The Major

Requirements

Public Policy majors must complete 42 credits for the major, have a 2.0 GPA within the major, and complete all General Education requirements. Classes for the Public Policy major must be taken for a letter grade, unless the course is mandatory Pass/Fail.

Public policy coursework had the prefix SPP through spring 2026. Now it is PUBPOL.

Required Introductory Courses

One 100-level Gateway Course

This must be completed by the end of the second semester in the major.

Options:

PUBPOL181: Controversies in Public Policy
PUBPOL111: Policy in an Age of Precarity
PUBPOL105: Introduction to Political Economy
PUBPOL122: Creating a Sustainable Future
PUBPOL151: Water, Oil, and Blood: The Middle East in Global Policy
Another PUBPOL 100-level course

Three 200-level courses

It’s recommended that these be completed by the end of the fourth semester in the major.

Required:

PUBPOL203: Economics for Public Policy (ECON103 or RESECON102 may substitute)
PUBPOL204: Statistical Models for Public Policy (STATISTC240, RES-ECON212, PSYCH240, ANTHRO281, PUBHLTH223, OIM240 may substitute)
PUBPOL280: Public Policy (POLISCI280 may substitute)

Upper-level Requirements

Students must also complete:

PUBPOL301: Junior Writing Seminar: Communicating Public Policy (3 credits)
PUBPOL302: Public Policy Practicum: Contemplating Your Career (1 credit)
PUBPOL494DI: Capstone for Public Policy Majors* (4 credits) OR
PUBPOL496D Independent Study Capstone OR
PUBPOL 499C and D: Honors Capstone honors thesis sequence (7 credits) OR
PUBPOL499T, or PUBPOL499P independent honors thesis (Public Policy thesis advisor).**

The student must consult the Public Policy Undergraduate Program Director for pre-approval for the following capstone options.

Students with double majors may substitute their second major’s capstone for SPP 494DI, if it significantly focuses on public policy.
To earn departmental honors, students who enroll in thesis courses in other departments must have a Public Policy faculty advisor on their committee and significant public policy thesis focus.

Electives

In addition to the required courses, students will select at least 6 elective courses to explore different interests, acquire additional skills and proficiencies, and develop a policy focus.

At least 4 elective courses must be at the 300-level or above. Three or more credits accumulated from any combination of 296, 396, 496, 298*, 398* will be counted as a single PUBPOL elective course. However, no more than one required PUBPOL elective may be completed in this way. (Courses taken P/F may be counted, but only if P/F status is mandatory.)

Electives must either be (1) taken with an PUBPOL or SPP course prefix or (2) pre-approved to be taken through a domestic or international study program. Electives include:

PUBPOL208 Defending Democracy in a Digital World
PUBPOL228 Weighing the Evidence: Reasoning Under Uncertainty for Policy and Law
PUBPOL230 The Politician and the Journalist
PUBPOL285 Policy and Social Inequality
PUBPOL309 Natural Resource Policy & Administration
PUBPOL310 Environmental and Resource Economics
PUBPOL312 Making a Difference: Policies and Strategies for Social Change
PUBPOL320 Introduction to Public Administration
PUBPOL341 Social Welfare
PUBPOL352 U.S. Latin American Relations
PUBPOL364 Gender and Race in U.S. Social Policy
PUBPOL376 Catalyzing Change: Creating & Running a Nonprofit
PUBPOL354 Comparative Social Policy
PUBPOL395 Managing for the Public Good
PUBPOL394LI Leadership for Social Impact
PUBPOL394PI Politics & Policy in the American Police State
PUBPOL394SI Sports, Policy, & Politics
PUBPOL398P Public Policy Internship
PUBPOL398R Undergraduate Research Experience Practicum
PUBPOL525 Governing the Commons
PUBPOL540 Internet Governance and Information Policy
PUBPOL585 Introduction to GIS
PUBPOL590IM Advanced Statistics with Impact Mindset
PUBPOL590STF Human Rights and Public Administration
PUBPOL590STK Local to Global Sustainability

Courses Taken Outside the Department of Public Policy

Students who plan to take classes via study abroad or domestic exchange may count up to 2 courses to fulfill Public Policy major requirements (with pre-approval).

Students with transfer courses, study abroad courses, non-PUBPOL or non-SPP prefix courses at UMass Amherst, and/or course credit through exams (including AP and IB) must take, at a minimum, 27 graded credits of combined required and elective courses with an PUBPOL or SPP prefix. At least 3 PUBPOL or SPP elective courses (9 credits minimum) must be 300-level or higher.

Courses that are cross-listed with PUBPOL count towards the major. Cross-listed courses are single courses taught simultaneously by the same professor and listed by two departments. For example, POLISCI 280 Public Policy counts toward the Public Policy major requirements because it is cross-listed with PUBPOL 280 Public Policy. In contrast, STATISTC240 Introduction to Statistics is offered only by the Math Department. While it can fulfill the PUBPOL 204 Statistical Models for Public Policy requirement, the course credit would not count toward the 27 credits with the PUBPOL or SPP prefix.

Students with Public Policy as a Second Major and/or in the iCons Program

Students who complete Public Policy as their secondary major and fulfill their Junior Year Writing seminar in their primary major must take a substitute 300-level or higher SPP elective of three credits. Students can enroll in SPP301: Junior Writing Seminar: Communicating Public Policy if their primary major permits. If students take the SPP Junior Year Writing course, it counts toward the 27 SPP credit requirement.

Students in the iCons Program may request that the iCons 2 Junior Year Writing course substitute for SPP301: Junior Writing Seminar. However, they must substitute another SPP course to fulfill the 27 credits for the Public Policy major, as outlined in the requirement above.

Honors Program

The Public Policy major welcomes all Commonwealth Honors College students. For detailed information on the diploma and transcript recognitions, and for criteria required to graduate with Latin honors, see the “University Graduate Requirements” section of the Guide. Enrollment preference in Honors courses is given to Commonwealth College and Public Policy students. Contact the Undergraduate Program Director for more information at publicpolicyba@umass.edu.

Departmental Honors in Public Policy

Commonwealth Honors Public Policy majors have the option to earn Departmental Honors (DH). All DH students are members of Commonwealth Honors College (CHC). Public Policy Departmental Honors (DH) is an Advanced Scholarship track of Commonwealth Honors College (CHC). Students may complete only the DH or as part of the full CHC curriculum, which includes Honors General Studies. Successful completion of the DH course requirements includes minimum grades of B (or as specified below), capstone thesis requirements specified above, and the submission of a properly formatted Honors Thesis or Portfolio manuscript (minimum grade of B for Seminar manuscripts). The "Departmental Honors" will be included on the student's academic transcript.

For information about the full CHC Curriculum, see Curriculum Requirements online.

Admissions Requirements: Minimally, to be eligible to apply for Departmental Honors (DH), students must have:

An overall GPA of 3.40 or higher earned after one or more full-time semester/s of UMass Amherst coursework;
The ability to complete the DH sub-plan requirements;
The ability to complete the Commonwealth Honors College (CHC) minimum residency requirement, i.e., 45-graded (not pass/fail) credits earned at UMass Amherst (not transferred).

Public Policy Departmental Honors Program Requirements:

1 PUBPOL honors course at any level.
1 PUBPOL honors course 300-level or higher.
Honors Thesis or Project. Options include:

Individually contracted: PUBPOL 499Y Honors Research and PUBPOL 499T Honors Thesis or PUBPOL 499P Honors Project (6 credits)
Seminars: PUBPOL 499C Policy Research and PUBPOL 499D Tackling Today's Big Problems Through Policy: Honors Capstone Lab (7 credits)

Additional information:

Non-honors PUBPOL courses with a one-credit honors section are accepted as DH electives;
Graduate-level School of Public Policy courses fulfill honors course requirements;
Up to four credits of one PUBPOL independent study honors (ISH) may be applied to the DH requirements.

Education Abroad and Exchanges

Numerous opportunities are available for study at other institutions. Students can take Smith, Amherst, Holyoke, and Hampshire College classes as part of the Five College Consortium. Our Domestic Exchange program allows individuals to choose from over 170 institutions in the U.S. and continue UMass degree programs while on exchange. There are many study abroad programs around the world from which students can choose to enrich their undergraduate experience.

The Public Policy major will accept up to 2 courses (up to 8 credits) toward major requirements from students participating in study abroad and domestic exchange programs. Students must provide a syllabus for Undergraduate Program Director review prior to approval for PUBPOL credit. Accepted courses must have a substantial public policy and/or public/nonprofit/social enterprise management content.

Internships

The School of Public Policy encourages students to experience internships to gain professional experience and make valuable connections while pursuing their interests. The Director of Undergraduate Advising circulates internship opportunities and assists students in identifying positions. School of Public Policy students intern in local, state, and federal government offices, nonprofit organizations, policy research think tanks, and policy-focused businesses. Internships allow students to expand on what they have learned in the classroom, develop new skills for their future careers, and begin building a professional network.

Undergraduate Research

The School of Public Policy offers three opportunities for our majors to engage in research. Students may pursue their interests through independent study courses under the structured guidance of a faculty member. They may also engage directly in faculty research through the Undergraduate Research Engagement Program (UREP). Each semester, students have the opportunity to apply to work on faculty research projects for PUBPOL 398R UREP course credit. Faculty research projects vary in the research tasks and learning environments. Students may learn how to create, code, and analyze data or hone writing skills by participating in drafting manuscripts for publication or writing grant applications submitted to governments and foundations. Students gain a particularly valuable UREP experience by working on a professional team that may include a team of UREPs guided by a faculty member or an expansive team of faculty, post-doctoral fellows, and graduate research assistants. The research students produce may be presented at undergraduate research conferences, incorporated into professional conference presentations, and presented at other public venues.

The third opportunity for research occurs in the senior year. All Public Policy majors engage in original research on a topic of their choice through the required Capstone Lab course (see options in Upper-Level Requirements above). The students tackle an actual policy or management problem facing a community or mission-driven enterprise (i.e., public agency, nonprofit, cooperative, social enterprise, etc.). In teams or individually, students research the problem, gather evidence, and analyze text and/or numeric data to develop an evidence-based solution. All students present their capstone projects to their peers, faculty, and invited guests.

Master's Programs

At the graduate level, we offer a one-year Master’s in Public Policy, including a 4+1 option open to outstanding Five College students; a two-year Master’s in Public Policy and Administration; and dual degrees in Business Administration, Higher Education, Public Health, and Regional Planning. The School of Public Policy integrates social justice into its degree programs to facilitate a deeper understanding of public policy's role in the lives of each member of society and to prepare graduates for careers at the forefront of social change.