PROGRAM GUIDES: BACHELOR OF SCIENCE - classroom or online format | ASSOCIATE IN SCIENCE - classroom or online format | ONLINE CERTIFICATE | MINORS | COURSE DESCRIPTIONS | SCHEDULE OF COURSES | TRANSFER STUDENTS
Public administration student Greg Porter balances college with work and family. Learn more.
Point Park's Online Programs
Student Profiles
Assistant EMS Chief Todd Plunkett is pursuing his bachelor's degree in public administration.
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Meet Peter Frenchak, public administration student and flight paramedic.
Earn your degree in the classroom or completely online
Do you aspire to be manager of a government agency, director of a non-profit organization or district chief of an EMS department? Our public administration program prepares you for a career managing government, non-profit and public service organizations as well as businesses in the health care, environment and energy industries just to name a few.
Whether you enroll as a full-time, part-time or transfer student, the degrees and certificates offered in the public administration program at Point Park are offered in flexible formats geared for working adults with busy schedules.
Consider these programs as a way to expand your education and pave the way for a promotion.
Degrees, Certificates and Minors Offered
The public administration program offers a variety of degrees, certificates and minors, many of which have online learning options.
Degrees
The following degrees are available in a face-to-face classroom format or 100 percent online.
- Bachelor of Science
- Bachelor of Science accelerated capstone - (Builds on an associate's degree or 60 approved credits)
- Associate in Science - (60 credit, two-year degree)
Certificates
- Certificate in EMS administration (18 credits)
- Certificate in fire service administration (18 credits)
- Online certificate in public administration - (18 credit program, 100 percent online)
Minors
- Minor in EMS administration (18 credits)
- Minor in fire service administration (18 credits)
- Minor in public administration - (18 credits, also available 100 percent online)
Have you already earned college credits? Learn about transferring your credits to Point Park.
Concentrations available:
- Public administration (available in a face-to-face classroom format or 100 percent online)
- Fire service administration (accelerated, online and in-class format)
- Emergency medical services administration (accelerated, online and in-class format)
Tuition Discounts
Point Park tuition discounts are available for the following employees.
National Fire Academy
Students who successfully complete courses in the Fire Service Administration concentration listed above are eligible to receive course completion certificates from the National Fire Academy.
Point Park's public administration program is the first institution in Pennsylvania — and one of only 13 colleges and universities nationwide — to be recognized by the U.S. Fire Administration for its concentrations in fire service administration and emergency medical services administration. Learn more.
Course Offerings
Some of the courses in the public administration program include:
- Public Budget and Finance
- Policy and Decision Analysis
- Theories of Public Organizations
- Principles of Management
- Managing Non-Profit Organizations
- Disaster and Emergency Management
- EMS Community Risk Reduction
- Planning and Change in Public Organizations
- Special Employee Relations
- Advanced Seminar in Applied Public Management
For a comprehensive list of program requirements and course descriptions, see the links to the program guides at the top of the page and the School of Business course descriptions.
Career Opportunities
With a degree in public administration, you will have the option to pursue various career opportunities, such as:
- City Manager
- Director of Public Works
- Department Head, County Government
- Deputy Mayor
- State or Federal Agency Director
- Disaster and Emergency Services Manager
- Community Affairs Manager
- Non-Profit Administrator
- Grant Writer
- Public Policy Analyst
- Health Care Administrator
The job outlook for public administration continues to be bullish, making it one of the best career choices available today:
|
Sector |
Job Outlook-Projected Increase through 2018 |
More Information |
|
State and Local Government |
+ 8.4 % |
|
|
Federal Government |
+ 9.5 % |
|
|
Advocacy, grant making, and civic organizations |
+14.1 % |
Alumni
Graduates of Point Park's public administration program have gone on to work in:- Local Government: City of Pittsburgh, Dormont Borough, Moon Township, Municipality of Monroeville, Municipality of Mt. Lebanon, Sewickley Township, South Park Township, Town of McCandless, Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority and City of Winchester, Va.
- County and State Government: Allegheny County, Butler County, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission, Westmoreland County
- Federal Government: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Federal Reserve Board, Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Treasury
- Non-Profit Organizations: Highmark, Point Park University, University of Pittsburgh MedicalCenter and iCarnegie Global Learning
Program Director
The director of the public administration program is Robert Skertich, Ph.D.