Why are 8 of the top 10 MPA programs at public universities?
I believe the root of this answer is historically path dependent. Public universities were among the first to develop public affairs programs as the schools themselves were originally founded with more “practical” educational goals in mind (training students to become experts in various non-academic professions) than the classical education at the Ivy League schools through to end of World War Two. Furthermore, due to the high degree of specialization within the field of public affairs, particular departments at public universities have been able to develop niche expertise within a subfield of the discipline. FIT Fit is the most important criterion for selecting a graduate school – and for an admissions committee when selecting candidates. The pool of rejected applicants at the top MPA/MPP programs does not include only those with weak test scores, low undergraduate GPAs and/or poorly written essays. It also includes otherwise excellent candidates whose interests simply do not fit that
