment; (3) the nature and
frequency of interactions with organizational stakeholders; (4) the student�s
current span of control in their work environment; and (5) their career goals
upon completion of the Ph.D. All applicants must also submit a complete
professional resume.
Graduate Assistantships: Students admitted to the program may receive
teaching/research scholarships and/or assistantships. Prospective students
interested in receiving the scholarship/assistantships must have submitted all
application materials including an application form for a
scholarship/assistantship by April 1 of the year they intend to start the
program. Applications for the scholarships/assistantships may be obtained from
the office of programs in public affairs. Offers of teaching/research
scholarships and assistantships will be made by May 1 of the year of fall
enrollment.
The Ph.D. requires a minimum of 45 hours of course work beyond the master�s
degree. Students not holding a master�s degree in public affairs, public
administration, public policy or other related field will be expected to
complete additional course work. These courses will be determined by the
program director. The curriculum consists of 27 hours of core coursework, 12 hours
of analytical /research tool classes, and 6 hours of electives within the
professional specialization. Students must also complete the doctoral
dissertation.
Prior to enrolling in core classes in the PhD program students must show
evidence of completing graduate level course work in general public management,
basic statistics, financial management and budgeting and economics or public
finance. Students admitted to the Ph.D. program without these requirements may
complete relevant courses in the Masters of Public Affairs program at UTD prior
to taking Ph.D. level courses.
The Program will consist of course work in four substantive knowledge areas.
These areas are the public affairs core which includes topics of Governance:
Leadership, Change and Conflict Resolution. The three remaining substantive
knowledge areas are: Social Policy and Development, Decision Analysis and
Decision Tools, Organizational Management and Analysis.
Students must also complete a four-course sequence in research tools. One of
these courses will be a Master�s level basic statistics course completed at UTD
or in another Master�s level program. Students must complete both POEC 6352 �
Evaluation Research Methods in the Economic, Political and Policy Sciences and PA 7390 � Advanced
Research Techniques in Public Affairs with a grade of �B� or better in each
class prior to the dissertation stage. During the dissertation phase students
will complete the following courses: PA 8340 � Capstone Seminar for Leadership
in Public Affairs and PA 8370 - Public Affairs Research Practicum. These
courses are designed to provide students a means for engaging in field-based
research and for sharing lessons learned during their research. During the
dissertation research students must be enrolled in PA 8V98 - Dissertation.
Students choose either the public management specialization or the nonprofit
management specialization. Students must complete 6 hours of elective courses
from their chosen professional specialization. A list of those courses is
provided below. Some of these courses may be found in other graduate programs
in the
Total Mix of Class Hours 27 Required Core Courses 12
Analytical/Research Tools 6 Professional
Specialization Electives 45 TOTAL
The interdisciplinary foundation of the PhD in Public Affairs requires that
students complete courses across the disciplines within the
POEC 6326 Decision Tools
SOC 6340 Domestic Social Policy
PA 7305 Leadership of Public and Non-Profit Organizations
PA 7311 Models and Tools of Change Management
PA 7322 Negotiations for Effective Management
PA 7325 Survey of Public Affairs
PA 7332 Legal Environment of Public Affairs
PA 7336 Seminar in Financial Management
PA 7338 Seminar in Human Resources
PA 7375 Non-Profit Organizations: Theory and Practice
POEC 6352 Evaluation Research Methods in the Economic, Political and Policy Sciences
PA 7390 Advanced Research Techniques in Public Affairs
PA 8340 Capstone Seminar for Leadership in Public Affairs
PA 8360 Public Affairs Research Practicum
PA - 6320 Organizational Theory
PA 6325 - Decision Theory
PSCI 6336 - Bureaucracy and Public Policy
POEC 6341 - Urban Development
PA 6365 - Local Economic Development
PA 7343 - Human Resources Management
PSCI 7370 Decision Making, Complexity and Risk
SOC 5371 Non-Profit Organizations
PA 7315 Fundraising and Media Relations
PA 7V62 Workshop: Non-Profit Organizations
Dissertation � Students will complete field-based research (PA 8V98 �
Dissertation) as a foundation for the production of a dissertation. A faculty
mentor will be assigned to each student to guide the research activity.
Students must successfully submit a dissertation proposal abstract to the
entire Public Affairs faculty for approval of their chosen topic. Students may
take up to 18 hours of dissertation enrollment.