University of Minnesota

Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs

University of Minnesota Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs 225 HHH Center 301 19th Avenue, South Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455 Email: hhhadmit@umn.edu Program Link: http://www.hhh.umn.edu/academics/gradprograms/ms/index.html

Kenneth H. Keller, Professor E-mail: khkeller@umn.edu Jennifer Kuzma, Associate Professor (Chair, Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy area) Office: 254 Humphrey Center Phone: 612-625-6337 E-mail: kuzma007@umn.edu Elizabeth Wilson Assistant Professor of Energy and Environmental Policy and Law Office: 249 Humphrey Center Phone: 612-626-4410 E-mail: ewilson@umn.edu

Background

The Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs is a college within one of the nation's great public research universities. Students have access to a wide variety of courses and programs, including those of the Institute of Technology, the College of Biological Sciences, and the Department of Applied Economics. The Institute sponsors several related research centers and outreach programs as well as four graduate degree programs and several joint degrees. It offers multi-faceted opportunities for students to work with faculty and fellows who have international reputations as scholars, researchers, and professional practitioners. The Institute was established in 1977 as a tribute to Vice President and Senator Hubert H. Humphrey. As the direct descendant of the University's pioneering Public Administration Center (1936-68) and distinguished School of Public Affairs (1968-77), the Humphrey Institute represents almost seventy-five years of community service and academic achievement.

Graduate Degrees Offered

M.S. Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy

Students may focus on science, technology or environmental policy in each of four master's degrees. The Master of Science in Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (MS-STEP) program educates students on the role of science and technology in the economy, in food production and health, in energy and the environment, in security policy and in education. Students also study the impact of science and technology on the political and economic relationships among nations. MS-STEP students are trained in the analysis and design of policies for appropriate promotion and regulation of science and technology regionally, nationally and internationally. In addition, the Institute offers a Master of Public Policy (MPP); Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP); and a mid-career Master of Public Affairs (MPA).

Admissions Requirements

Admission to the MS-STEP, MPP, and MURP degree programs is based on each applicant's prior scholastic achievement, statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, work, volunteer or leadership experience, GRE scores, and potential contribution to the diversity of views and experiences represented at the Humphrey Institute. MS-STEP applicants are expected to have an undergraduate major or advanced coursework in one of the natural or engineering sciences. Admission to the mid-career MPA requires evidence of prior scholastic achievement, leadership ability, statement of purpose, letters of recommendation, ten or more years of professional experience, and potential contribution to the diversity of views and experiences represented at the Humphrey Institute. The GRE is not required for the mid-career MPA (unless the applicant's undergraduate work was ungraded). TOEFL scores are required for all applicants whose first language is not English.

We expect MS applicants to have:

• A four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited U.S. university or foreign equivalent;
• An undergraduate major or advanced coursework in one of the natural or engineering sciences;
• Completed a college-level calculus course (grade of B or better);
• Completed the equivalent of an introductory course in microeconomics (grade of B or better);
• Basic competence in the use of computers.

Applicants who have inadequate preparation in these prerequisites but who are otherwise qualified for admission may be considered for admission (at the discretion of the faculty admissions committee) but may be required to take the relevant courses before beginning the program or taking core courses.

If you have questions about your academic preparation for the MS program, contact the admissions office at 612-624-3800 or hhhadmit@umn.edu.

For answers to frequently asked questions, click here.

Degree Requirements

The Master of Science program requires a total of 40 credits and can be completed in two academic years of full time study. Within this total, students must complete 21 required core credits. Six additional credits can be used to complement a student's previous training, such as appropriate courses in science (or its history or philosophy for those with social science backgrounds; or courses in the social sciences for those with natural sciences backgrounds). Students may elect either a Plan A (thesis) or Plan B (non-thesis) program. For those electing to pursue a Plan A program, the master's thesis will be awarded 10 credits and students must complete a minimum of three additional credits. For those pursuing a Plan B program, 13 credits of additional electives must be chosen in consultation with an academic adviser.

Recent Plan A theses and Plan B papers

• Scientific Uncertainty and the Kyoto Protocol
• Privacy and Electronic Commerce: An Argument for Coherent Federal Privacy Legislation
• Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention in Minnesota
• Nitrogen Management: A Policy Analysis of Nonpoint Source Pollution
• The Public Health Impacts of Particulate Emissions from Coal-fired Power Plants in Minnesota
• Combining Stream Ecology Processes and Economic Stock Externality Models to Create an Adaptive Management Water Pollution Policy
• The Minnesota Energy-efficiency Contract: A Proposal for the Administration of Energy Efficiency Programs In Minnesota
• Multi-use Management on the Upper Mississippi River System: Public Preferences for Future Management Actions
• A Performance, Cost/Benefit, and Policy Analysis of Photovoltaic Technologies in Minnesota

The MPP and MURP degrees require a minimum of 45 and 48 semester credits and can be completed in two academic years of full time study. MPP students take 21 credits of core courses (including economic analysis, empirical analysis, politics and management) a nine credit concentration, a capstone workshop, working group, or independent study in which a major paper or project is completed, and an internship of 400 hours usually occurring between the first and second year of study. Students in the MURP program complete most of the just-mentioned core courses, an additional required planning curriculum of 16.5 credits, a planning-related concentration of nine credits, an internship of 400 hours, and a capstone workshop. The mid-career MPA degree can be completed in one year of full time study, though most students attend part time. The curriculum includes three required courses constituting 12 semester credits (Leadership for the Common Good, a synthesis seminar and a synthesis workshop) six credits of skill courses, nine credits in a selected focus area, and electives.

Dual Degree Opportunities

By choosing a dual-degree, you can complete a Humphrey Institute degree and another University of Minnesota graduate or professional degree in less time (typically one year or less) than it would take to complete the two degrees independently.
We offer a dual degree with the University of Minnesota School of Law.
More about dual degrees

Student Information

Entering classes approximate 87 MPP students, 37 for MURP, 8 for the MS and 58 mid-career MPA students. Small classes foster a sense of intimacy and individualism here. Yet there is access to unlimited resources of the larger, research University (approximately 50,000 students).

Faculty Information

Kenneth H. Keller, Professor

Science and technology policy; global technology development; technology in health care; energy policy; the environment.

Kenneth H. Keller is a professor of Science, Technology, and Public Policy. He also holds an appointment in the University's Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science. His research examines the intersection of science and technology with international politics and economics. His recent writings have dealt with technology and national sovereignty, the environment, the globalization of research and development, and policy issues in high technology medicine.

Keller has spent most of his career at the University of Minnesota, where he joined the faculty in 1964, became vice president for academic affairs in 1980, and University president in 1985. He was senior fellow for science and technology at the Council on Foreign Relations from 1990 to 1996. He has chaired and served on a number of public and private boards and advisory groups and is a member of the Commission on Physical Sciences, Mathematics, and Applications of the National Research Council, and the boards of RAND's Institute for Education and Training and the Science Museum of Minnesota. He chairs the Medical Technology Leadership Forum and is vice chair of the board of LASPAU: Academic and Professional Programs for the Americas. In February 2002, Keller was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional distinctions accorded an engineer.

He earned a doctorate and a master's degree in chemical engineering from Johns Hopkins University and was named a distinguished Johns Hopkins alumnus in 1996.

Jennifer Kuzma, Associate Professor (Chair, Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy area)

Biotechnology policy; biochemistry/molecular biology; regulatory policy; risk analysis; renewable energy programs; nanotechnology policy.

Prof. Kuzma is associate professor and area chair of Science, Technology and Environmental Policy at the Humphrey Institute. Prior this position, she served as study director for several U.S. National Academy of Sciences reports related to agricultural biotechnology and bioterrorism and as an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Risk Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of Agriculture where she worked on risk analysis for foodborne pathogens such as E. coli 0157:H7 and BSE. Her current research focuses on oversight policy, risk analysis and regulatory review for bio- and nanotechnology. She is co-PI on two U.S. National Science Foundation-funded grants studying oversight models and risk communication for nanotechnology. She has published widely and spoken nationally and internationally in the areas of basic science, public policy, and risk analysis. At the U of MN, she teaches courses in risk analysis, risk policy, and science and technology policy. She was awarded Humphrey Teacher of the Year in 2004. She received her Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Colorado.

Elizabeth Wilson, Assistant Professor (McKnight Land-Grant Professor)

Energy and environmental policy; regulatory and legal analysis of emerging technologies; climate change; geologic carbon sequestration; public perception of emerging technologies.

Dr. Elizabeth J. Wilson is an Assistant Professor of Energy and Environmental Policy and Law at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. She holds a doctorate in Engineering and Public Policy from Carnegie Mellon University and masters in Human Ecology from the Free University of Brussels in Belgium. Her research focuses on the development of carbon-managed energy systems. Recent work examines the regulatory and legal contexts for the deployment of carbon capture and sequestration technologies and evaluation of energy efficiency programs in consumer-owned utilities. Prior to joining the University of Minnesota she worked with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Check our web site at www.hhh.umn.edu for further information on these and other members of the Humphrey Institute's faculty.

Positions for Graduates

First jobs for the graduating class of 2007 (science & technology degree)

Financial Information

Residents of North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Manitoba may be eligible for resident tuition rates if they apply to their Higher Education Coordinating Board prior to enrollment each academic year.

The Institute allocates financial aid primarily on the basis of academic merit. Sources of aid include Hubert H. Humphrey fellowships and scholarships, University of Minnesota Graduate School fellowships, fellowships and scholarships for minority group members, and teaching and research assistantships.

Other sources of aid:

Other Information

Our urban setting is conducive to remarkably productive internships and careers with local, county, and regional governments and organizations. The Twin Cities of Minneapolis, Saint Paul and surrounding area, with a population of roughly 2.85 million, is a thriving economy strong in social, political, and business innovation and known for its high quality of life, including cultural, and recreational opportunities. Check the following web sites for more information on the Twin Cities: http://www.minneapolis.org/ and http://www.stpaulcvb.org/.