Public Affairs Major, BS in Public Affairs

Admissions Standards and Procedures

Applicants for admission to the program must complete the required prerequisites (IAC 101 , HBS 101 *, POLS 101  / POLS 107 , STAT 201  / STAT 207 , ECON 211  / ECON 217 , and ECON 213  / ECON 218 ) and pre-major core courses (HBS 201 , IAC 203 , HBS 301 , IAC 301 ) with a 2.5 GPA or higher.

Campus

Knoxville

uTrack Requirements

Universal Tracking (uTrack) is an academic monitoring system designed to help students stay on track for timely graduation. In order to remain on track, students must complete the minimum requirements for each tracking semester, known as milestones. Milestones include successful completion of specified courses and/or attainment of a minimum GPA. uTrack requirements only affect full-time, degree-seeking students.

Term 1

• Natural Sciences Elective¹3-4 Credit Hours*

• ENGL 101 - English Composition I 3 Credit Hours ^* (or equivalent) ¹
• FYS 101 - The UT Experience 1 Credit Hours ²
• IAC 101 - Engaging Civically 3 Credit Hours (prerequisite to the major)

• Select one course:

• POLS 101 - United States Government and Politics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)
• POLS 107 - Honors: United States Government and Politics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)

• Select one course:

• MATH 123 - Finite Mathematics 3 Credit Hours ^*
• MATH 141 - Calculus I 4 Credit Hours ^*
• MATH 147 - Honors: Calculus I 4 Credit Hours *

Term 2

•  Unrestricted Elective 3 Credit Hours

• ENGL 102 - English Composition II 3 Credit Hours * (or equivalent) ¹
• HBS 101 - Solving Public Problems 3 Credit Hours * (prerequisite to the major)
• HBS 102 - Freshman Seminar 1 Credit Hours
• IAC 201 - Construction and Reconstruction of the American Republic 3 Credit Hours *
• IAC 202 - Civil Society and the State 3 Credit Hours *

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing graduate study or Policy Analytics concentration, select one course: 

• MATH 125 - Basic Calculus 3 Credit Hours ^*
• MATH 142 - Calculus II 4 Credit Hours ^*
• MATH 148 - Honors: Calculus II 4 Credit Hours ^*

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing the Agricultural & Environmental Policy concentration, select one course:

• GEOG 206 - Sustainability Principles and Practices 3 Credit Hours ^*
• EEPS 206 - Sustainability Principles and Practices 3 Credit Hours ^*

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing the Health Policy concentration: 

• PUBH 201 - Introduction to Public Health 3 Credit Hours ^*

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing the Political Communication or Government Relations concentration, select one course:

• CMST 201 - Introduction to Communication Studies 3 Credit Hours ^*
• CMST 207 - Honors: Introduction to Communication Studies 3 Credit Hours ^*

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing the Public Management concentration:

• MGT 201 - Introduction to Business Management for Non-Majors 3 Credit Hours

• Recommended unrestricted elective for students pursuing All Other concentrations, select one course:

• ALEC 102 - Interpersonal Leadership Development 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ELPS 201 - Foundations of Leadership Studies 3 Credit Hours *
• ELPS 207 - Foundations and Theories of Leadership Studies 3 Credit Hours *

Term 3

• HBS 201 - Leading Effectively 3 Credit Hours
• IAC 203 - Constitutional Foundations 3 Credit Hours

• Select one course:

• ECON 211 - Principles of Microeconomics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)
• ECON 217 - Honors: Principles of Microeconomics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)

• Select one course:

• STAT 201 - Introduction to Statistics 3 Credit Hours ^*

• (prerequisite to the major)

• STAT 207 - Honors: Introduction to Statistics 3 Credit Hours ^*

• (prerequisite to the major)

• Select one course: 

• CMST 210 - Public Speaking 3 Credit Hours ^*
• CMST 217 - Honors: Public Speaking 3 Credit Hours ^*
• CMST 240 - Business and Professional Communication 3 Credit Hours ^*
• CMST 247 - Honors: Business and Professional Communication 3 Credit Hours ^*

Term 4

• HBS 301 - Thinking Analytically 3 Credit Hours
• IAC 301 - Acting Democratically 3 Credit Hours
• PHIL 252 - Contemporary Moral Problems 3 Credit Hours ^{* 1}

• Select one course:

• ECON 213 - Principles of Macroeconomics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)
• ECON 218 - Honors: Principles of Macroeconomics 3 Credit Hours ^* (prerequisite to the major)

• (or equivalent)

• Select one course:

• ENGL 255 - Public Writing 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ENGL 257 - Honors: Public Writing 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ENGL 295 - Writing in the Workplace 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ENGL 355 - Rhetoric and Writing 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ENGL 357 - Honors: Rhetoric and Writing 3 Credit Hours ^*
• ENGL 360 - Technical and Professional Writing 3 Credit Hours ^*

Term 5

• Natural Sciences Elective¹3-4 Credit Hours*

• HBS 302 - Visualizing and Communicating Policy Data 3 Credit Hours
• HBS 303 - National Challenges 3 Credit Hours
• ECON 305 - Markets, Ethics, and Capitalism 3 Credit Hours
• JMED 330 - Communication for Media 3 Credit Hours ^* (or equivalent) ¹

Term 6

•  Major Concentration Course³ 3 Credit Hours

• HBS 304 - State and Local Challenges 3 Credit Hours
• HBS 401 - Evaluating Performance 3 Credit Hours
• IAC 401 - The Art of the Possible 3 Credit Hours

• Select one:

• HBS 494 - Internship 0-9 Credit Hours
• IAC 494 - Internship 1-6 Credit Hours
• HBS 484 - Master Class in Public Affairs 2 Credit Hours ³

• For major concentration course, select one based on concentration: 

• ACCT 200 - Foundations of Accounting 3 Credit Hours (prerequiste for FIN 300)
• ACCT 207 - Honors: Foundations of Accounting 3 Credit Hours

• (prerequisite for FIN 300)

• CMST 342 - Survey of Organizational Communication 3 Credit Hours (prerequisite for CMST 449)
• ECON 311 - Intermediate Microeconomics 3 Credit Hours (prerequisite for ECON 381, ECON 436, ECON 471, and ECON 472)
• ECON 362 - Environmental and Natural Resource Policy 3 Credit Hours
• IAC 302 - American Legal System 3 Credit Hours
• POLS 366 - United States Foreign Policy Process 3 Credit Hours

Term 7

• Major Concentration Courses³ 6 Credit Hours
• Unrestricted Electives⁴ 9 Credit Hours

Term 8

• Major Concentration Course³ 3 Credit Hours
• Unrestricted Electives⁴ 6 Credit Hours
• Upper Division Elective⁴ 3 Credit Hours

• HBS 485 - Beyond Baker 1 Credit Hours

Total Credit Hours 120-121

• Total Upper Division Credit Hours: 40-43 Credit Hours
• Total Unrestricted Electives: 18 Credit Hours⁴
• Total Upper Division Electives: 3 Credit Hours⁴

Footnotes

1. Chosen from the Volunteer Core* list.
2. Students in the Howard Baker School (HBS) Living Learning Community (LLC) must enroll in the Baker School FYS 101 section. 
3. Students should select courses based on concentration. Some courses may be included in multiple concentrations. Some courses may have prerequisites or be prerequisites for other courses in the concentration. Students are encouraged to meet with advising staff to ensure they have all the required coursework to successfully complete the identified concentration. Any course may be substituted by permission from the Director of Undergraduate Studies. 
4. Students should ensure all Volunteer Core Requirements have been met before taking unrestricted electives.

* Meets Volunteer Core Requirements .

Concentrations

Students must complete one of the following concentrations with a 2.5 GPA or higher. For students planning on advanced study a 3.0 GPA or higher is recommended. For students pursuing the 4+1 option with the Masters of Public Administration (MPA) or Masters of Public Policy (MPP) a 3.4 GPA or higher is required. Other courses to complete a concentration may be accepted upon approval by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Some courses may have additional prerequisites. Students are encouraged to meet with advising staff to ensure they have all the required coursework to successfully complete the identified concentration. Students may choose to take multiple concentrations. Where available, students in University Honors should enroll in the honors version of the concentration course. 

Public Affairs Major – Five-Year Bachelor/Master Program

The Baker School offers a five-year bachelor and master program for qualified students. Students may apply for admission to the Master of Public Administration (MPA) or Master of Public Policy (MPP) degrees as part of the accelerated program. The primary component of the program is that qualified students may take up to 9 hours of approved graduate courses for their senior undergraduate electives and have them count toward both their bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of Tennessee. This program is designed for students attending the University of Tennessee for their master’s degree because other universities may not accept these courses for graduate credit since they were used to satisfy requirements for the bachelor’s degree. Significant components of the program are:

• Students must have an overall GPA of at least 3.4 to be admitted to the program. Conditional admission may be granted after completing 90 hours of required coursework with a minimum overall GPA of 3.4 in required coursework.
• Students must at least have conditional admission before taking graduate courses for both their bachelor’s and master’s degrees. Students must submit the form titled “Baker School Admission for MPA/MPP Accelerated Program” form and have it approved by their undergraduate advisor, the Baker School’s Director of Graduate Studies, and the Graduate School. 
• All courses taken for graduate credit must be approved by the Baker School’s Director of Graduate Studies. Students admitted to the program must request permission from the Graduate School to take approved courses for graduate credit. 
• Students admitted to the program must also follow the normal procedure for admission to the Graduate School.
• Students will not be eligible for graduate assistantships until they are enrolled as graduate-level students in the Graduate School.​​​​​​​