The School of Public Affairs and the University of
Colorado at Boulder School of Law jointly sponsor a dual degree program
leading to the simultaneous granting of the master of public
administration (MPA) and juris doctor (JD) degrees. The program may be
of particular interest to students who wish to practice law within the
public sector, obtain a senior administrative post, represent
public-sector clients, represent private-sector clients in transactions
with government agencies and institutions and/or develop scholarly
expertise in the relationship between law and public administration.
Interested persons must separately apply to and be admitted by both SPA
and the School of Law. Upon admission, students may begin full-time
study at either SPA or the School of Law; however, law study must be
initiated no later than the beginning of the second year of enrollment
in the program, and the first year of law study must be taken in its
entirety and exclusive of non law course work. Through the choice of
electives, students may develop a limited substantive specialization
within the study of law and public administration. The dual degree
program is structured to allow for 12 credits from the law school to be
accepted as electives in the 36-credit MPA program, and 12 credits from
SPA to be accepted into the law school's 89-credit JD program. Students
are thus simultaneously awarded both degrees with a cumulative total of
101 credits; the program therefore allows students to complete all dual
degree requirements in approximately four years of full-time study.
Students without prior public-sector work experience will be required to
complete an internship in an appropriate governmental institution or
closely related nonprofit organization. The dual degree program allows
students to receive both degrees more quickly than they could by
pursuing each separately.