Dr. Daniel Gitterman , Director of Graduate Studies Director of Graduate Admissions-Direct questions to Ms. Lennis Carrier The doctoral curriculum in Public Policy is designed to train scholars and analytical thinkers to solve real world problems that spill over traditional disciplinary lines. Businesses and governments continually make complex decisions, often with long-term consequences. It falls to the public policy researcher to create "knowledge" to help these decision makers choose the best alternative in the "public interest." Finding appropriate analytical approaches to solve problems in public policy areas such as education, health, children and families, environment, employment, housing and urban development, trade, and international affairs presents an intellectual challenge that the department is designed to meet. Critical world problems do not fit neatly into one framework. The Ph.D. program in the Department of Public Policy encourages advanced theoretical exploration in multiple disciplines. The Department provides training in scientific theory building, but also teaches doctoral candidates to combine those skills with normative theory and prescriptive methods for policy analysis. An intelligent policy solution depends on its adoption. Therefore, students learn the political and administrative aspects of implementation in their chosen policy specialization. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has a distinguished tradition in public policy. Our nationally and internationally recognized faculty cross department, program and school lines in pursuit of their policy interests. Many combine scholarship with valuable governmental experience. A strong nucleus in public policy education is formed at the undergraduate level (AB in Public Policy), at the master's level in policy-related graduate programs offered by the departments of City and Regional Planning, Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Public Administration, Health Policy and Administration, and in the schools of Education, Journalism and Mass Communication, Law, Business Administration, Social Work and Medicine. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill hosts visiting public policy scholars from around the world and trades students and faculty with several universities in Europe and Asia. Doctoral students in the department can enroll in classes at Duke (to which there is a regular free bus service) and at N.C. State University in Raleigh, without additional cost. Contacts Ms. Lennis Carrier |
