Public Policy

About the Public Policy Area of Concentration

Students declare Public Policy as a special AOC and work with a faculty mentor to design a plan of study that matches their specific interests and goals. The AOC is an interdisciplinary program designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to address the major public policy issues facing society. The goal is to allow students to examine policy problems within a non-partisan, objective framework, and to formulate effective policy solutions to such problems. Policy issues are inherently multi-faceted, and, as a result, require an array of analytical tools to understand. Economic factors and the political process are fundamental to policy issues, and thus the disciplines of political science and economics constitute the core of the Public Policy AOC.

Beyond the courses and tutorials students plan with their mentors, many of our students complete internships or work in organizations to gain the experience needed not only to understand but also to participate in the policy process. Each student’s program of study culminates in a senior project under close guidance of a faculty member. Our program is particularly useful to students who wish to go into government service, law, nonprofit advocacy, the private sector in a policy-heavy field, journalism, and graduate school.