The Department of Political Science in the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Law offer a coordinated dual degree program leading to the conferral of both the Master of Public Policy and Administration (MPPA)  and the Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD)  degrees. In this program, a student may earn the MPPA and JD in about four years rather than the five years that otherwise would be required. Students pursuing the dual degree program should plan to be enrolled in course work or an internship for one summer term in addition to taking normal course loads for four academic years.

Options Available

Public Policy and Administration — Course Only with Comprehensive Exam

Law — None

Campus Code

Knoxville Campus

Admissions Standards/Procedures

• Applicants for the MPPA-JD program must make separate application to, and be independently accepted by, the Department of Political Science and the Office of Graduate Admissions for the MPPA and the College of Law for the JD.
• Applicants must also be accepted by the Dual Degree Committee.
• All applicants must submit a Law School Admission Test (LSAT) score.
  • An applicant’s LSAT score may be substituted for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) score, which is normally required for admission to the MPPA program.
• Application may be made prior to or after matriculation in either the JD or the MPPA program, but application to the dual program must be made prior to entry into the last 29 credit hours required for the JD and prior to entry into the last 15 credit hours required for the MPPA

Academic Standards

• For grade recording purposes in the Department of Political Science and the College of Law, grades awarded in courses in the other unit will be converted to either Satisfactory/No Credit and will not be computed in determining a student’s GPA or class standing.
• The College of Law will award a grade of Satisfactory for an approved MPPA course in which the student earns a grade of B or higher and a grade of No Credit for any lower grade.
• The Political Science Department will award a grade of Satisfactory for an approved law course in which the student earns a grade of C+ or higher and a grade of No Credit for any lower grade.
• The official academic record of the student maintained by the Office of the University Registrar shall show the actual grade assigned by the instructor without conversion.
• During the first two years in the dual program, students will spend one academic year completing the required first year of the College of Law curriculum and one academic year taking courses solely in the MPPA program.
• During those first two years, students may not take courses in the opposite area without the approval of the JD-MPPA coordinators in both academic units. In the third and fourth years, students are strongly encouraged to take both law and political science courses each semester.
• Dual degree students who withdraw from the program before completion of the requirements for both degrees will not receive credit toward either the JD or the MPPA degree for courses taken in the other program except as such courses qualify for credit without regard to the dual program.
• To be eligible to receive the JD, candidates must earn at least 58 credit hours in residence at the College of Law.
• The course of study for the JD must be completed no earlier than 24 months and no later than 60 months after a student has commenced law study at the College of Law or a law school from which the college has accepted transfer credit.

Credit Hours Required

• 110 graduate credit hours
  • 89 credit hours for the JD that accepts 9 credit hours from the MPPA, for 80 credit hours;
  • 39 credit hours for the MPPA that accepts 9 credit hours from the JD, for 30 credit hours.

Required Courses

• Law: See the requirements for the Law, JD  catalog entry.
• Public Policy & Administration: See the requirements for the Public Policy and Administration Major, MPPA  catalog entry 
• The College of Law will award a maximum of 9 credit hours of credit toward the JD for successful completion of approved graduate level courses (500 or 600 level) offered in the Department of Political Science.
• The MPPA program will award a maximum of 9 credit hours of credit toward the MPPA for successful completion of approved courses offered in the College of Law.
• All courses for which such cross-credit is awarded must be approved by the MPPA-JD coordinators in the College of Law and the Department of Political Science.
• In addition to all of the requirements require for graduation from the College of Law In addition to all of the requirements require for graduation from the College of Law, all candidates for the dual degree must successfully complete LAW 821 , 3 credit hours

Non-Course Requirements

• All courses for which such cross-credit is awarded must be approved by the MPPA-JD coordinators in the College of Law and the Department of Political Science.
• A dual degree candidate must satisfy the requirements for both the MPPA and the JD, as well as the requirements for the dual program.