Arkansas’ only fully accredited Master of Public Administration program was recently re-accredited through August 2021.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s MPA program, part of the College of Social Sciences and Communication, prepares students for professional management and leadership careers in government, nonprofit, and community agencies. The program offers an 18-credit nonprofit management graduate certificate for those interested in specialization in the nonprofit sector.

A Master of Public Administration degree provides students a well-rounded course of study in administration and management and also builds leadership skills and confidence, said Dr. Jerry Stevenson, professor and MPA graduate coordinator.

MPA students complete a professional project for a nonprofit or government entity. Recent projects range from developing ordinances for regulating food trucks for the city of Little Rock to creating a community development plan for the Dixie Community, a historic African American neighborhood in North Little Rock.

Graduates of the Master of Public Administration program can be found in many career paths and places of employment such as university settings, hospitals, nonprofit organizations as well as federal, state, and local government jobs.

Stevenson said the value added for obtaining a graduate degree from UALR is affirmed by the quality of its graduates and the subsequent advances in the students’ professional careers.

Candace Randle, a 2005 MPA graduate who recently was appointed the communications director and national press secretary for the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington, D.C., said her time at UALR “was one of the most supportive experiences I may have ever had as a student. I always felt that UALR professors respected me as a professional and supported me just as equally as a student.”

The reaccreditation by the NASPAA Commission of Peer Review and Accreditation acknowledges that the UALR program has been in “substantial conformity” for the past 22 years with standards established for professional master’s degrees in public administration.