The Accelerated Master of Public Administration (AMPA) Program is an alternate path to the MPA degree. It allows students who successfully complete MPA courses in the Public Administration Department as undergraduates to earn the MPA degree with 30 credit hours instead of the normal 39 credit hours.
In order to apply, and be considered for admission to the AMPA upon completion of the undergraduate degree, current UTSA undergraduate students must first be accepted as an AMPA candidate. This requires the submission of a packet to the UTSA Public Administration Department Chair that includes:
- A letter of intent to the Public Administration Department Chair, stating why you are interested in this pathway to the AMPA program. This must include your name, major, expected graduation date, and Banner ID.
- A letter of support for your candidacy from a UTSA professor with whom you have taken an upper-division class in any Department.
To be eligible for consideration as a candidate, students must meet the following criteria:
- Completed 60-90 hours of undergraduate coursework at the time the packet is submitted.
- GPA of 3.0 or above.
- Candidacy status is open to all UTSA majors, but students are responsible for ensuring that the MPA courses taken as an undergraduate will be accepted into their undergraduate program of study. For Bachelor of Public Administration and Policy students, the three MPA courses will count in section B., Prescribed Courses, of the degree requirements.
If accepted as a candidate, the student will enroll in these three MPA courses during their final year in their undergraduate program: PAD 5003, PAD 5303, and PAD 5323.
If those courses are successfully completed with a grade of B or better, students may then apply to the AMPA program, per the instructions in the UTSA Graduate Catalog.
