The University of Massachusetts Amherst
  • Ready to be a changemaker?

    A Master of Public Affairs (MPA) is in your reach.

    Available as a 4+1 MPA for outstanding undergraduates from UMass Amherst and the 5 Colleges.

  • Professional Training

    Transform your potential into engaged policymaking, effective public management and creative social enterprise.

  • Dedicated to Equity

    SPP is recognized nationally for integrating social equity into our academic and practical work.

Welcome to the UMass Amherst School of Public Policy

Make Positive Social Change. Become a Leader in Public Service.

Learn to solve problems for the common good and become a leader in the nonprofit, public, or private sector in programs that balance policy and management analysis, professional skills development and practical experience.

For undergraduates, we offer a new bachelor's degree in public policy, launched in the fall of 2022. Undergraduates can also earn a certificate in public policy.

For graduate students, take advantage of one of several degree options:

Graduate students can enroll on a full- or part-time basis. The GRE is not required to apply. We strive to make our graduate programs financially accessible to all students.

The UMass Amherst School of Public Policy received the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration’s inaugural Social Equity Award.

Request information about our graduate degree programs.

News

Ethan Zuckerman headshot

Zuckerman publishes new article in The Conversation on community moderation as a means of online governance

Ethan Zuckerman, Associate Professor of Public Policy, Communication and Information, along with co-author Chand Rajendra-Nicolucci, recently published a new article in The Conversation titled "Let the community work it out: Throwback to early internet days could fix social media’s crisis of legitimacy." The piece provides a brief history of governance in online spaces, discussing the early days of community moderation to the later corporate drive for centralization in search for efficiency and power.

Michael Ash at lectern

Michael Ash & PERI release updated "Greenhouse 100 Suppliers Index"

Researchers including Michael Ash, professor of public policy and economics, at the UMass Amherst Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) recently released the second annual edition of their Greenhouse 100 Suppliers Index.

Professor Libby Sharrow headshot

Professor Sharrow interviewed on New Books podcast

The New Books Network podcast interviewed Professor Sharrow and their collaborator, Jamie Druckman,
about their new book, Equality Unfulfilled: How Title IX's Policy Design Undermines Change to College
Sports (Cambridge University Press, 2023).

photo of Shoub

Co-authored research by Professor Shoub featured by the Council on Criminal Justice

A recent article by Dr. Shoub and co-authors has been featured by the Council on Criminal Justice as a part of the "Admissible Evidence" series, which summarizes and translates academic research of policy makers.

photo of WU

Wu wins Editors’ Prize for Best Scholarly Paper in Nonprofit Management & Leadership

Assistant Professor Viviana C. S. Wu, recently won the Editors’ Prize for Best Scholarly Paper in Nonprofit Management & Leadership (Vol. 32) for her article “Community leadership as multi‐dimensional capacities: A conceptual framework and preliminary findings for community foundations” published in volume 32, issue 1 (Fall 2021).

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UMass Amherst selected for $1 million EPA grant; Harper selected as principal investigator

The Environmental Protection Agency recently announced that UMass Amherst has been selected to receive a $1,111,418 grant to fund research to address the drivers and environmental impacts of energy transitions in underserved communities.

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McGovern and Comerford help kick off the academic year

Last Friday, September 8, 2023, SPP was joined by US Congressman Jim McGovern and Massachusetts Senator Jo Comerford to help kick off the 2023-2024 academic year.