Department of Public Administration

EMPA Student Experience

“The EMPA Program has taught me the true meaning of leadership. Not only did I discover my leadership strengths and abilities in the program but most importantly taught me that no matter where we are in our organization, we can lead from where we sit. My travels to Washington DC and Vietnam gave me an understanding of how cultural awareness and leadership play an important role within the communities we work.” 

Shryvonne, 2017 Cohort

EMPA student Shryvonne

Who Are EMPA Students?

EMPA students come from a wide range of backgrounds. While the majority have strong public sector backgrounds, many come from military or private backgrounds as well. Local, state, and federal workers are represented, as are non-profit and special district employees. 

In demographic terms, EMPA students are diverse in all sense of the word. What all EMPA students share is a commitment to public service and a desire to better equip themselves as leaders. If you meet that criteria, you're likely a good candidate for the program. The 2024 Cohort, for example, looks as follows:

No. of Students

Youngest Student

Oldest Student

Percent female

Percent minority

12

32 years old

65 years old

42%

50%

Day In the Life

In Class: EMPA courses take place every other Saturday from 9am to 5pm. This is the main obligation EMPA students must meet. Class time is an opportunity for discussion, debate, and active learning. Many students bring in problems or questions they face in their roles, using them as case studies in class.

Outside of Class: students spend an average of 10 hours a week on homework, which consists of a mix of reading, writing, and research. Many cohorts choose to collaborate on homework, breaking up readings and getting together before class to share notes. Students often gather for happy hour after class for a chance to discuss work in a more informal setting, which can be nearly as valuable as the class content itself!

EMPA Student Learning Experience

A Cohort-driven Experience

The EMPA program begins in the Fall Term. Students who enter together form a cohort that stays together throughout their entire time in the program, allowing for relationships built on trust, mutual respect, and shared experience.

Cohorts range in size, but 12-14 members is typical. All students must meet a minimum threshold of ten years of progressively responsible work experience in order to be admitted to the program, meaning everyone is able to contribute to class discussion at a high level.

Courses

Students take an integrated sequence of courses designed to cultivate core competencies necessary to professionally contribute, supervise, and lead in complex settings. Students leave the program with the tools to lead across all levels of the public administration field.

FULL COURSE LIST AND DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

Core Competencies

Students in the EMPA program will master thirteen core competencies by graduation. These competencies were developed in accordance with NASPAA guidelines to ensure graduates leave with the tools to effectively fulfill their organization’s mission, to enhance citizen engagement, and to promote democratic governance.

FULL LIST OF EMPA CORE COMPETENCIES

Field Experiences

The EMPA program offers two unique opportunities for in-depth field research: the National Policy Process course, where students spend a week in DC, and the International Policy Process course, a comparative study of another country's public administration. These courses are designed as full immersion experiences with engaging on-the-ground learning.

EMPA National Policy Process Group Photo

National Policy Process

Typically occurs in first year, late February

An Intense week in Washington, D.C, meeting with national agency representatives, members of Congress and their staff, White House and Executive branch officials, think-tanks, lobbyists and issue advocates. We get a first-hand and behind the scenes understanding of who and what it takes to “make our government work”.

"I have described the National Policy Process class as the single greatest educational experience of my life...It can be summed up in a single word: phenomenal.” - EMPA Student, 2012 Cohort 

EMPA Students exploring Seoul Korea

International Field Experience

Typically occurs during second year, Mid-Late October

An intensive week with one of our international partners abroad (eg Thailand, South Korea, Cuba) meeting with government, civil society and university officials who together make their government work. As a result of our faculty’s extensive executive level contacts in the country that we visit, students are able to meet face-to-face with their counterparts and compare best practices. This intensive immersion experience is designed to surface lessons that can be used back home to improve our governing processes, the role of citizen engagement in decision making, cross-cultural communications, equity and inclusion.

Capstone Project

At the completion of their program of study, students choose an organizational challenge to integrate and apply their leadership knowledge and advance their professional development aspirations.

The Executive MPA aspires to develop informed, reflective, ethical leaders. The Capstone project is a critical part of this process offering you a guided opportunity to analyze a policy or administrative problem in a sustained way and then to propose detailed solutions to that problem.

Students will work with a Capstone advisor to develop their project throughout the EMPA program. During the last term, students will finalize their paper summarizing their project and present it to fellow cohort members, EMPA faculty, and community stakeholders.

While many graduate programs require a thesis that reflects specific intellectual accomplishments in the degree program, the EMPA capstone is different. It aims for a synthesis of academic, practical and personal perspectives on your career to date, on what you have learned in the EMPA program, and about what kind of leader you want to be in the future.

Sample Capstone titles from previous years include "Belonging in Public Service," "From Voice to Power: Reimagining Equity Leadership for a Diverse Oregon," and "A Rocky Road: Portland’s Economic Recovery After Covid-19."

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2024 Cohort in Washington DC