The PGDip in Public Administration course is aimed at both those who want to pursue a career in the public sector and those who want to further their career in the public sector. The course focuses on critical issues and key developments relating to public management (eg leadership, strategy, performance management and human resource management).
The course is designed to blend both practitioner and academic perspectives on public management, and the wide range of modules draws on examples from different countries around the world.
There are internships opportunities for those studying on the course.
Students must take 120 credits of modules including the following core modules:
- Public Management and Governance (30 credits)
- Leadership, Strategy and Performance in the Public Sector (20 credits)
- Research Methods and the Dissertation (20 credits)
- Managing People (10 credits)
- Policy Analysis: Concepts and Theories (10 credits)
- Public Sector Financial Management (10 credits)
Elective modules
Students must take 20 credits of elective modules from the following list:
- Comparing Policy in Societies (10 credits)
- Economics and Policy Analysis (10 credits)
- Globalisation, Europeanisation and Public Policy (10 credits)
- Information Age Management in Government (10 credits)
- Public Administration in Developing and Transitional Economies (10 credits)
- Welfare Policy (10 credits)
The Postgraduate Diploma in Public Administration can be taken on a full-time basis over 9 months or part-time over 18 months.
Teaching on this programme is cutting edge, research-informed, multidisciplinary, and internationally-focused. Modules are normally taught by a mix of lectures, group work, and class discussion. Most modules are taught weekly over one semester; a few modules are taught over three consecutive days.
Nearly all modules are timetabled to take place on one or two days in the week. Part-time students need to come into the University for about 30 days per academic year.
Taught modules are normally assessed by a 3,000 to 5,000 word essay (or equivalent).
We also offer a Masters in Public Administration, which requires you to complete a dissertation.
As a student on the Postgraduate Diploma in Public Administration, it would be possible for you to upgrade to the Masters in Public Administration if you perform satisfactorily in the first semester if full-time or in the first academic year if part-time.
You may also be interested in the MA in Public Policy or Postgraduate Diploma in Public Policy.