The School of Public Administration offers the Doctor of Public Administration (D.P.A.) and, through the Graduate School, the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). The D.P.A. is intended to develop a high level of conceptual and research competence in public administrators; the Ph.D. is designed to prepare individuals for university level teaching and research. The D.P.A. is administered by the School of Public Administration; the Ph.D. is administered by the Graduate School and the faculty of the School of Public Administration. Ph.D. students must consult the Graduate School section of this catalogue for regulations and requirements pertaining to its degrees. The D.P.A. is offered at all three centers (Los Angeles, Sacramento, Washington, D.C.); the Ph.D. is offered only at the University Park Campus, Los Angeles.

Students should also consult the Academic Policies and Information section of this catalogue.

Completion of the requirements for either degree is assumed to take a minimum of three years of approved graduate study and research beyond the bachelor’s degree. For the Ph.D. student, a minimum of 24 graduate units completed in residence on the University Park Campus in Los Angeles is required. For the D.P.A. student, a minimum of 20 graduate units must be completed at the University Park Campus or the Sacramento or Washington, D.C., Centers within two calendar years. Full-time study is represented by enrollment in eight units during the semester. Usually, the school and the student’s guidance committee insist on a clear and mutually understood commitment of time and energy by the student to ensure significant involvement in the doctoral learning experience. For university policies regarding continuous enrollment, leave of absence and readmission, see here.

Application and Admission

Admission to graduate standing for the Ph.D. or the D.P.A. is recommended by the school’s admissions committee acting under guidelines established by the Graduate School as outlined in the Graduate School section and the Graduate Admission section. In addition to those guidelines, D.P.A. students are expected to have a minimum of five years of substantial administrative experience. Students intending to enroll in Los Angeles should direct questions about the program and all materials for the admission application to Doctoral Programs, Office of Student Affairs, VKC 232, School of Public Administration, University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0041. D.P.A. students intending to enroll in Sacramento or Washington, D.C., should contact the appropriate center for information on the specific application procedures and deadlines.

The deadline for applications for admission to the Ph.D. and D.P.A. programs in Los Angeles is February 1. Applications to the D.P.A. program in Sacramento may be submitted throughout the year and the process of reviewing these applications is continuous. Application decisions for admission to the D.P.A. program in Washington, D.C., are made once each year for a fall semester admission. Applications for admission to the Ph.D. and D.P.A. programs in Los Angeles are also made once each year for a fall semester admission.

Doctoral program applicants may be allowed to take master’s level courses before the admission process is completed. Students may not take 600-level course work until after formal admission.

The admission decision is made using criteria which include verification that the applicant has a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, has maintained a B average in the last 60 units of undergraduate work, and has earned an acceptable score on the verbal and quantitative portions of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE). Other elements of the applicant’s educational and experiential background are also evaluated, including performance in other advanced degrees. D.P.A. applicants must also provide evidence of at least five years of practical administrative experience.

Each applicant should submit the following: (1) one copy of official transcripts of all previous college and university work (be sure that these official transcripts show an awarded degree where appropriate); (2) copies of GRE scores; (3) a 1000-word essay discussing the applicant’s background and reasons for wanting to pursue a Ph.D. degree and identifying his or her personal, educational and professional goals; (4) an up-to-date resume, including academic and professional accomplishments; (5) three or more letters of recommendation, two from previous instructors, others from instructors or from professional supervisors or colleagues (the letters should indicate the applicant’s academic and professional accomplishments and potential); (6) a completed USC Graduate Admission Application, along with the nonrefundable application fee; and (7) a completed School of Public Administration Supplemental Graduate Application. International applicants are asked to submit additional information. See the International Admissions section under Master of Public Administration in this catalogue. Applicants should carefully choose, and clearly state, the degree objective (Ph.D. or D.P.A.) for which they are applying, since different sets of admissions criteria exist for each of them.

Transfer Credits

The application of any available transfer credits toward a graduate degree at USC will be determined by the faculty of the School of Public Administration, based on the semester units available for transfer as shown in the Transfer Credit Statement. Refer to Transfer of Course Work for more information.

The procedures and conditions of transfer are the same as those for the master’s degree programs given here with the following exception: transfer credits cannot be older than 10 years at the time of petition for transfer and must reflect current knowledge in the field. However, students entering with an appropriate completed graduate degree from an accredited institution may be eligible for admission to the D.P.A. program with Advanced Standing. Consult the Doctoral Coordinator and the Graduate Admission section of this catalogue for further information.

Deferral of Enrollment

Admission to the university is granted for a specified semester, and it is expected that students will begin their programs during that semester. The school will normally allow students to defer their enrollment up to one year from the admission semester. Students who wish to defer enrollment should notify the school in writing no more than 30 days after the beginning of the semester of admission. Students who do not inform the school in a timely manner of their intent to defer enrollment may be required to reapply for admission.

Please note that more stringent regulations apply to international students. See the Admission section of this catalogue.

Admission to Candidacy

Acceptance to graduate standing does not in itself imply that the student is admitted or will be admitted to candidacy for an advanced degree. Application for admission as a candidate for an advanced degree is a separate and subsequent step. See the Graduate School section of this catalogue.

Admission of International Students

All international applicants for admission to doctoral programs should submit materials to Doctoral Programs, Recruitment and Admissions Office, VKC 232, School of Public Administration, University of Southern California, University Park, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0041. See the Admission section of this catalogue.

Screening Procedure

Ph.D. students are required to pass a screening procedure after completing the four core courses (PUAD 675, 685, 691 and 695). D.P.A. students are required to pass a screening procedure after eight units of course work chosen from among PUAD 600, 601, 685, 695 and 697. The procedure is designed to ensure that only those students who have demonstrated intellectual and scholarly potential continue in the program.

There are differences between the screening process for Ph.D. and D.P.A. students. For Ph.D. students, if their GPA in the four core courses is less than a B average (3.0), they will automatically be screened out of the program. If the GPA is above a B+ (3.3), and they have successfully completed their first-year research apprenticeship, they will automatically be screened into the program. If the GPA is in between a B and a B+ average, they will be screened out unless three of the instructors of the four core seminars and the research supervisor vote to screen them into the program. Screening for D.P.A. students may include, as appropriate, a review of faculty evaluations of all work completed within the School of Public Administration and samples of written work such as research papers. An oral examination may be included in the procedure. Refer to the School of Public Administration Doctoral Handbook for specific requirements.

Guidance Committee

A guidance committee assists the student in outlining an academic program leading toward the degree. This committee bears responsibility for counseling the doctoral student, for approving a course schedule and preliminary and qualifying examinations, and for recommending the student for admission to candidacy. After approval of the student’s program and proposed time schedule, the program is submitted in writing to the doctoral coordinator. This should be accomplished by the beginning of the second year, following successful screening.

The guidance committee is to be established by the beginning of the second year and prior to starting course work in the area of concentration. The chair should have recognized expertise in the qualifying area and should be a regular participant in the qualifying examination committee for that area. The majority of the members of the guidance committee (typically at least three out of five) should be experts in the area in which the student is qualifying and should be regular participants in the qualifying examination committee. The remaining members should have a clear interest in this area.

Students will formalize their relationship with their committees through the development of a contract which specifies all courses completed, date of screening decision, the area of concentration, and which courses will be taken and when, in order to prepare for the area section of the qualifying examination. This contract will be signed by the student, the members of the guidance committee and the faculty doctoral advisor. It will be filed in the doctoral office.