Master of Public Policy - program for future politicians
One of the most frequently asked questions at the post office is whether there are foreign universities that train specialists in political professions. Yes, there are such universities, but not everything is so simple with them. Let's look at the example of the United States, which programs will help you gain knowledge on election campaigns and the management of political projects. These are mainly master's programs that can last 1-2 years. These are usually postgraduate programs and you must have a bachelor's degree to enter them. There are several types of degrees for such programs - MA (Master of Arts), MS (Master of Science) and various varieties like MPP (Master of Public Policy) and MPA (Master of Public Affairs), Government. There are others, such as double degree or accelerated study programs. In addition to degrees, there are also certificates. The Russian equivalent is a diploma of advanced training. They are all about different things. In short, MS is about classical political science. Working with scientific sources, defending theses and working in laboratories. Public Affairs is the intersection of business and government. Government - about the work of the state, often with an emphasis on national security and international relations. There is also Global Affairs, which is an analogue of our Faculty of International Relations.
The closest degrees to political science are MPP and MA. The first is about working in the public sector, often with economics, mathematical analysis and learning the R programming language for working with big data. The second degree varies from university to university and its content can vary greatly. Everything will depend on the basic courses and electives that will help you build a learning path. Thus, the MA Communication may include more subjects in campaign management than the MPP of most universities. But bad luck, the second program will be considered more prestigious. The respectability of the program and the university are not always linked. American University is ranked 72nd in the university rankings, but its MPP program is in the top 5 in the United States at 4th place in the Public Management and Leadership category. Of course, everything depends on the rating aggregator and the assessment of universities by third-party portals, but in general, the connection between the level of a university and its program is not always direct.
An important factor in studying, in addition to the obvious scholarships and the level of the university, will be the place of study. Obviously, programs located in Washington County will give you more than Texas just because of their location. This is the center of world politics, where the most important decisions for humanity are made. There are a huge number of political and non-profit organizations here. The second factor I would highlight is student clubs. These are university-registered student organizations that are run by students, not the university. Among them there may be associations of Russian-speaking students, as well as brotherhoods, sisterhoods and political organizations. Each of them is an opportunity to meet interesting people and make important contacts. There are not many applied programs for political consultants even in the United States, but MPP has long been a program for future politicians who want to learn how to lead people and understand political processes. The big disadvantage of such programs is the presence of non-applicable subjects like gender and sex, race and inequality, critical theory. To put it mildly, these items can be called very left-wing.
Author: Pavel Dubravsky
