Don’t Panic About Paying for Your MPA

As the need for high-quality public servants is on the rise in business, public and nonprofit sectors, the Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree has become a desirable asset. With the degree earner’s combination of skills like public management, critical thinking, complex analysis, financial planning and human resources management, graduates of Master of Public Administration Courses are choosing a path that can take them to the highest levels of societal change. But, like all academic programs, that ambition comes with a pretty hefty price tag. Full-time MPA programs can set the graduate back up to $80,000, sometimes even as much as $100,000—and that’s before factoring in living expenses and books. With the revolution in internet learning, it’s now possible to seek an online masters in public administration—and it’s a lot cheaper, all things considered. Estimates put the average cost of online MPA programs around $19,000, with the most expensive (DeVry University) at $33,000 and the lowest price, for in-state students, at around $4,500 at the University of North Carolina-Pembroke (the out-of-state tuition is much, much higher at $22,000). Unlike most MBA graduates, for example, who can (realistically or not) look forward to earning back what they’ve shelled out on graduate school, MPA students most likely don’t have six-figure incomes in their future—it’s a public service-based degree, after all, not one intended for significant money-making. This leaves a lot of prospective degree seekers wondering: How am I going to pay for my MPA? Question Yourself The first and most important step in this process is to actually assess the worth of the degree on an individual basis. Take into account all of the costs: tuition, books, transportation, cost of living (including rent, utilities, groceries, etc.) and other bills, including cell phone, car payments and even credit cards. Once you have figured out what the total venture will cost you, objectively decide if you can afford it. The good news is that MPA degrees actually have a decent return on the necessary investment, with median salaries for local and state managers and directors running between $44,000 and $95,000 per year. Also, you may feel as though you’re missing out on the classroom culture, but opting for an online program over full-time can save thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars. Check for in-state schools, too, which tend to offer lower tuition to residents. Photo courtesy of vipdesignusa from 123rf.com Apply Yourself Use the considerable online resources at hand and apply to every scholarship and grant for which you’re qualified. Check out FinAid.org (which also features information on loan forgiveness programs for public servants – that’s going to be you!) and FastWeb.com for tons of scholarships and grants. Since you will most likely take out loans to pay for the bulk of tuition, it’s important to be knowledgeable on what kind you’re getting, how soon after graduation payments will kick in and how much your interest will be. Some full-time graduate schools also offer fellowship opportunities, where students can receive full tuition remission (and even health care and a living stipend) in return for work as a research assistant. These positions are obviously highly sought after, as they defray the costs of graduate school while giving the student applicable experience in their field.