Public administration is the implementation of government policy and also an academic

discipline that studies this implementation and prepares civil servants for working in the
public service.[1] As a "field of inquiry with a diverse scope" its "fundamental goal... is to
advance management and policies so that government can function." [2] Some of the various
definitions which have been offered for the term are: "the management of public programs";
[3]

the "translation of politics into the reality that citizens see every day";[4]and "the study of

government decision making, the analysis of the policies themselves, the various inputs that
have produced them, and the inputs necessary to produce alternative policies." [5]
Public administration is "centrally concerned with the organization of government policies
and programmes as well as the behavior of officials (usually non-elected) formally
responsible for their conduct" [6] Many unelected public servants can be considered to be
public administrators, including heads of city, county, regional, state and federal
departments

such

as

municipal

budget

directors,human

resources (H.R.)

administrators, city managers, census managers, state mental health directors, and cabinet
secretaries.[4]Public administrators are public servants working in public departments and
agencies, at all levels of government.
In the US, civil servants and academics such as Woodrow Wilson promoted American civil
service reform in the 1880s, moving public administration into academia.[7] However, "until
the mid-20th century and the dissemination of the German sociologist Max Weber's theory
of bureaucracy" there was not "much interest in a theory of public administration." [8] The field
is multidisciplinary in character; one of the various proposals for public administration's subfields sets out six pillars, including human resources, organizational theory, policy
analysis and statistics, budgeting, and ethics.[9]

A unique, two-year masters programme designed for students willing to challenge

themselves and take their studies to the next level: this is the Research Masters
(MSc) in Political Science and Public Administration. The programme offers you
unsurpassed and thorough academic training that will provide useful no matter
what your future career intentions are. A strong focus on skill development and the
ability to conduct independent research is at the core of this research masters.

The programme distinguishes between four types of courses: substantive courses,

methodological courses, advanced research seminars and finally thesis preparation
in the Thesis Laboratory.

The programme features a selection of two specialisations: Political Science or

Public Administration. While each course or seminar within the specialisations deals
with a specific topic or field of research, the programme grants you considerable
freedom to pursue your own specific interests. Regardless of the choice of
specialisation, you will attend several courses on the philosophy of science and
courses on both qualitative and quantitative methods of research. In addition, there
are specific courses aimed to enhance skills such as presentation and reporting.
The end product of the programme is a thesis meeting the criteria for publication in
a scholarly journal, as well as a proposal for further research that conforms to the
standard criteria of funding agencies.

Two Specialisations
Students can choose from two specialisations (tracks: Political Science or Public
Administration). Please indicate your track of choice on the application form.