MPA/JD Program

A combined degree program with Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law enables students to acquire both a JD and a MPA degree with a reduction in the total credit hours. The program allows students to complete requirements for the two degrees in four (4) years instead of five (5) years, if pursued separately. The program is intended for students who want to obtain mastery of the administrative and legal aspects of public administration in the public, private, and non-profit sectors; combining advanced public administration education with legal training in order to enhance or expand their career option.

The MPA/JD Dual Degree Program is open to holders of baccalaureate degrees from accredited colleges or universities. Applicants to the program must meet the entrance requirements and follow application procedures administered by the Texas Southern University Graduate School, the Barbara Jordan – Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs and the Thurgood Marshall School of Law.

Admission Procedures

• Dual Degree Program participants will have to satisfy the same admission requirements as applicants for the stand- alone Master of Public Administration (MPA) and Juris Doctor (JD) programs.
• Admission to the Dual Degree Program shall be open to  all MPA and law students who are academically eligible under  the TSU Graduate School, MPA Program and Thurgood Marshall School of Law Rules.
• MPA students wishing to enroll in the Dual Degree Program must petition the MPA Program Director. Such petition shall state why the student wishes to enroll in the program and include a proposed plan for completing all course work and other requirements within four (4) years. Students who have not submitted this petition will not be considered Dual Degree candidates.
• Although students may apply for either the MPA or JD program at  any time during their  course of study,  students must be admitted to both programs before completing either program.
• Continuation in the Dual Degree Program shall  be  dependent upon  the  student’s satisfactory academic  progress in each of the dual fields. Incomplete work or other evidence of unsatisfactory academic progress may lead to a decision by the MPA Program Director to reduce the student’s workload directed towards the law degree. Continued unsatisfactory progress may result in dismissal from the Dual Degree Program.

A student must also:

• Maintain at least 2.0 cumulative GPA in the JD portion of the program.
• Successfully complete the writing requirements of the JD portion of the program.
• Register for all required law school courses on a full-time basis and in the sequence established by the Law School faculty. (Concurrent enrollment in the courses of either school is permitted only after the completion of the first year JD curriculum.)
• Complete all the requirements for the MPA and JD portions of the dual program within four (4) years of the initial enrollment in the program.
• Comply with the academic regulations of each school, including those related to the minimum GPA and scholastic discipline. (The computation of the cumulative GPA in each program (JD and MPA) is based on all the courses that would be taken into consideration to award each degree).