Fairfax University of America
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- 4401 Village Drive Fairfax, VA 22030-0000
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- Programs offered: 9
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Online Master's in Public Administration: 2026 Programs
The Master of Public Administration is the professional degree of the public service field, and it occupies roughly the position the MBA occupies in business: a general management credential, built for people who will run programs and organizations rather than study them. It is the degree most commonly held by city and county managers, agency division directors, and senior nonprofit administrators, and it is the level at which the field’s programmatic accreditor, NASPAA, actually operates.
MPA programs admit students from every undergraduate background. Cohorts typically mix pre-service students coming directly from a bachelor’s degree with in-service students who already work in government or nonprofits and are credentialing for advancement. That mix shapes the classroom, and it is worth asking about, because a program built around in-service students assumes experience you may not have – and one built around pre-service students may spend time on material you already live with.
Quick answers
What is an online MPA?
An online Master of Public Administration is a graduate professional degree in the management of public and nonprofit organizations, delivered through online coursework. The core covers public budgeting and financial management, the policy process, administrative law, organizational and human resource management in the public sector, research methods and program evaluation, and public service ethics.
How many credits is an MPA, and how long does it take?
Commonly around 36 to 48 semester hours depending on the program, which typically means about two years full-time and longer part-time. Programs built for working professionals often run three years or more at a reduced course load. Programs that require an internship for students without public-sector experience may add a term.
What is NASPAA accreditation and how do I verify it?
NASPAA – the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration – accredits master’s programs in public administration and public policy through its Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation. Review is against public service competencies and program mission, not a fixed course list. Verify accreditation on NASPAA’s own roster rather than a school’s marketing page, and note that institutional membership in NASPAA is not the same as program accreditation.
MPA or MPP – which should I choose?
Choose the MPA if you want to manage: budgets, staff, operations, and program implementation. Choose the MPP if you want to analyze: evaluating policy alternatives, modeling costs and effects, and advising decision-makers, with substantially heavier quantitative and economics coursework. If you are unsure, read both required cores side by side at the same school; the difference between them is more informative than any general description.
What are common MPA concentrations?
Local government management, nonprofit management, public finance and budgeting, health administration, criminal justice administration, emergency management, environmental policy, and human resource management are all common. Concentration availability online varies more than core availability does, so confirm before applying.
What do admissions requirements usually include?
A completed bachelor’s degree in any field, transcripts, a resume, and a statement of purpose are standard. Letters of recommendation are common. Many online MPA programs are test-optional and do not require the GRE. Programs oriented toward in-service students often weigh professional experience heavily in admissions.
At a Glance
- Degree type: Master of Public Administration; some schools award an MPA with a named concentration
- Typical duration: About 2 years full-time, longer part-time
- Credits: Commonly around 36-48 semester hours
- Prerequisites: A bachelor’s degree in any field; no specific undergraduate major required
- Accreditation: NASPAA is the programmatic accreditor for master’s programs; verify institutional accreditation as well
Schools to compare
How We Rank Schools
Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:
- Graduation rate 30%
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
- Average net price (lower is better) 20%
- Retention rate 15%
- Fully online availability 10%
Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
Typical topics in an MPA program
| Course Topic | What You Learn |
|---|---|
| Public Budgeting & Financial Management | Appropriation authority, fund accounting, capital versus operating budgets, revenue forecasting, and budget defense |
| The Policy Process & Implementation | How policy is made, and the far harder question of how it gets executed on the ground |
| Administrative Law | Rulemaking and adjudication procedure, due process, transparency and records obligations, and judicial review of agency action |
| Public Organization Theory & Behavior | How public bureaucracies behave, and why management techniques imported from the private sector often do not transfer |
| Public Human Resource Management | Merit systems, classification and compensation, collective bargaining, and discipline procedure |
| Research Methods & Program Evaluation | Research design, performance measurement, cost analysis, and producing evaluations decision-makers can use |
| Intergovernmental Relations & Federalism | Grant mechanisms, mandates, and the division of authority across levels of government |
| Ethics & Public Service Values | Conflicts of interest, accountability, administrative discretion, and equity in service delivery |
| Capstone or Applied Project | An end-to-end applied project for a real agency or organization, often with a client |
What NASPAA accreditation actually reviews
NASPAA-accredited programs are evaluated against a set of universal required competencies rather than a prescribed syllabus: the ability to lead and manage in public governance; to participate in and contribute to the public policy process; to analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems, and make decisions; to articulate and apply a public service perspective; and to communicate and interact productively with a diverse and changing workforce and citizenry.
That competency-based structure is why two accredited programs can look quite different on paper. It also gives you a useful comparison tool: ask a program how it demonstrates each competency, and the answer tells you more about the curriculum than the course catalog does.
Skills and outcomes to compare
Outcomes vary by program, but you can compare:
- Depth of the quantitative and evaluation sequence, which varies more across MPA programs than any other component
- Whether the capstone works with a real client organization or is a research paper
- Whether an internship is required for pre-service students, and how placements work at a distance
- Concentration range, and whether concentration electives are reliably offered online
- The pre-service versus in-service composition of the cohort
- Whether faculty are practitioners, academics, or a deliberate mix
- Career services and alumni networks in government, which tend to be regional – an MPA’s network is often strongest in the state where the school sits
For pacing and delivery comparisons, see: How Online Public Administration Degrees Work
How to compare online MPA programs
- Verify NASPAA accreditation on NASPAA’s roster, and verify recognized institutional accreditation through the U.S. Department of Education database.
- Read the required core and check that budgeting, administrative law, and evaluation are all present rather than optional.
- Decide between an MPA and an MPP by comparing required cores at the same institution.
- Confirm your concentration is delivered online, with a course rotation you can actually complete.
- Ask whether the capstone has a client organization, and who arranges it for online students.
- Ask about the internship requirement and the waiver policy for students with public-sector experience.
- Check whether any in-person residency is required, which affects both time and travel cost.
NASPAA accreditation is a program-level review and is worth verifying directly, but it is not a legal requirement to work in government – agencies hire graduates of non-accredited programs routinely. Treat it as a quality signal alongside the curriculum itself, not as a filter that eliminates every unaccredited program from consideration. Where it can matter more is competitive fellowship and management-trainee programs, some of which look for it.
Careers an MPA supports
The MPA is a general management credential, which means it opens a range rather than a single track. General and operations manager roles, which had a median annual wage of $105,770 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), cover much of the agency and department management the degree is built for. Management analyst roles, at a median annual wage of $101,860 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), cover the budget, evaluation, and operations analysis work that both agencies and their consulting vendors staff. Social and community service manager roles, at a median annual wage of $80,390 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), are common destinations for graduates working in human services agencies and nonprofits.
Urban and regional planner roles, at a median annual wage of $89,320 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS), typically require a master’s degree, which makes them a graduate-level destination specifically – usually reached through an MPA with a planning or urban policy concentration, or through a dedicated urban planning master’s. Individual outcomes vary by employer, level of government, geography, and experience.
Admissions requirements
Requirements vary by school, but nearly all MPA programs require a completed bachelor’s degree in any field. Common elements include transcripts, a resume, a statement of purpose, and letters of recommendation. Many online programs are test-optional.
The statement of purpose carries more weight here than in many fields, because programs are trying to assess public service motivation and fit as well as academic readiness. Applicants already working in government or nonprofits should make that experience explicit – it affects admission, and at some schools it affects whether an internship requirement applies to you.
MPA vs a bachelor’s pathway
A bachelor’s in public administration is an entry point into analyst, coordinator, and specialist roles and supplies the foundation for public-sector work. The MPA is the credential the field associates with management: it is the common expectation for city and county management, department leadership, and senior analyst positions in larger jurisdictions. Many people do these in sequence with several working years between, which is why so many MPA programs are structured for part-time, in-service students.
Compare degree options:
- Online Bachelor’s in Public Administration
- Accelerated Public Administration Programs
- Affordable Online Public Administration Degrees
- Public Administration Programs by State
For a value and fit discussion, see: Is an Online Public Administration Degree Worth It. For adjacent fields, see the Business Administration Program Guide and the Nonprofit Management Program Guide.
Data verified: August 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.