Prepare to lead and make a difference in communities around the globe. At Maxwell, you’ll find faculty, students and alumni who are dedicated to the idea that well-trained public service-minded professionals can change the world.
Whether you are just starting out in your career or you are a seasoned professional, you’ll find a Maxwell program designed to help you:
- fill gaps in knowledge,
- build skills and confidence to take on a leadership role in your organization,
- prepare to move across sectors and,
- boost your ability to drive change.
Our Approach
We’ve situated a world-class team of public administration faculty among an equally accomplished faculty of the social sciences. This dynamic mix of educators and scholars creates a one-of-a-kind experience in which students immerse in interdisciplinary coursework and topical research at one of 14 research centers within the school.
You’ll reach your professional ambitions—fast. Our professional degrees provide exceptional preparation to advance your career in as few as 12 months, letting you get back to work more quickly than most other programs. And, if you have seven years of experience, you may qualify for one of our midcareer executive programs—with course options that are even more flexible and efficient.
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complete master’s degree options in as few as 12 months
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Explore Master’s Degrees
Public Administration
Master of Public Administration
Prepare to lead positive change through a rigorous yet efficient array of skills-building courses.
- On campus, in Syracuse, N.Y.
- 40 credits plus optional internships
- Complete full-time in 12 to 18 months
Executive Master of Public Administration—On Campus or Online
Fill gaps in your knowledge with a program tailored to your career goals—five to seven years of experience required. An online option for working professionals provides added flexibility.
- Online or on campus in Syracuse, N.Y., options (separate programs)
- 30 credits
- Complete part- or full-time in as few as 12 to 15 months
International Relations
Master of Arts in International Relations
Satisfy your curiosity about the world, and develop skills and knowledge to change it for the better.
- On campus, in Syracuse, N.Y.
- 40 credits with a required global internship
- Required career track selection to focus your studies
- Complete full-time in 18 months
Master of Arts in Public Diplomacy and Global Communications
Prepare to drive change in a range of international contexts through effective public and interpersonal communications. One powerful degree, two schools: the Maxwell School and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.
- On campus, in Syracuse, N.Y., and Washington, D.C.
- 43 credits with a required global internship
- Complete full-time in 18 months
Executive Master's in International Relations
Improve your leadership and management skills and global affairs knowledge—seven years of experience required.
- On campus, in Syracuse, N.Y.
- 30 credits
- Complete on a part- or full-time basis
Doctoral Program
PhD in Public Administration
Educate the next generation of public service leaders and conduct research that moves the field of public administration and policy analysis forward.
- On campus, in Syracuse, N.Y.
- 72 credits (36 credits beyond the M.A.)
- Full-time residential program, typically completed in 4.5 years
Department Admission Events
We offer a range of in-person and virtual opportunities to learn more about the Maxwell School and degree programs offered by the Public Administration and International Affairs Department, answer questions about the application process, and help you work toward your goals.
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Our D.C. headquarters at the Syracuse University Center in DuPont Circle, gives students access to leading minds in the world of policy and international affairs, competitive internships, employment opportunities and a deeply engaged network of D.C.-based alumni.
Need a midcareer boost? Explore our Certificates of Advanced Study
We offer a variety of regional, topical and skills-based Certificates of Advanced Study (CAS) to help you focus and refine your expertise. Some CAS can be earned as part of a master's program while others can be earned independent of a degree. Learn to use data to formulate and analyze policy, deepen your knowledge of effective public management practices, develop techniques to promote collaboration and resolve conflicts, broaden your expertise in a specific region of the world, and more.
Lopoo Joins National Panel Examining Behavioral Economics
April 21, 2022
Maxwell School faculty member Leonard Lopoo is one of 13 scholars from across the country who have been selected to serve on a prestigious National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine panel that will explore behavioral economics.
The panel will review evidence regarding the application of insights from behavioral economics to key public policy objectives, including public health, chronic illness, economic well-being and responses to global climate change.
“Our goal in the panel is to determine where behavioral economics has been successful, where it has not (and why not), and where we should take this work in the future,” says Lopoo, Paul Volcker Chair in Behavioral Economics and professor of public administration and international affairs.
Panelists are also examining frontiers in the field, asking what happens when behavioral economics intersects with related disciplines, including cognitive psychology, social psychology and the decision sciences.
Lopoo, who is founding director of the Maxwell X Lab and is finishing his term as director of the Center for Policy Research, says behavioral economics can be applied in practical ways to examine things such as why people do or do not apply for government benefits or, say, a pension program. Often, he says, there are information barriers or stigma associated with participation.
For example, Lopoo points to a 2018 Maxwell X Lab project with the City of Syracuse that helped the city recoup over $1.4 million in property tax debt. “We found that it was not always that people did not have the money to pay their property taxes, it was that the communication between the city and residents was less than ideal,” he says. “Make it easy for people to sign up for a pension program or pay their taxes, and the outcomes improve.”
In addition to Lopoo, the national panel includes researchers from Duke University, Princeton University, the University of California-Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania, among others. Members represent “all areas of expertise” in behavioral economics, says Lopoo,
The panel will publish its findings in a report to be utilized by a varied audience including students, researchers, policymakers and funders.
By Steve Buchiere
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