The BSPA prepares students to analyze problems and effectively solve issues with the principle goal of enhancing all aspects of public life.
Baruch College emphasizes the importance of civic engagement, community leadership, and the professional development of current and future public service leaders. The college follows the tradition of its namesake, Bernard M. Baruch, a public servant who advised seven U.S. presidents.
Public Affairs is a unique degree within the city that cultivates passion and prepares individuals to tackle social justice issues and uplift our communities both domestically and internationally. The College and School acknowledge its significance. As a result, there has been a commitment to serve more individuals focused on public service.
The program is interdisciplinary, which means that many diverse fields are studied. With this degree students develop a strong, marketable foundation that is flexible across the various sectors – public, nonprofit, and even private.
To become a student at Baruch College requires an application to the City University of New York (CUNY). There are separate applications for freshman and transfers from community colleges. The deadline for entry in the fall semester is February 1 and for the spring semester it is September 15. Connect to Apply to CUNY for the online application.
There is a wide array of financial aid options and programs; including scholarships, grants, and loans to help Baruch College students pay for college.
Students should select public affairs as intended major when applying to Baruch and officially declare after arriving on campus by submitting a BSPA Major Declaration Form [PDF] to MSPIA.BSPA@baruch.cuny.edu or in-person at 135 E. 22nd Street, 4th Floor.
To gain more information about the BSPA program, email MSPIA.BSPA@baruch.cuny.edu, make an appointment to speak with a team member.
Graduate School
BSPA students with excellent academic records are encouraged to pursue post-baccalaureate studies in a master’s program or law school. According to a 2009-2010 survey report from the U.S. Census Bureau, recipients of master’s degrees make approximately $19,000 more than those with bachelor’s degrees. The BSPA degree provides students with the skills and knowledge necessary to be successful in obtaining an advanced degree. A dedicated Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs staff member helps students to understand graduate school applications, standardized admissions tests, and financial aid opportunities.
For the best in graduate school preparation, BSPA students may apply for the Public Policy and International Affairs (PPIA) Junior Summer Institute. This program helps undergraduates to prepare for graduate education in public policy and public administration. Students attend a summer session at Princeton University, Carnegie-Mellon University, the University of Michigan, or the University of California at Berkeley. The focus is on economics, statistics, leadership principles, communications, and public policy. Applicants must have completed their junior year by the start of the program with at least one full semester of coursework remaining before graduation. Students receive full tuition at the participating university, travel expenses, a $1,500 stipend, and university housing with a meal plan. The application deadline is in November every year with notifications of acceptance made in February.
Public Service Careers
The BSPA philosophy is that civic engagement must be informed by knowledge, rooted in ethical values, connected to democratic aspirations, and embodied through practice. Public servants address real-world policy issues and seek to make democracy effective. Democracy requires an educated population who enjoy discussing shared concerns in the public sphere, speaking confidently to those in authority, and taking responsibility for problems within their reach. Public service offers many career opportunities for those who graduate with the BSPA degree. Graduates work for governments at all levels, in nonprofit organizations, for public schools and colleges, and in private sector companies that work under contract to governments. Public and nonprofit salaries are comparable to the starting level salaries in business. We also encourage students to continue on to graduate and law school.
BSPA Learning Goals
Program learning goals are the broad statements that address higher order learning, encompassing the degree’s mission, values, and overall expectations. These goals are addressed at various points throughout the curriculum.
Student completing the BSPA program will:
Articulate how public policy is formulated, implemented, and evaluated.
Write documents that articulate purpose, utilize evidence, logic, and apply pertinent values to provide analysis and arguments relevant to the question or issue and appropriate for a chosen audience.
Produce oral presentations that articulate purpose, utilize evidence, logic, and apply pertinent values to provide analysis and arguments relevant to the question or issue and appropriate for a chosen audience.
Analyze data and draw valid conclusions.
Apply research findings to public policy questions or decision making situations.
Demonstrate an understanding of pertinent values, such as diversity, integrity, ethical conduct, and professionalism; and articulate how they can impact public policy and decision making situations.
BSPA Courses
Required Courses (18 Credits)
3 hours; 3 credits
This course explores the role that public policy can and has played in creating, maintaining, and ameliorating various forms of social, economic, and political inequality, with a special focus on strategies to reduce racial and ethnic inequality. Students will study how inequality has been developed and exacerbated in the United States and examples of policy and program interventions for achieving greater equality.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
Whether defined by geography, religious or political ideals, or socioeconomic, circumstance, communities are a central building block of American public life and public affairs. This class will equip students with the tools to study various communities with qualitative methods such as participant-observation, intensive interviewing, and content analysis.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course uses economic theory to analyze the causes and consequences of public sector interventions. It covers the fundamentals of microeconomics, with an emphasis on writing and applying the tools of supply and demand analysis to social problems and public policies. Applications are drawn from current policy debates in areas such as trade, the environment, agriculture, health, immigration, and labor markets.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150 and ECO 1001
3 hours; 3 credits
In this course students will create and manage persuasive campaigns for a range of government and nonprofit organizations in fields such as healthcare, education, and environmentalism. Students will study theories of persuasion and social influence, and classic media campaigns such as public service announcements against drunk driving and ads for political candidates. Through such studies, students will learn how to apply principles of persuasion to influence diverse audiences in contemporary contexts involving issue advertising, election drives, the Internet, social media, and movement communication.
Prerequisite or co-requisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course focuses on the use of quantitative information and analysis to understand, interpret, promote, critique, and inform the implementation of programs and policies. Real world cases are examined throughout. A statistical software package will be employed to analyze selected data using various methods, such as simple regression.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150 and either STA 2100 or PSY 2100
PAF 4401 Capstone (PERMISSION REQUIRED)
3 hours; 3 credits
Students will apply advocacy and analysis concepts and skills learned as Public Affairs majors to produce a project or paper on a policy solution or topic of interest.
Prerequisite: 18 PAF credits
OR
PAF 6001H Honors Thesis I and PAF 6002H Honors Thesis II (PERMISSION REQUIRED)
Each Honors Thesis course is 3 hours, 3 credits
The honors thesis is a major research project accomplished under the direction of a professor.
Prerequisite(s): A minimum of 18 credits in public affairs at the 3000 level or above. Open only to students who have earned at least a 3.5 GPA in public affairs and a 3.5 cumulative GPA and who have submitted an application prior to the fall semester of their senior year that has been approved by the prospective mentor, the associate dean of the School of Public Affairs, and the chair of the Committee on Undergraduate Honors.
Elective Courses (12 Credits)
3 hours; 3 credits
Events, personalities, and popular culture have shaped public service in New York City. This course examines the impacts of events such as the Draft Riots and 9/11, the influences of prominent mayors and administrators, and the effects of New York-focused movies, music, and television shows. It identifies models of public service to emulate. Enrollment Requirements: Prerequisite: ENG 2150.
3 hours; 3 credits
The course identifies the nature of ethical problems faced by citizens and those entrusted with the public interest. It explores alternative forms of ethical analysis. Students will have the opportunity to apply these analytic frames to specific problems related to public policy.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course surveys the nature, production, values, and uses of information in historical perspective; the latest developments in information technology; the ways information is produced and disseminated, and how they affect business, politics, media, science, arts, and culture; the growth of the information society; and major information policy issues in contemporary society.
Cross-listed with COM 3040 and LIB 3040.
Prerequisite: ENG 2100
3 hours; 3 credits
The purpose of the course is to provide an understanding of the nature and function of management in nonprofit organizations. Emphasis is placed on the processes of defining goals and objectives, organizing and staffing for maximum productivity, and dealing with the important aspects of the nonprofit environment.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
The focus of this course is on the role of the government in the economy. It addresses the reasons for and consequences of government intervention, including the theoretical and empirical examination of whether and when intervention improves economic efficiency and social welfare. Students will learn about and analyze education and environmental policies, social insurance programs such as Social Security, social welfare, income and property taxation, and other means of financing government activities.
Prerequisite: PAF 3102
3 hours; 3 credits
This course uses economic theory to analyze the causes and consequences of public sector interventions. It covers the fundamentals of microeconomics, with an emphasis on writing and applying the tools of supply and demand analysis to social problems and public policies. Applications are drawn from current policy debates in areas such as trade, the environment, agriculture, health, immigration, and labor markets.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course is an examination of public opinion in the American constitutional and political framework. The emphasis is on the public’s capacity for expressing its political views, the place of attitudinal research in the social sciences, and the uses of opinion polls in public, nonprofit, and private decision-making. The class will learn about the role of public opinion in the advocacy and analysis of public policy.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
Students are taught in this course to understand and apply communication skills in public affairs. The class provides cutting-edge tools for deliberation and speech in organizational environments, focusing on: professional styles and habits, audience analysis, institutional adaptation, political argument, rhetoric, media training, and the innovative use of technologies. New perspectives and practical skills will be acquired for engaging public issues.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
The principles and problems of delivering urban services and the design of alternative service delivery systems are introduced in this class. The particular focus is on how well government serves the public, what kind of information is needed to answer questions about the effectiveness, efficiency, equity, and quality of services, and how to make service delivery more responsive to the public.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course introduces the major concepts behind the public regulation of urban land use. The course examines how market forces and the public sector shape every aspect of urban development, through policies, plans, regulations, and investment. It considers the tension between the market and government regulation. Students will learn how to analyze a community’s land use structure and assess its strengths and weaknesses in order to develop policies that improve public welfare.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
Examines the housing and community development system and its problems, including neighborhood change. Also, traces the evolution of government programs and policy-making with a focus on New York City. Housing needs, homelessness and community reinvestment issues are considered. Case studies of housing revitalization and neighborhood redevelopment accompany course readings and lectures.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course examines the arguments and analysis used to identify problems, develop policy solutions, and make decisions in the public and nonprofit sectors. Students consider the range of policy goals, alternative policy approaches, and various analytic methods for determining the impacts of policy proposals and for making recommendations.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course expands students’ ability to understand, apply and produce quantitative analysis in aid of policy and practice. Real world cases are examined throughout, with an emphasis on developing and applying critical thinking skills. Students use Excel and a statistical software package to analyze data with various methods, such as multiple regression.
Prerequisite: PAF 3401
3 hours; 3 credits
An analysis of ongoing and current public policies and programs that affect the greening of cities. The focus is on the historical evolution of land uses in New York City and the environmental sustainability of its neighborhoods and economy.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
This course examines the history and politics of American school reform. Students will consider the competing purposes often ascribed to public schools and study educational policies at local, state, and federal levels. Particular attention will be paid to urban education and issues of race and class.
Prerequisites or corequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
Students will explore how art and arts organizations function in the political, economic, and cultural context of the United States. Through a variety of innovative learning experiences, including field work at museums and other venues, students will grapple with the challenges of leading, funding, and promoting art in public life.
Prerequisites or corequisite: ENG 2150
3 hours; 3 credits
Issues of special interest will be examined. The subject matter is determined by instructor.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
Hours and credits to be arranged.
This course is an individualized course of study under the direction of a professor.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150. By application only. Instructor permission required
15 credits
This course introduces students to lawmaking and constituent services. Each intern is assigned to an elected member of the New York State Senate or Assembly. Students must reside in Albany for a full semester, attend classes taught by professors-in-residence, prepare a research paper, contribute to policy forums, and participate in a mock legislative session. By application only.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
Hours to be arranged; 3 credits
This course requires students to work in an approved public or nonprofit organization. It bridges the gap between theory and practice. By application only.
Prerequisite: ENG 2150
Deciding to attend Baruch College was easily one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. Being a Marxe student goes beyond receiving a quality education. It’s an opportunity to foster friendships, gain mentors, and expand professionally. As an undergraduate student, I had the opportunity to learn about policies that affect New York City on a local, state, and even an international level. I did so through hands-on internships with the NYC Council, NYS Senate, and the United Nations; something I was able to achieve through the support Marxe poured into me. These experiences shaped me into the public servant I am today, and have allowed me to confidently enter the workforce as an experienced city employee.”
Arlina Reyes, BSPA 2022
Consulting Analyst, Accenture
Marxe changed my life by showing me that there are many ways to make an impact in my corner of the world. Being here challenged me to think critically and shift my mindset to becoming solution orientated. I was not only exposed to a variety of potential career tracks but also a strong network of classmates, professors, alumni etc. Through this exposure I was able to leave the program with a range of internships including at the United Nations, New York State Senate, Capalino, and the Mayor’s Office. I am now stepping into my role at Accenture hoping to explore how technology can reimagine how we think of public service.”
Maleeka Zainab, BSPA 2022
Intern,Capalino; Incoming Congress Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals 2022-23 cohort
I came to Marxe with the understanding that my degree will not only educate me in the political institutions that drive change but also give me the technical research and data analyzation skills needed to enter the workforce in 2022. What I was pleasantly surprised by was the amount of support I found with the mentors in the alumni community and faculty. Throughout my undergrad, I had many opportunities to intern in the nonprofit sector, state and federal government where I conducted policy research, attending meetings with advocacy groups, and familiarized myself with the policy process overall. Moreover, I got to know local leaders and issues that impact my life directly as a New Yorker.”
