Bachelor of Public Administration Degree

A Bachelor of Public Administration degree is designed to prepare students for employment in the public and nonprofit sector by giving them a broad background in the basics of administration, combined with a contemporary focus on urban management, the nonprofit sector, tools of analysis, and the role of ethics.

The minimum number of semester credit hours required for the degree, including the Core Curriculum requirements, is 120. Thirty-nine of the total semester credit hours required for the degree must be at the upper-division level.

Core Curriculum Requirements (42 semester credit hours)
Students seeking the Bachelor of Public Administration must fulfill University Core Curriculum requirements. If courses are taken to satisfy both degree requirements and Core Curriculum requirements, then students may need to take additional courses in order to meet the minimum number of semester credit hours required for this degree. For a complete listing of courses that satisfy the Core Curriculum requirements see pages 3–5 of this catalog.

1. 18 semester credit hours of core Public Administration coursework:
   
   PAD  1113    Public Administration in American Society
   PAD  2153    Methodological Tools in Public Administration
   PAD  3013    Introduction to Public Policy
   PAD  3023    Introduction to Urban Management and Policy
   PAD  3033    Introduction to Nonprofit Agencies
   PAD  4853    Contemporary Issues in Public Administration (Senior Seminar)



2. 21 semester credit hours of prescribed courses, at least 9 of which must be Public Administration (Section I) coursework:
   
   Section I:
   NPO  3003       Fundraising in Nonprofit Agencies
   NPO  4933       Internship in Nonprofit Management (prior approval required)
   PAD  3043       Public and Nonprofit Financial Management
   PAD  3053       Urban Economic Development
   PAD  3113       Managing Public and Nonprofit Organizations
   PAD  3123       Strategic Planning in the Public and Nonprofit Sectors
   PAD  3133       Politics and Policies of San Antonio and South Texas
   PAD  3143       Urban and Regional Planning
   PAD  4911,3    Independent Study
   PAD  4933       Internship in Public Administration (prior approval required)
   PAD  4953       Special Topics in Nonprofit Organizations
   PAD  4963       Special Topics in Urban Management and Policy
   PAD  4993       Honors Thesis
   
   Section II:
   COM  3893    Organizational Communication
   CRJ   1113    The American Criminal Justice System
   CRJ   3213    Managing Criminal Justice Organizations
   CRJ   3623    Substantive Criminal Law
   ECO  2003    Economic Principles and Issues
   ECO  3273    Introduction to Public Sector Economics
   FIN   3003    Survey of Finance
   GRG  3314    Introduction to Geographic Information Systems
   HIS   3153    Development of American Urban Society
   IS     3003    Principles of Information Systems for Management
   MS    4333    Project Management
   
   In addition to the above list, Section II also includes any course listed in the UTSA Minor in Business Administration, or the Minor in Political Science.



3. 15 semester hours of upper-division support work, chosen in consultation with an academic advisor



4. 24 semester hours of free electives (some may need to be upper division in order to meet the 39 hour University requirement)

Course Sequence Guide for Bachelor of Public Administration Degree

This course sequence guide is designed to assist students in completing their UTSA undergraduate Public Administration degree requirements. This is merely a guide and students must satisfy other requirements of this catalog and meet with advisors in the Downtown Undergraduate Advising Center for individualized degree plans. Progress within this guide depends upon such factors as course availability, individual student academic preparation, student time management, work obligations, and individual financial considerations. Students may choose to take courses during Summer terms to reduce course loads during long semesters.

Bachelor of Public Administration – Recommended Four-Year Academic Plan

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