Prospective Students

This handbook is intended to provide prospective students in the PhD Program in Public Policy and Administration in Boise State’s School of Public Service with a detailed set of program policies, procedures, and timelines.  Our hope is that this handbook will help you to be successful in the program.

It answers the most frequently asked questions for students during the various stages of the program from application through graduation and provides basic guidelines for you to use to track your progress through the program. We encourage you to read this handbook carefully and refer to it as you plan and make choices.  Students should frequently meet with their advisors early in the program for planning purposes, and then with their Supervisory Chair once they begin preparing for comprehensive exams and the dissertation proposal.

The policies and proposals in this handbook frequently refer to these important resources:

1. the Boise State University Graduate Catalog and Graduate College website
2. the PhD Program Website

Forms and information are frequently updated, so students should always refer to these online resources for the most up-to-date information.  Additional resources and procedures such as student services and policies on plagiarism can also be found online.

The PhD Program in Public Policy and Administration (PPA) is housed within the School of Public Service at Boise State University.  The program is designed to prepare students for senior level positions in public, non-profit, civic, and international organizations. Occasionally students also seek positions in academic or researching settings. The degree provides a sound foundation in current administrative practice in public administration and in the practice of public policy and management.

Students move through the program in stages: application, coursework, comprehensive examination, dissertation proposal, dissertation writing, and dissertation defense.  Faculty in the School of Public Service work closely with students, first as professors in seminars and coursework, then as supervisory committee members who mentor students through the exam and dissertation processes.

The study and practice of public policy and administration is inherently interdisciplinary, and students will have the opportunity to work with faculty from a variety of disciplines and backgrounds in the School of Public Service and beyond.  For information on SPS faculty, please visit our website.

At the same time, the curriculum is organized to ensure that students receive a strong foundation in policy analysis that will prepare them for careers in public policy and administration. The culminating activity, the dissertation or the three-essay  project, must be centered around this foundation.

Applications will be accepted every two years. Our next application process will open in Fall 2024.

Applicants who are not recommended for admission to the PPA PhD program at Boise State University may appeal this decision in two steps: first by appealing internally with the program and secondly by appealing to the Graduate College.

If the program does not recommend admission, the Program Director will informally notify the appropriate students; following this notification, students have 14 working days to submit a written appeal to the program outlining their rationale for challenging the Admission Committee’s decision. The Admissions Committee, in consultation with the Program Director, will review that appeal and notify the student of their decision to admit or to uphold the denial of admission. If the denial is upheld on appeal, the applicant may then appeal the program’s decision to the Graduate College.

Students who are denied admission have the option to reapply once to the PhD program but must offer substantive changes to their application materials so that the complete application file merits reconsideration. Admission is not guaranteed if a student resubmits a second application. Meeting the minimum academic requirements does not guarantee admission to the PhD program.

Applicants who are not recommended for admission to the PPA PhD program at Boise State University may appeal this decision in two steps: first by appealing internally with the program and secondly by appealing to the Graduate College.

If the program does not recommend admission, the Program Director will informally notify the appropriate students; following this notification, students have 14 working days to submit a written appeal to the program outlining their rationale for challenging the Admission Committee’s decision. The Admissions Committee, in consultation with the Program Director, will review that appeal and notify the student of their decision to admit or to uphold the denial of admission. If the denial is upheld on appeal, the applicant may then appeal the program’s decision to the Graduate College.

Students who are denied admission have the option to reapply once to the PhD program but must offer substantive changes to their application materials so that the complete application file merits reconsideration. Admission is not guaranteed if a student resubmits a second application. Meeting the minimum academic requirements does not guarantee admission to the PhD program.

To receive financial aid students must be accepted into the PhD program and be enrolled in sufficient credits per University policy. Retention of financial aid is driven by University policy on satisfactory completion of academic credit.

Graduate assistants must be full time students (at least 9 credits). GAs may receive an “I” in a class and retain their GA position if approved by the Program Director. GAs demonstrating satisfactory performance in their duties may retain their position each term, up to 6 semesters, if they are making satisfactory progress toward degree requirements and if PPA has sufficient funding for the position.

The School of Public Service has a small number of very competitive graduate assistantships to support students.  Students who receive these awards frequently receive a stipend for working 20 hours a week with faculty on research or other projects, as well as a fee waiver to cover tuition costs.  Performance in the graduate assistantship is renewed annually for up to three years depending upon performance in the assistantship,  satisfactory progress in the program, and funding availability.

Students interested in these awards should apply at the time they submit their application for admission although occasionally these assistantships materialize at other times.

The program and the university have a small number of very competitive scholarships that students may apply for, and students may of course apply for loans through the financial aid office to cover expenses.

Students are also encouraged to apply for scholarships outside of the university that fund education-related expenses or research activities. A good place to start is to review professional organizations in your area of interest and practice, academic organizations, and foundations that have specialized programs.

Applicants with Master’s degrees are given preference in the admissions process, although there may be rare cases in which this requirement is waived.  Student applicants who do not have a Master’s degree should contact the Program Director for more information before applying.

The online application system walks you through the types of information and documents you will need to provide, as does our website. In addition to other factors such as academic performance, the admissions committee pays special attention to:

• 1. your letter of intent,
  2. your analytical writing sample, and
  3. your letters of recommendation.

Writing the letter of intent for a PhD program differs from a letter of intent you might write for an undergraduate or even a master’s program.  We encourage you to do some research about what these letters should contain and get feedback from those who have been through the process or have a stake in your success.  We tend to look for three things in particular:

• 1. An indication that you understand and are ready to tackle research at the doctoral level.  You may not know what your dissertation topic is, but do you have a broad sense of what areas or research questions you are interested in?  Help us understand what makes you a good candidate for advanced research both in terms of focus and commitment.  This helps us assess if you are a good fit for our curriculum and faculty.
  2. You’ve identified faculty in the School of Public Service with whom you might be able to to work with.  Brief faculty bios are available on the School of Public Service website.  Take some time to look these over and to make some guesses as to who might be able to advise you through the process of taking classes, passing comprehensive exams, and crafting a dissertation.  Some applicants even reach out to faculty members in advance to introduce themselves and talk about the program.
  3. Your career goals.  We are an applied program designed to prepare students for senior level positions in public, non-profit and international organizations.  Applicants with these career goals are given preference.  Occasionally, we admit students seeking positions in faculty-related academic or research settings.  Please indicate to us why you think our program might prepare you for the career or professional path you have in mind.

It is most helpful to the admissions committee to see a sample that illustrates your ability to do research at an advanced level.  Analytical writing samples should be clearly written, with a minimum of errors, and should exhibit your ability to analyze and synthesize complex information in a compelling way. Candidates submit a range of illustrations, including master’s level research papers, white papers or policy papers from their places of employment, peer-reviewed or public scholarship articles, or reports, or examples of technical assistance.

Ideally, strong letter writers are able to speak about you and your accomplishments in fairly specific and illustrative ways.  The committee also appreciates letters that speak to your ability to conduct advanced-level, sustained, significant research projects.  Letter writers may have all sorts of backgrounds, but letters from professors or those in public service sectors often work well as they are able to speak best to the previously mentioned qualifications.

Students interested in taking courses offered by the program before they’ve been formally accepted may do so provided they have applied for admission to the Boise State Graduate College (this is a separate process from the program admissions process), paid their student fees, and have the permission of the instructor to take the course.  Once accepted to the Graduate College, students may enroll in up to 9 credits of coursework, with the exception of the 600-level core courses, which are restricted to students who have been admitted. These courses will be part of the credits they can transfer into the program.

Students frequently transfer in credits from previous graduate coursework, if relevant.  If you are admitted, you will work with your advisor and the Program Director to determine which courses might be transferred in.  Students may transfer a maximum of 21 credits. See the Graduate College catalog for credit transfer time frames and related appeal process.  The program does not allow students to transfer in courses to count for any part of the methods sequence or the 600-level core courses. Students are also encouraged to consider their ability to draw on the knowledge and skills they gained in courses they would like to transfer since those courses are part of their program foundation.

Students who have a Master’s degree from an accredited institution may waive the GRE requirement—you will mark this when you complete the online application. See the Graduate College website and the Boise State admissions website for more information about accredited institutions.

The School of Public Service has a small number of very competitive graduate assistantships to support students.  Students who receive these awards frequently receive a stipend for working 20 hours a week with faculty on research or other projects, as well as a fee waiver to cover tuition costs.  Performance in the graduate assistantship is renewed annually for up to three years depending upon performance in the assistantship,  satisfactory progress in the program, and funding availability.

Students interested in these awards should apply at the time they submit their application for admission although occasionally these assistantships materialize at other times.

The program and the university have a small number of very competitive scholarships that students may apply for, and students may of course apply for loans through the financial aid office to cover expenses.

Students are also encouraged to apply for scholarships outside of the university that fund education-related expenses or research activities. A good place to start is to review professional organizations in your area of interest and practice, academic organizations, and foundations that have specialized programs.

The program prioritizes awarding GAs to incoming students. Occasionally, we award GAs to existing students based on their progress in the program. Students submit a Google Form detailing their interests and motivations. A program committee will review the applications and make their recommendations to the Program Director. The Program Director will notify the students and request a short statement of interest that will be shared with GA faculty who apply for a GA. The Program Director generally makes the assignments prioritizing research alignment, equity of GA allocation across interested faculty, and faculty commitment to mentoring.

In some cases, faculty or SPS Chairs and Institutes may also have funded research or other projects that support students in GA positions. These assignments have a different process for allocation as the faculty member, Center Directors, or Endowed chairs determine the selection.

We do have a small number of students who enroll in our program full-time.  However, the program is primarily designed to accommodate part-time students, many who have careers and families.  Classes are challenging, and are both reading- and writing-intensive, so the time commitment is serious.  However, courses are typically scheduled in the evenings, in 3-hour blocks, to accommodate working students.  Our faculty are experienced in mentoring both full- and part-time students seeking to successfully finish the program.

We are primarily a residential program, meaning students need to be able to show up, in-person, to most scheduled class sessions.  We believe that there is tremendous value in the seminar-format of doctoral education, where students read challenging and important texts, and then discuss them, with professor facilitation, in groups.  However, there are a few “hybrid” courses—courses where class meets in person every other week, and online for alternating weeks.

We are an applied program, designed to prepare students for senior level positions in public, civic, non-profit and international organizations.  Students who enroll in our program work in a variety of organizations, ranging from the Statehouse to local policy institutes to federal agencies to non-profit environmental organizations. Occasionally, we also place students in faculty-lines in university and college settings.

If you are admitted, you will eventually put together a Supervisory Committee of three to five faculty who will mentor you through the program.  All need to have PhDs, and one of these faculty needs to be from the Public Policy and Administration program.  Other committee members can come from the School of Public Service, relevant disciplines at Boise State, or even faculty from other universities.  You can find a list of eligible faculty on our SPS website.

You will be assigned an academic and procedural advisor when you are admitted to the program based on your application and faculty availability.  This faculty member will help you with curriculum planning and enrollment.  At some point you will assemble a Supervisory Committee headed by a Supervisory Chair who will mentor you through the comprehensive exam and dissertation writing processes.  You will fill out a form to confirm this committee.

According to Boise State’s Graduate Catalog, a Ph.D. student must spend at least one academic year in full-time, on-campus graduate study at Boise State University. Every Ph.D. student must fulfill this residency requirement or fulfill a substitute requirement or plan that is approved by the Graduate Council for the program in which the student is enrolled.

Given that a majority of students enrolled in the PPA PhD are part-time students, the program has adopted an Alternative Residency Plan (ARP) for those students to meet their residency requirements.

The Boise State graduate catalog requires PhD students to fulfill a one-year full-time residency. Students wishing to fulfill their residency requirement via an Alternative Residency Plan (ARP) must complete this form and submit it with the Application for Advancement to Candidacy (AAC) form following the successful defense of their dissertation proposal.

The graduate college recommends that alternative residency plans should meet the following four goals:

• 1. Disciplinary depth and breadth.
     – Access to a wide variety of classes and academic experiences in the student’s field and in related disciplines.
     – Access to library, information technology, and laboratory resources.
     – Quality and rigor of the program through involvement with and scrutiny by peers in other disciplines.
  2. Scholarly immersion
     – Development of the student’s capacity to make significant original contributions to knowledge in a context of freedom of inquiry and expression (e.g., individual and group research training, assisting with developing applications for external funding, participation at scholarly conferences, publications or other forms of scholarly dissemination).
     – Ability to understand and critically evaluate the literature of the field and to apply appropriate principles and procedures to the recognition, evaluation, interpretation and understanding of issues and problems at the frontiers of knowledge.
  3. Professional socialization
     – Substantial interaction with a large pool of faculty to obtain scholarly and disciplinary advice, perspective, and guidance.
     – Interaction with fellow graduate students on professional issues.
     – Provision of a broad range of professional development experiences to guard against over-specialization.
     – Access to a wide spectrum of seminars, professional presentations, and contact with leaders in their own discipline as well as others.
  4. Professional practice
     – Awareness of and commitment to the ethical and regulatory principles and practices appropriate to the field.

Using the following form, list the activities you have undertaken during your time in the PhD program in PPA at Boise State, including their dates, a brief description of the activity, and how it fulfills one or more of the four goals mentioned.

This form should be filled out electronically—feel free to provide as much information as is necessary to demonstrate that you have filled the ARP goals.  Students should plan to attend or participate in a minimum of three (3) of these events or opportunities per semester of enrollment.

According to the Boise State Graduate Catalog:

“The program of study leading to a Ph.D. degree must satisfy the following minimum credit requirements: 66 total, at least half of which need to be earned in courses exclusive of dissertation. All credit applied to meet the credit requirements must be graduate academic credit except that a limited number of credits earned in undergraduate courses outside the major field of study are allowed (see Restrictions on Certain Courses). In all cases, at least two thirds of the total credit requirement must be earned at Boise State University after admission to the program. All credit must be approved for application by the supervisory committee.” 

Students who have not yet been admitted to the program may take up to 9 credits of coursework with instructor’s permission, excluding 600-level seminar courses.  Pending approval by the student’s advisor and the Program Director, these credits may be used toward the student’s total required credit hours for the PhD program and are considered part of transfer credits.   These classes may be any combination of PUBADM 501, 503 or 500-level elective credits when space is available on the roster and with instructor permission. 

According to Boise State’s Graduate Catalog:

“A Ph.D. student must be proficient in English and may be required to demonstrate a prescribed level of ability in one or more other languages. If language ability beyond proficiency in English is required, the means of verification are defined by the academic unit responsible for the program… All Ph.D. programs must be consistent with the following restrictions. An academic unit responsible for a particular Ph.D. program may impose more stringent restrictions for that program.”

An undergraduate course may be applied to meet the credit requirements of a Ph.D. degree subject to the following restrictions: 

The course must be an upper-division course and must be in a discipline outside the major field of study of the Ph.D. program. 

A grade of B or better must be earned in the course. 

The course cannot represent effort for an undergraduate thesis, internship, practicum, independent study or research, conference or workshop, experiential learning, study abroad, seminar, or colloquium. 

In general, any course applied to a previously earned degree or certificate of any type at any institution cannot be applied to meet the credit requirements of a Ph.D. degree. The only exception is a course applied to a master’s degree previously earned at a regionally accredited U.S. institution or non-U.S. institution approved by the Graduate College and the Registrar. Each course allowed under this exception is subject to the following additional restrictions: 

• 1. A grade of B or better must have been earned in the course.
  2. The course cannot represent effort for a graduate culminating activity or for experiential learning. 

Courses allowed under this exception are limited by the fundamental requirement that at least two thirds of the total credit requirement for the Ph.D. degree must be earned at Boise State University since admission to the program. 

No more than one third of the total credit requirement exclusive of culminating activity credit (693 Dissertation) can be met by the sum of credits earned in undergraduate courses, pass-fail courses, and university-wide courses numbered 590, 594-596, 598, and 696 (or equivalent courses that may appear as transfer credits). An exception to this restriction may be considered when the courses are outside the major field of study, are taken to expand interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary educational experiences, and are approved by the academic unit and the Graduate College by an academic adjustment.

After being admitted, students should schedule a time to meet with their procedural advisor to fill out the Program Development Form (PDF), which can be found on the PhD program website.  The PDF aids students and their advisors in mapping out which courses the student will take when, given the student’s interests and the program’s course offerings.  Understanding which courses are required, course progressions (including co-requisites and prerequisites), and other program requirements can ensure students complete their coursework in a timely manner. This PDF will then be reviewed and approved by the Program Director.

A course rotation form can be found on the program website; there, students will find a list of courses, along with when courses can reasonably expect to be offered.  Students should understand that sometimes events occur—such as faculty sabbaticals or curricular changes—that may affect the predicted course rotation.  Therefore, PDFs should be treated more as a map for navigating the curriculum than as a contract.  

Students and advisors are also encouraged to consider graduate course offerings provided by the School of Public Service and the university in general, provided they satisfy the student’s interests and course of study.  Students are allowed to take a maximum of 12 credits of electives outside the PPA program (as long as the rest of their credits come from the program) and credits must be related to a student’s field of study. The PhD program requires that classes taken outside the program must be taken for a grade, and students must earn an A or B to have these credits count toward their PhD. See the University Registrar’s official grading system.

For all Boise State classes taken outside the School of Public Service, students must complete a petition. An Academic Adjustment Form is not necessary unless the Boise State credits are being used to substitute for an existing program requirement or to supplant a previously filed Candidacy Application. Students must have prior approval from their advisor and the program director to take such courses. 

The program provides quite a bit of flexibility to students when it comes to the selection of elective courses in PPA that a student may take.  The program is more prescriptive, however, when it comes to the core curriculum and the methods sequence.  Students, with their cohort, should plan to enroll in PUBADM601 during their first semester of admittance to the program. With the exception of SPS 609, students must finish all core courses and the method sequence the semester before they take their comprehensive exams. More information about the methods sequence can be found on the program’s website and on the program development form.

According to the Graduate College Catalog:

“The minimum duration of study for the Ph.D. degree is three academic years beyond the baccalaureate degree. All requirements for a Ph.D. degree (including courses completed at another college or university) must be started and completed within a single continuous interval of no more than ten years. “ 

However, Boise State does not have a continuous enrollment policy, so students can stop out for a semester (for up to five total semesters) and they are still considered in good standing and can come back and enroll in a subsequent semester without penalty. It is important to pay attention to the time clock if you do pursue this option.

Students may complete up to 6 credits of Directed Research (PUBADM 696) as elective credits. Students work with a single professor (who is a member of the graduate faculty) to complete a research paper of publishable quality that includes original research. Directed Research requires a clear statement of a hypothesis or proposition, a review of the relevant literature, analysis, and synthesis of data or scholarly evidence, and inference of conclusions. Completion of an Application for Directed Research is required prior to the deadline specified in the University’s semester schedule. The application must include outcomes (e.g., paper to be presented at conference; article to be submitted to journal); methods must be delineated; signatures must be completed in the order provided on the form. 

Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA every semester. If the student fails to meet the semester GPA requirement and the failure is the second occurrence since admission to the program, the student will be administratively withdrawn from the program by the Graduate College. If the student fails to achieve a program GPA of 3.0 or better, the student is ineligible for a degree. Students cannot list a course on the Application for Admission to Candidacy if it is graded lower than a C. Transfer courses can only be listed if they are a B or higher. If the student does not meet consecutive semester or overall 3.0 GPA requirements, the student may appeal for reinstatement through PPA and then through the Graduate Dean.

The graduate college policy limits students to retaking only certain credits and only with written approval from the program, and limits the student to retaking a class only once. PPA does not generally authorize retaking a class. In general, students may not retake PUBADM courses regardless of whether the course was taken for graduate credit or taken as credit to be applied to an undergraduate program. If extraordinary circumstances exist, admitted PhD students may provide a written appeal of this policy to the program Director within 30 calendar days of when grades were made available to students through myboisestate.edu. Students who register for a class without approval will be administratively withdrawn.

The PPA PhD program allows up to 21 credits to be transferred from another institution according to the following guidelines:

• 1. Transfer credit must be graduate academic credit representing a grade of B or better, awarded by a regionally accredited U.S. college or university or by a non-U.S. institution of higher education that is approved for transfer purposes by the International Admissions Office. Continuing education units (CEU), non-academic credits, and undergraduate credits are ineligible as transfer credit.
  2. Culminating activity courses, courses where the grade is based only on attendance, and courses representing experiential learning, regardless of the level (undergraduate or graduate), are ineligible as transfer credit.
  3. Application of transfer credit must be approved by the graduate program including the student’s Supervisory Committee and PhD Program Director.

This previous coursework is subject to the restrictions and guidelines established by the Graduate College and University Registrar.

What’s the maximum number of dissertation credits you can take each semester?

12 credits

Can you take more than 18 dissertation credits that are outlined in the program development form?

Yes

Can I take dissertation credits in the same semester as other culminating activities (e.g. dissertation proposal, comprehensive exam)?

Yes but students should make sure that they are in good standing to complete the milestones before their dissertation work and should do this in consultation with their Supervisory Chair and the Program Director. 

Can I take advanced methods or theoretical courses before taking the basic or introductory methods and theoretical courses?

No. There are prerequisites for these courses so we can scaffold your learning to meet our program learning outcomes.