Statement of purpose
The MPA Program's purpose is to prepare graduates for careers, leadership positions, and ethical service in public, non-profit, and business organizations. It seeks to demonstrate to Kazakhstan and the Central Asian region the value of high-quality, research-informed teaching of public administration, policy, and management.
The Master in Public Administration (MPA) program started in 1994 shortly after the inception of KIMEP. Since then, over 300 MPAs have graduated, contributing skills, knowledge and abilities to public, non-profit service at the national as well as the international level. We are currently working to internationalize the student body to bring people together to share ideas from across the world, and particularly China and South Asia, as well as former Soviet republics.
The program:
Promotes excellence in public, non-governmental, and private management and policy-making through the building and strengthening of the analytical and leadership capacity of graduate students;
Provides graduate students with the generic and specialized management and policy knowledge and skills needed for successful careers in the public, non-governmental, and private sectors; and
Educates graduate students for ethical service to their society and the broader regional and international community.
The Master of Public Administration degree requires 48 credits of coursework for students new to the field or a minimum of 36 credits for students with significant experience in public management and/or KIMEP graduates. The program includes 42 credits of required component courses, 6 credits of concentration and electives courses.
The courses taught for MPA students are conducted in a number of ways: as advanced lecture courses, as seminars in which faculty and students present critical studies of selected problems within the subject field, as independent study or reading courses, or as research projects conducted under faculty supervision. It is important to note that all graduate courses are offered during evening time to ensure that our students keep their full-time jobs at KIMEP or outside of KIMEP.
Graduate studies imply developing scientific curiosity and acquiring special skills to be able to do the research.
Nurturing a research culture among MPA students is one of our very first priorities. Under the guidance of a faculty member, all MPA students are expected to write a thesis (9 credits). A thesis should make a genuine contribution to the understanding and analysis of public policy issues, management and administration in Kazakhstan.
Learning objectives
In order to equip students who graduate from the MPA program with the essential knowledge and skills required by professionals seeking managerial and executive positions in the public, non-profit and private sectors, the program’s learning objectives are to ensure that graduates have:
1. a satisfactory knowledge of the nature of the public sector and its relationship to government, civil society, and the marketplace, and how it can be institutionally arranged;
2. a satisfactory knowledge of economic perspectives on government and public policy, governmental budgeting, and public financial management;
3. a satisfactory knowledge of ethics as they apply to the public sector;
4. a satisfactory knowledge of public organizations and their management and leadership, and the impact of organizational structure, culture, and leadership on organizational change and performance;
5. a satisfactory knowledge of project appraisal and management, and the necessary cognitive, self-management, and interpersonal skills;
6. a satisfactory knowledge of the concepts and theories of public policy and analysis;
7. a satisfactory capacity to undertake supervised independent research, involving the synthesis and application of theoretical constructs to topics in the fields of public administration, policy, and management 8. a satisfactory capacity to communicate ideas and information clearly and effectively in written and oral
English;
9. a satisfactory capacity to use information technology for the retrieval, analysis and presentation of information; and
10. a satisfactory capacity to work effectively with others in the pursuit of common objectives.
Admission Requirements
To be considered for admission to the Master of Public Administration Program a candidate must meet the requirements for graduate study at KIMEP. These requirements include a Bachelor degree or equivalent and proficiency in English (an acceptable score on the KIMEP English Entrance Test (KEET) or other equivalent test).
Candidates are selected by an admission committee after an interview with the candidate.
To apply for admission a candidate should submit:
5. A completed application form;
6. A certified copy of all academic degrees and transcripts, or Spravka from the granting university certifying that an applicant is a graduating/final-year student, and a copy of transcripts verified at the university;
7. A minimum score of 40 on KEET test and, if available, TOEFL/IELTS scores;
8. Two letters of reference;
9. A current resume;
10. A Statement of Purpose (2-3 pages).
Each eligible applicant will be interviewed in-person or by telephone, if necessary.
Foundation English Course
Students may be required to complete one or two non-credit Foundation English courses, depending on his/her KEET score, before beginning graduate-level courses (see below):
courses according to the following matrix. A TOEFL score of 570 or an IELTS score band 5 or above is equivalent to a KEET score of 60.
KEET score Name of English course
60 or higher None
50-59 ENG5005 Foundation English 5
45-49 ENG5004 Foundation English 4
Degree Requirements
Requirements for the MPA are as follows:
Program Requirements 42
Major Electives 6
Total Required for Graduation 48 Program Requirements
The following 14 courses are required for a total of 42 credits.
Course
Code Course Title
CSS 5000 Critical Thinking and Writing 3 PAD5114 Essentials of Public Administration
and Management* 3
PAD5117 Public Policy Analysis* 3 PAD5123 Economic Perspectives on
Government 3
PAD5214 Fiscal Governance* 3
PAD5113 Research Methods and Statistics* 3 PAD5216 Public Management and Leadership 3 PAD5122 Administrative and Management
Ethics 3
PAD5218 Project Evaluation and Management
in Public Sector 3
PAD5131 Thesis I 3 PAD5231.1
Thesis II : Thesis Proposal (For details, please see the CSS Guidelines for Master’s Thesis.)
3
PAD5231.2
Thesis III : Thesis Defense (For details, please see the CSS PAD5260 Selected Issues in Public
Administration and Management 3
Major requirements
Students must complete two of the following elective courses, unless granted a credit waiver or transfer:
PAD5213 Local Government 3 PAD5219 Public Sector Reform 3
PAD5222 Social Policy 3
PAD5223 Public Sector Economics 3 Fast Track
The Department of Public Administration is committed to allowing students flexible options in choosing their programs and courses. Thus, the Department will allow the waiver of up to 12 credits from undergraduate coursework from the BSS program to the MPA Program. It will also allow the transfer of up to 12 credits from such relevant coursework taken outside KIMEP from recognized institutions to the MPA Program. This should allow most BSS students to complete an MPA degree from KIMEP within one calendar year. KIMEP students from other undergraduate programs who have taken the appropriate BSS courses can also be eligible for waiver of credit and finish the MPA Program sooner. However, previous coursework submitted for application for a transfer or waiver of credit will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis to determine MPA graduation requirements. Credits can be transferred or waived not only for elective courses but also for required courses. Out of a total of 48 credits, required courses occupy 42 credits. Every course submitted for a transfer or waiver of credit must have an overall grade point average of at least B- (2.67 on the KIMEP grade point average scale).
Program Plan
The following table is a sample program of study to finish the MPA degree in two years. Students who need to complete English and/or prerequisite courses would need another one or two semesters to complete the program.
An indicative study program for full-time ordinary students without any course waivers or transfers would be:
Ist Year Fall Semester I Ist Year Spring Semester II CSS5000 2nd year Fall Semester III 2nd year Spring Semester IV
PAD5231.1
An indicative study program for full-time fast-track students, with maximum MPA course waivers, wishing to complete the program of study in the minimum time would be:
Fall Semester Spring Semester
The Master’s Program in International Relations (MIR) was launched in 2002. The MIR is a three semesters, 36 credits program. It is designed to build up a new cadre of scholars/officials capable of taking on leadership roles in the challenging arena of world affairs, including positions within the diplomatic corps, multinational corporations, education and non-governmental organizations.
Mission
The aim of the Master’s Degree in International Relations is to train experts and young professionals capable of taking on challenging jobs and playing leadership roles in the international arena. Unique in Central Asia, the MIR program is comparable in standards and quality to masters’ programs in Western Universities, such as Glasgow University, which offers its students in the Russian, Central and Eastern European Studies program an opportunity to earn a dual degree program by studying alongside MIR students at KIMEP.
The overarching goals of the MIR program are:
to promote excellence in the study of international relations and regional studies
to train professionals capable of taking on challenging jobs and playing leadership roles in the international arena;; and
to provide a solid foundation for scholars who want to pursue doctoral study and research in international relations.
Objectives of the MIR
The objectives of MIR program are:
to provide students with graduate-level knowledge and analytical skills needed for employment in public, no-profit, and private organizations with an international orientation as well as government agencies and higher education institution; and
to educate graduate students for ethical service to their society and the broader regional and international community.
to prepare graduates for doctoral studies in areas relevant to international relations
Learning Objectives of the MIR
The MIR program’s learning objectives are to ensure that graduates have:
A satisfactory knowledge of:
the major paradigms of international relations;
the nature of the international system and its relationship to individuals, socio-economic and cultural groups, states, international organizations, international law, global civil society, and private multinational corporations;
the economic perspectives on global, international and regional governance;
ethics as they apply to international affairs;
international organizations and their management and leadership, and the impact of development paradigms on political, social and cultural changes;
Central Asian security issues, geopolitics, economics and integration in the international and global system
And the necessary cognitive, inter-personal and self-management skills to: