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Degree Requirements
  • Master in Public Policy
  • Master in Public Administration/International Development
  • Master in Public Administration
  • Mid-Career Master in Public Administration
  • PhD in Public Policy
  • PhD in Political Economy and Government
  • PhD in Social Policy
  • PhD in Health Policy

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Home > Degree Programs > Registrar > Academic Procedures and Requirements > Degree Requirements > Master in Public Administration/International Development

Image of students in Town Hall on HKS campus.

Master in Public Administration/International Development

Core Curriculum Required Courses (First Year)

Fall Semester
API-109 Advanced Microeconomic Analysis I (1 credit)
API-120 Advanced Macroeconomics for the Open Economy I (1 credit)
API-209 Advanced Quantitative Methods I: Statistics (1 credit)
PED-101 Economic Development: Theory, Policy, and Evidence (1 credit)

Year-Long (Fall and Spring Semesters)
PED-401Y Applications & Cases in International Development I (year-long 1 credit)

Spring Semester
API-110 Advanced Microeconomic Analysis II (1 credit)
API-119 Advanced Macroeconomics for the Open Economy II (1 credit)
API-210 Advanced Quantitative Methods II: Econometrics (1 credit)
DPI-401 Institutions and Development (1 credit)
PED-102M Economic Development: Using Analytical Frameworks to Design Policy (.5 credit)

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International Development Summer Internship

MPA/ID students complete a development-related internship, usually in a developing country. To learn more, click on MPA/ID Summer Internships.

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Core Curriculum Required Courses and Electives (Second Year):

MLD-102 Getting Things Done: Management in a Development Context 
PED-250Y Second Year Policy Analysis Seminar
PED-402 Case Workshop in International Development II

A course in Democratic Governance (selection varies from year to year):

DPI-312 Sparking Social Change 
DPI-403 Democratic Governance
DPI-413 Challenges of Democratization
DPI-460 Latin American Politics and Policy Making 
DPI-703 Understanding Democracy through History 
IGA-207 Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
PED-308 Social Institutions and Economic Development 
PED-312 The Political Economy of Transition in China
PED-313 The Politics of Development Policy

Six electives

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Grade requirement

B- or better in all required courses, including the Second-Year Policy Analysis (SYPA).

B average or better for 19 HKS credits, including the required courses, the second-year paper (SYPA), plus electives sufficient for a total of 19 credits.

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Requirements for Joint/Concurrent MPA/ID Students:

Joint Harvard Business School MBA Students

  • First Year: Follow the MPA/ID core curriculum required courses and the joint degree seminar
  • Second Year: Follow the MBA core curriculum required courses, plus the joint degree seminar
  • Third Year: Students will take elective and required courses at both HKS and HBS, including a required integrative Business-Government course.


Joint Harvard Law School JD Students

HKS/HLS students complete 13 credits at HKS. HKS/HLS students complete one full year at HKS and finish their remaining HKS credits during their last two years at HLS.

Concurrent Harvard Medical School MD Students
Concurrent HMS students spend one year as a full-time HKS student and the remaining years of their program at HMS, cross-registering to complete their HKS requirements. Concurrent students are required to be in full-time residence at HKS for three semesters.

Concurrent Harvard Divinity School Students
HKS/HDS program students, however, spend one year at each school and split the third year. Concurrent students are required to be in full-time residence at HKS for three semesters.

Other Concurrent Business School Students

Students enrolled in a concurrent program with an approved business school will be required to complete three semesters at HKS and three semesters at their business school. Concurrent students are required to be in full-time residence at HKS for three semesters.

Please note requirements for MIT's Sloan School of Management.

Other Concurrent Law School Students
Students enrolled in a concurrent program with an approved law school will be required to complete three semesters at HKS and two and a half years at their law school. The duration of the program is four years. Concurrent students are required to be in full-time residence at HKS for three semesters.

Other Concurrent Medical School Students

Students enrolled in a concurrent program with an approved medical school will be required to complete three semesters at HKS.

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  • Core Curriculum Required Courses (First Year)
  • International Development Summer Internship
  • Core Curriculum Required Courses and Electives (Second Year):
  • Grade requirement
  • Requirements for Joint/Concurrent MPA/ID Students:

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