J.D./M.S. in Public Services Management

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The Joint degree with the College of Law affords the opportunity to complete both the Juris Doctorate (J.D.) and Master of Science (M.S.) in Public Service Management in three full years of study. Program options in MPS, which have proven to be appropriate to the practice of law, include Health Care Administration, Public Administration, Public Policy, and Metropolitan Planning and Urban Affairs.

American Bar Association Standards
In Standard 302-2, the American Bar Association states “Credit for a J.D. degree shall be given for course work taken after the student has matriculated in a law school.” That language has consistently been interpreted to bar any credit taken prior to matriculation in a degree-granting law school program from any source, either another type of college or a pre-admission program. For a joint degree, credit taken in Public Services prior to the time the student matriculates in law school cannot count toward the J.D. portion of the joint degree. Credits taken in the JD/MPS program can be applied to the J.D after a law matriculation. Credit taken prior to admission and enrollment in College of Law cannot count toward the Juris Doctor, although it may apply to the Public Services portion of the degree.

Standard Admission to JD/MPS
Students must apply separately both to the College of Law and to the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Master of Science in Public Service Administration, and they must meet the same admissions standards as other applicants. The standard policy and practice is for a student to be accepted by and matriculate in the College of Law before the student is matriculated in Public Services. Public Services can accept the student but should not matriculate or enroll the student until the student completes the requisite number of credits (31) in the College of Law with a minimum 3.00 law GPA.

Applicants should enroll in College of Law first to demonstrate competence for the joint degree. Full-time students must complete the first-year with a minimum GPA of 3.0 and 31 semester hours. Part-time students must complete the first three semesters with a minimum 3.00 GPA and 31 earned semester hours. They must be accepted independently by Public Services. They then can apply to the joint coordinating committee of the College of Law and the Masters of Science in Public Services Administration for acceptance to the joint degree program. Tuition is charged by the quarter hour of MPS classes and by the semester hour for law classes.

Degree Requirements
The MPS degree requires a total of 52 quarter hours. The JD requires a total of 86 semester hours. The College of Liberal Arts & Sciences will accept a maximum of 16 quarter hours (11 semester hours) from the College of Law toward the MPS portion of the joint degree, which reduces the credit requirement to 36 quarter hours. The College of Law will accept a maximum of 15 semester hours (22 quarter hours) from MPS to apply toward the JD portion of the joint degree, which reduces the credit requirement to 71 semester hours (24 classes after the first year of 10 required classes). The double-counting of credits occurs only when the student completes all requirements in both colleges. The degrees must be posted simultaneously by the Academic Resource Center. For a December graduation, the student must finish all MPS requirements by the end of the fall quarter, and all law requirements by the end of the fall semester. For a May/June graduation, the student must finish all MPS requirements by the end of the winter quarter in March and the JD requirements at the end of the spring semester (May). Since virtually all JD students sit for the Bar exam immediately after they graduate and since they must be certified for admission to the bar in January and June, they cannot complete the MPS portion of the degree at a different time from the JD degree because they will not complete their joint degree requirements in time to sit for the Bar exam.
 

Sample Curriculum

The sample is based on the assumption that the student is enrolled in the College of Law on a full-time basis. A part-time law student may earn the joint JD/MPS degree, but it will take longer to complete.

FIRST YEAR
The student must complete the first year in the College of Law. All first-year courses are required.

Fall Semester Semester Credit Hours
Civil Procedure 4
Constitutional Process I 3
Contracts I 3
Torts 4
Legal Writing I 2
16 Total Credit Hours

Spring Semester Semester Credit Hours
Constitutional Process II 3
Contracts II 3
Criminal Law 3
Property 4
Legal Writing II 3
15 Total Credit Hours

SECOND YEAR
The student enrolls in 21 semester hours (7 courses) in the College of Law over the entire academic year (fall and spring) including Criminal Procedure, which is required in the fall for second year law students. In this second year, students complete 20 quarter hours (5 courses) in the Public Services program. Beginning coursework in Public Services would include in all cases PUBLIC SERVICES 500 Introduction to Public Service Management, MPS 503 Public Service Organizations in the Three Sectors, and one of the three Finance courses (MPS 514, 515, or 541) In the summer after the second year, the student should take 4 credits (1 course) in the Public Services program.

THIRD YEAR
The student enrolls in 21 semester hours (7 courses) in the College of Law over the entire academic year (fall and spring) including courses in Legal Profession and a Senior Seminar and 12 quarter hours (3 courses) in the MPS program concentration.

GRADING STANDARDS
Students must independently meet the grading standards of both schools to remain in good standing. Grades are recorded on student transcripts under the college system in which courses are taken, although the joint degree will be recorded after graduation. If a student is dismissed or withdraws from one college, the appropriate officer or committee at the other college may permit the student to continue studies in the other college. The student must satisfy the normal degree requirements of the other college, and no double counting of credit would be permitted.

 

 
 

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