Bachelor of Science in Public Policy
The Bachelor of Science in Public Policy (BS PP) provides an education that combines strong analytical skills with understanding of a range of substantive policy issues and the political, social, and cultural forces that shape public policies. The BS PP core courses provide students with the broad political, economic, and philosophical foundations of thought pertinent to public policy, a base of rigorous quantitative and qualitative analytical approaches, and a solid understanding of the political and social dynamics that structure policy debates and policy outcomes.
The curriculum moves from disciplinary foundations (in politics, economics, philosophy, and organization theory) to methods of research and data analysis, and to detailed studies of particular policy problems. Students choose two clusters in environment and energy policy, science and technology policy, social and urban policy, philosophy, or politics and policy, and can select electives in additional areas such as information and telecommunication policy, bioengineering and ethics, and regional development policy. All students have opportunities for internships, research, and study abroad or exchange programs. The BS PP program culminates in a senior-year two-semester capstone "task force" in which students work in teams with outside clients (e.g., Centers for Disease Control, Marcus Autism Center, Multiple Sclerosis Society, Atlanta Food Bank) on actual policy problems.
The program's emphasis on the development of problem-solving and analytical skills constitutes a strong comparative advantage for BS PP graduates, many of whom move on to law school, management consulting, public sector policy analysis, or nonprofit management.
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Wellness Requirement | ||
| APPH 1040 | Scientific Foundations of Health | 2 |
| or APPH 1050 | The Science of Physical Activity and Health | |
| or APPH 1060 | Flourishing: Strategies for Well-being and Resilience | |
| Core IMPACTS | ||
| Institutional Priority | ||
| CS 1315 | Introduction to Media Computation | 3 |
| Mathematics and Quantitative Skills | ||
| MATH 1712 | Survey of Calculus | 4 |
| or MATH 1552 | Integral Calculus | |
| Political Science and U.S. History | ||
| POL 1101 | Government of the United States | 3 |
| Arts, Humanities, and Ethics | ||
| Any HUM | 6 | |
| Communicating in Writing | ||
| ENGL 1101 | English Composition I | 3 |
| ENGL 1102 | English Composition II | 3 |
| Technology, Mathematics, and Sciences | ||
| Lab Science | 4 | |
| Lab Science | 4 | |
| MATH 1711 | Finite Mathematics | 4 |
| or MATH 1551 & MATH 1553 | Differential Calculus and Introduction to Linear Algebra | |
| Social Sciences | ||
| Any SS | 9 | |
| Field of Study | ||
| ECON 2106 | Principles of Microeconomics | 3 |
| PHIL 2025 | Philosophical Analysis of Policy Choices | 3 |
| PUBP 2010 | Political Processes 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 2030 | Organizations and Policy 2 | 3 |
| Science, Computing, or Engineering Elective 1 | 6 | |
| Major Requirements | ||
| PUBP 3020 | Applied Political Economy 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 3030 | Policy Analysis 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 3120 | Statistical Analysis for Public Policy 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 3130 | Research Methods and Problem Solving 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 4010 | Policy Task Force I 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 4020 | Policy Task Force II 2 | 3 |
| PUBP 2651 | Public Policy Internship 2 | 3 |
| or PUBP 4651 | Public Policy Internship | |
| Clusters | ||
| Students must select nine hours each from two clusters. See Cluster Electives below for options. | 18 | |
| Non-Major Cluster | ||
| Any POL, PHIL, or PUBP course 2 | 3 | |
| Free Electives | ||
| Free Electives 3 | 17 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 122 | |
Pass-fail only allowed for Free Electives.
- 1
Must be chosen from the following list: any AE, CEE, ECE, ISYE course, AE 1770/CEE 1770/ME 1770, BC 3630, BIOS 2300, BIOS 2600, CHEM 2211, CHEM 2311, CHEM 2312, CHEM 2380, CHEM 3380, COA 6764, CS 6764, CP 4510 , CS 1171, CS 1316, CS 1331, CS 1332, CS 6754/ME 6754, EAS 2420, EAS 2600, EAS 2655, EAS 2750, EAS 4420, EAS 4430, EAS 4450, EAS 4602, ECE 2030, ID 3103, ID 4103, LMC 2700, LMC 2730, LMC 3402, LMC 3710, LMC 6312, ME 2016, MGT 4051, MGT 4058, MUSI 4630, PHYS 2030, PHYS 2213, PHYS 3123, PHYS 3141, PHYS 3266, PHYS 4142, PSYC 2020, PSYC 2270, PSYC 3011, PSYC 3020, PSYC 3031, PSYC 3040, PSYC 3790, PSYC 4010, PSYC 4031, PSYC 4050, PSYC 4090, PSYC 4100, PSYC 4270.
- 2
Minimum grade of C required.
- 3
Cluster Electives
Environmental and Energy Policy Cluster
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PHIL 4176 | Environmental Ethics | 3 |
| PUBP 3315 | Environmental Policy and Politics | 3 |
| PUBP 3600 | Sustainability, Technology, and Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4338 | Environmental Impact Assessment | 3 |
| PUBP 6300 | Earth Systems | 3 |
| PUBP 6310 | Environmental Issues | 3 |
| PUBP 6312 | Economics of Environmental Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6314 | Policy Tools for Environmental Management | 3 |
| PUBP 6326 | Environmental Values and Policy Goals | 3 |
| PUBP 6330 | Environmental Law | 3 |
| PUBP 6760 | Negotiation and Conflict Management | 3 |
Science and Technology Policy Cluster
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PHIL 3127 | Science, Technology, and Human Values | 3 |
| PUBP 3502 | Information and Communications Technology Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4111 | Internet and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4214 | Gender, Science, Technology, and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4410 | Science, Technology, and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4414 | Technology, Innovation, and Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4416 | Critical Issues in Science and Technology | 3 |
| PUBP 4756 | Technology Forecasting and Assessment | 3 |
| PUBP 6402 | Research Policy and Management | 3 |
| PUBP 6415 | Technology, Regions, and Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6417 | Critical Perspectives on Science and Technology | 3 |
| PUBP 6421 | Development of Large-scale Socio-technical Systems | 3 |
| PUBP 6501 | Information Policy and Management | 3 |
| PUBP 6740 | Innovation, the State and Industrial Development in International Perspecitve | 3 |
| PUBP 6741 | Geography of Innovation | 3 |
| PUBP 6753 | Comparative Science and Technology Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6777 | Analysis of Emerging Technologies | 3 |
Social and Urban Policy Cluster
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PUBP 3201 | Introduction to Social Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 3214 | African American Politics | 3 |
| PUBP 4200 | Social Policy Issues | 3 |
| PUBP 4211 | Urban Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4212 | Women and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4214 | Gender, Science, Technology, and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6604 | Methods of Urban Policy Analysis and Planning | 3 |
| PUBP 6606 | Urban Development Policy | 3 |
Philosophy Cluster
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| PHIL 3102 | Ancient Philosophy | 3 |
| PHIL 3103 | Modern Philosophy | 3 |
| PHIL 3105 | Ethical Theories | 3 |
| PHIL 3109 | Engineering Ethics | 3 |
| PHIL 3113 | Logic and Critical Thinking | 3 |
| PHIL 3115 | Philosophy of Science | 3 |
| PHIL 3127 | Science, Technology, and Human Values | 3 |
| PHIL 3790 | Introduction to Cognitive Science | 3 |
| PHIL 4110 | Theories of Knowledge | 3 |
| PHIL 4174 | Perspectives in Science and Technology | 3 |
| PHIL 4176 | Environmental Ethics | 3 |
| PHIL 4752 | Philosophical Issues in Computation | 3 |
| PHIL 4790 | Semi-Cognitive Science | 3 |
| PHIL 6010 | Biotechnology and Research Ethics | 2 |
Politics and Policy Cluster
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| POL 2101 | State and Local Government | 3 |
| PHIL 3050 | Political Philosophy | 3 |
| PUBP 1142 | Teams and Collaboration | 3 |
| PUBP 2142 | Teams and Collaboration in Context | 3 |
| PUBP 3016 | Judicial Process | 3 |
| PUBP 3141 | Leading Social Organizations | 3 |
| PUBP 3214 | African American Politics | 3 |
| PUBP 3510 | Politics and Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 4140 | Foundations of Leadership | 3 |
| PUBP 4226 | Business and Government | 3 |
| PUBP 4440 | Science, Technology, and Regulation | 3 |
BS/MS Public Policy
The School of Public Policy offers a BS/MS program for students enrolled in the undergraduate program who demonstrate an interest in and ability for additional education beyond the BS degree.
Students in the BS/MS program remain undergraduates until they meet requirements for the undergraduate degree, at which point they receive their BS degree and change to graduate status. Students are eligible to apply for the program after completion of 30 semester credit hours at Georgia Tech (i.e., at the end of their first year), and if they show appropriate progress in their degree program thereafter. Admissions decisions will be based on GPA and judgments of the faculty who have served as advisors or instructors. Continuation in the program requires the student to maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher in public policy courses. Students participating in this program will be eligible for the six semester credit-hour Graduate Course Option, which allows students completing both the bachelor's and master's in the same discipline to use up to 6 credit hours of graduate-level coursework in the major discipline for both degrees.
The graduate-level credits required in the BS/MS Program are usually as follows:
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Core | 22 | |
| Electives | 12 | |
| Research Paper | 3 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 37 | |
Specific Requirements for the Program
| Code | Title | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| PUBP 6001 | Introduction to Public Policy | 1 |
| PUBP 6010 | Ethics, Epistemology, and Public Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6112 | Research Design in Policy Science 1 | 3 |
| PUBP 3130 | Research Methods and Problem Solving | 3 |
| PUBP 6114 | Applied Policy Methods and Data Analysis | 3 |
| PUBP 6116 | Microeconomics for Policy Analysis | 3 |
| PUBP 6118 | Public Finance Policy | 3 |
| PUBP 6201 | Public Policy Analysis | 3 |
| Select one of the following: | 3 | |
| Organization Theory | ||
| Public Management | ||
| Policy Implementation and Administration | ||
| Concentration | ||
| Concentration 2 | 6 | |
| Total Credit Hours | 31 | |
- 1
NOTE: This course should be taken as an undergraduate instead of PUBP 3130 and will count for both programs.
- 2
Students are required to develop, in consultation with their advisor, a six credit hour concentration in an area or specialty relevant to public policy and management (e.g. environmental policy, science and technology policy, urban policy, economic development, information and communications policy, policy evaluation, public management).
Contact the BS PP program director for further information.