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Dual Degree Curriculum

The dual degree program is completed in five semesters of full-time study and a total of 67 credits.To earn the dual degree, students are required to complete a minimum of five semesters in residence at Columbia University.The M.A. and M.P.A. are awarded upon completion of all the requirements for both degrees.

Requirements for the M.A., offered through the Program in Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences (housed in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences)

The QMSS curriculum consists of two Residence Units and a minimum of 30 points of credit, as follows: four core courses; five electives, two of which must focus on statistics or research methods; and a Master’s thesis.

The four core courses (worth 12 credits total) are:

G4010 (Theory and Methodology in the Social Sciences: 4 points)

G4015 (Data Analysis for the Social Sciences: 4 points),

G4021 and G4022 (QMSS Research Seminar I and II: 2 points per semester, 4 points total)

Elective courses (15 points of credit total) must be at or above the 4000 level.

The Master’s thesis (for which the student enrolls in QMSS G5999) is worth four points of credit.

Requirements for the M.P.A., offered through the School of International and Public Affairs

The MPA program is taught using the case method, combined with the “hands-on” applied approach influenced by the disciplines of the social sciences.Students must complete 54 credits of coursework to earn the MPA degree, including a set of core courses (20 points) and a summer internship (3 points),usually taken in the summer between the second and third years.For the MPA in the dual degree program, the School of International and Public Affairs accepts 18 credit hours of courses that are taken through the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences’ QMSS program.

Dual degree students satisfy the quantitative methods requirement for the MPA through coursework for the QMSS degree.

In addition, unlike students enrolled in only the MPA program, dual-degree students do not complete a 15-point concentration for the MPA.

Advising

Although students are enrolled full-time at one school or the other in any given semester, they should contact advisors at both schools at least once per semester to ensure that their study and enrollment plans are in accordance with program guidelines.

Semester-by-semester Schedules of Courses

Students are expected to enroll in one school, either GSAS or SIPA, at a time.Below are two chronological lists of specific requirements, depending on the order in which the student enrolls in the two schools.

For Students enrolling first at QMSS:

First Year, Fall Semester (12 points)

• QMSS G4010: Theory and Methodology of the Social Sciences (4 points)
• QMSS G4021: QMSS Research Seminar (2 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course I (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Research Methods/Statistics Course I (3 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to GSAS

First Year, Spring Semester (15 points)

• QMSS G4015: Data Analysis for the Social Sciences (4 points)
• QMSS G4022: QMSS Research Seminar (2 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course II (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course III (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Research Methods/Statistics Course II (3 points)
• QMSS G5999: Master’s Thesis (4 points) (may be completed during summer following the first year)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to GSAS

Second Year, Fall Semester (13 points)

• PUAF U6110: Political Environment of Public Affairs (3 points)
• PUAF U8200: Public Management and Institutional Analysis (3 points)
• PUAF U8213: Economic and Policy Analysis I (3 points)
• Professional Development in Public Affairs (1 point)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)

Student completes QMSS thesis in addition to coursework.

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

Second Year, Spring Semester (13 points)

• PUAF U6111: Political Environment of Public Affairs (1 point)
• PUAF U8216: Economic and Policy Analysis II (3 points)
• A course in Financial Analysis: Budgeting, Accounting, or Economics of Finance (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

Summer between Second and Third Years

• Public Affairs Internship (three points of credit toward PUAF U4240 below)

Third Year, Fall Semester (12 points)

• PUAF U4240
• PUAF U9000: Public Affairs Workshop (3 points)

• PUAF Elective (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

For Students enrolling first at SIPA:

First Year, Fall Semester (13 points)

• PUAF U6110: Political Environment of Public Affairs (3 points)
• PUAF U8200: Public Management and Institutional Analysis (3 points)
• PUAF U8213: Economic and Policy Analysis I (3 points)
• Professional Development in Public Affairs (1 point)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

First Year, Spring Semester (13 points)

• PUAF U6111: Political Environment of Public Affairs (1 point)
• PUAF U8216: Economic and Policy Analysis II (3 points)
• Financial Analysis Course: Budgeting, Accounting, or Economics of Finance (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)
• PUAF U4240 (see below)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

Summer between First and Second Years

• Public Affairs Internship (three points of credit toward PUAF U4240 above)

Second Year, Fall Semester (13 points)

• PUAF U9000: Public Affairs Workshop (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)
• PUAF Elective (3 points)
• QMSS G4010: Theory and Methodology of the Social Sciences (4 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to SIPA

Second Year, Spring Semester (15 points)

• QMSS G4015: Data Analysis for the Social Sciences (4 points)
• QMSS G4022: QMSS Research Seminar (2 points)

• QMSS Elective – Research Methods/Statistics Course I (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course I (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course II (3 points)

Tuition for 1 Residence Unit and fees paid to GSAS

Summer between Second and Third Years

Initiate QMSS Master’s Thesis

Third Year, Fall Semester (12 points)

• QMSS G5999: Master’s Thesis (4 points)
• QMSS G4022: QMSS Research Seminar (2 points)
• QMSS Elective – Social Science Course III (3 points)
• QMSS Elective – Research Methods/Statistics Course II (3 points)

Tuition for 1 residence unit and fees paid to GSAS

Tuition and Financial Aid

Dual-degree students enroll full-time in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) during their first two semesters of study and at SIPA during the final three semesters or vice versa, and pay tuition according to the school in which they are currently enrolled.In addition, the school where the student is enrolled during a given semester administers the student’s financial aid and/or fellowship support in that semester.

Fellowships and financial aid are not transferable between schools. In order to receive any financial aid offered by each school during their course of study, students are advised to maintain full-time enrollment and take courses at only one school until they have completed all the requirements offered through that school before taking courses through the second school.