Masters in Public Administration

About MPA

Admission Requirements & Process

In order to be considered for admission to the MPA program at Cal Poly Pomona, students should meet the following criteria:

  1. Graduated with a bachelor’s degree in any subject with a Grade Point Average of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (or equivalent)

    - it is strongly recommended that students have had coursework at the undergraduate level in American Government and Statistics;

  2. Submit two letters of recommendations, preferably at least one person attesting to your academic abilities and one person familiar with your work responsibilities and accomplishments. However, if you choose to submit two academic or two work-related letters, that is acceptable.

  3. Submit a “Statement of Purpose” that describes how you came to be interested in pursuing a Master of Public Administration degree and what you hope to do with the degree in the future. This helps us evaluate whether or not we are the program best suited for your interests and needs. (It can be the same one you used in Cal State Apply (see below).).

  4. Submit a resume or c.v. describing your work history. This helps us determine whether or not you will need to complete an internship as part of your individualized program of study.

  5. INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS : A TOEFL score of at least 580 (or a comparable score on the web-based version of the test) may be required if your undergraduate degree is from a non-English language-based university. An IELTS score of 6.5 may be substituted for a passing TOEFL score. Please see additional information at https://www.cpp.edu/international

Application Process

Step 1 : AT CAL STATE APPLY

Students who wish to apply for admission to the Cal Poly Pomona must do so through the California State University system’s online application tool, Cal State Apply at https://www2.calstate.edu/Apply At that site you will be asked to submit basic demographic and contact information. In addition, you will be asked to submit the following supplemental documents:

  1. An unofficial or official copy of your transcript
  2. A copy of your Statement of Purpose
  3. At least two letters of recommendation from prior academic instructors or from persons directly knowledgeable of your professional work experience.
  4. A copy of your resume or c.v.

STEP 2 : AT CAL POLY POMONA – GRADUATE ADMISSIONS OFFICE

Your completed Cal State Apply application form will then be sent electronically to the Cal Poly Pomona Graduate Admissions Office. They may contact you about arranging to submit additional materials such as an official transcript. They will contact you through your Bronco Direct account.

Should you have any questions or concerns about the admissions process, please email your inquiries to mpa-info@cpp.edu