Overview
SPEA's Master of Public Affairs Is Its Flagship Program
The Master of Public Affairs (MPA) at Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs is a two-year program that offers an applied focus that teaches students to address society's complex economic, political, legal, and social issues that encompass public service.
U.S. News and World Report has ranked the school's MPA program number two in the nation and identified the program's concentrations in environmental policy and natural resource management and nonprofit management as the best in the country. The ranking also listed SPEA's public financial management and public management concentrations in the top three. SPEA's newest specialization offers training in sustainable development which focuses on balancing the protection of the natural and social environment with human needs in both the present and indefinite future.
In the program, each student completes coursework in a concentration area, which provides more in-depth training in a particular area of public affairs. The coursework culminates in a project-oriented course that integrates knowledge gained throughout the program and applies it to issues related to the student's concentration.
Areas of concentration include comparative and international affairs, economic development, environmental policy and natural resource management, information systems, local government management, nonprofit management, policy analysis, public financial administration, public management, and sustainable development.
Leaders in Their Own Areas of Expertise, IU Faculty Transform Students into Future Leaders
The talented faculty of SPEA is comprised of lawyers, ecologists, political scientists, chemists, economists, scholars of philanthropy, and information systems experts who work alongside each other and in collaboration with their students in classrooms, laboratories, and research centers. Through their teaching, mentoring, and concern, the faculty transforms students into leaders who are fearless about solving the significant problems that beset communities at home and abroad
Joint Degree Programs Demonstrate Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching, Learning, and Problem Solving
SPEA's joint degree program, which allow students to combine a Master of Public Affairs (MPA) or Master of Science in Environmental Science (MSES) with a second professional degree or area of study, builds bridges between disciplines, broadens students' skills, and creates opportunities for dialogue within the university community and the world.
SPEA has strong relationships and joint degree programs with schools and programs across the Indiana University campus, most notably the Schools of Law, Journalism, Library and Information Science, Biology, and Geology, as well as IU's area studies, which include African-American studies and African Diaspora, African studies, East Asian languages and cultures, Russian and East European studies, and West European studies.
uccess of Alumni Substantiates Claims of Excellence by SPEA
Regardless of the environmental degree or combination of degrees earned, SPEA graduates have been well prepared to meet the challenges of studying the complex environmental problems facing us today and developing solutions and policies to address these problems. SPEA alumni are actively engaged in environmental problem solving and policymaking across the United States and around the world in all sectors of society including government at the international, national, state, and local levels; industry and utilities; and nonprofit organizations.
Indiana University's Bloomington Location Has Low Cost of Living, High Quality of Life, and a Vibrant Atmosphere
Residents describe Bloomington, Indiana, with words like "progressive," "cultural," "lively," "diverse," "beautiful," and "family-friendly." In brief, Bloomington is a town with a big-city atmosphere. National polls consistently rate Bloomington in the top ten U.S. cities for quality of life. Bloomington is also an affordable place to live, with a cost of living significantly lower than many cities with research universities.
A quick glance at a Bloomington events calendar reveals that there is something happening every day and night of the week. Whether it's a rock concert at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, the Bloomington Playwrights Project's latest play, a folk concert in Bryan Park, an art exhibit at the John Waldron Arts Center, a ballet or opera at the Musical Arts Center, a Saturday morning at the City Market, or a free lecture at the IU Auditorium by such luminaries as the Dalai Lama of Tibet or Bill Gates, Bloomington truly has something for everyone.
An international community in the heart of the Midwest, Bloomington is home to world music and cuisine. A wide array of international restaurants -- Afghan, Chinese, French, Greek, Indian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Tibetan, and Thai, just to name a few -- are all within easy walking distance of the university.
