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

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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.

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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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Misra elected President of ASA

Joya Misra, Provost Professor of Sociology and Public Policy, was recently elected the 115th President of the American Sociological Association.

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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.

Hannah Karcinell

Karcinell publishes op-ed on white supremacy and gun violence in Miami Herald

Hannah Karcinell, MPP '23, recently authored an op-ed published in the Miami Herald discussing the recent killing of three Black people and how institutions failed to stop a gunman.