The Master of Public Affairs (MPA)

Where Can You Go With UNCG’s MPA?

The MPA Program provides assistance for students in their job search. Advising for MPA students is related to career objectives, and the campus Career Services Center offers resume writing and interviewing assistance. For preservice students, the internship is designed to provide experience relevant to the type of employment desired after graduation. The program circulates the resumes of graduates seeking employment and advises them as they contact potential employers.

The program’s placement rate for the last two years is over 90%, which means that almost all of the graduates reported a job placement within 6 months of graduation. The largest percentage found positions in local governments or nonprofit agencies in North Carolina. (See table below on Employment Statistics.)

Examples of recent preservice (having little prior work experience) placements are:

Grants Management Assistant/Program Coordinator, Partners to End Homelessness/The Servant Center
Development Coordinator, NCCJ
Economic Development Project Manager, City of Burlington
Housing Specialist, Piedmont Triad Regional Council
Program Monitor, City of Greensboro
Value Based Contract Coordinator, CHESS
Program Support Administrator, Rural Forward NC
Marketing & Communications Manager, United Way of Greater Greensboro
Village Clerk and Assistant to Administrator, Village Town of Marvin, NC
PhD Student, Public Policy at North Carolina State University

Below is a sample of the positions of individuals who graduated in the past five years.

Local Government

Public Housing Director, City of Albemarle
Deputy Clerk, Forsyth County Superior Court
Director, Guilford County Board of Elections
Communications Officer, City of High Point
Supervisor, Child Support Enforcement Office, Forsyth County
Community Outreach Specialist, Piedmont Authority for Regional Transportation (PART)
Early Voting Director, Guilford County Board of Elections
Special Events Coordinator, City of Greensboro
Director of Emergency Response & Communications, Forsyth County Public Health
Auditor, Office of the Inspector General, District of Columbia
Treasury Analyst, Forsyth County Budget & Management Office
Senior Planner, City of Albemarle Planning & Community Development
Assistant City Manager, City of Burlington, NC
Eligibility Case Worker, Davidson County Department of Social Services
Economic Development Specialist, City of Winston Salem
General Services Manager, Forsyth County Government

State Government

Government Affairs Assistant, North Carolina League of Municipalities
Transportation Consultant, North Carolina Department of Transportation
Assistant State Auditor, North Carolina Office of the State Auditor
Certification Specialist, NC Office of the State Fire Marshall, Western Region
Business Relations Representative, Vocational Rehabilitation, NC Department of Health and Human Services
Special Agent in Charge, NC State Bureau of Investigation
Constituent Liaison for the Senate President Pro Tempore, North Carolina General Assembly
Program Coordinator, North Carolina Center for Global Logistics
Budget Officer, State of Vermont

Federal Government

Administrator, Veterans Center, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Greensboro
Revenue Officer, Internal Revenue Service
Program Analyst, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Department of Health & Human Services, Baltimore, MD
Contract Analyst, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Vermont

Nonprofit Organizations

Director of Vocational Services, Cape Fear Vocational Rehabilitation
Director of Administration, Compliance and Human Resources, Martinsville/Henry County Coalition for Health and Wellness
Chief Operating Officer, Greensboro Partnership
Program Officer, Community Foundations of Greater Greensboro
Manager, Greater Raleigh Sports Council
Marketing & Outreach Manager, Forsyth Humane Society
Program Coordinator, Foundation for Rural Service, Arlington, VA
Development Coordinator, National Conference for Community & Justice, Greensboro
Communications Director, Guilford Green Foundation
Data Manager, Rapid Resources for Families, Inc.
Grants Manager, Hospitality House, Boone, NC
Fellow, Duke Endowment of the Carolinas
Community Coordinator, Co//ab, Greensboro Partnership
Southeast Regional Director, March of Dimes Foundation
Vice President, Children’s Home Society of North Carolina
Business Development & Leadership Giving Specialist, United Way of Greater Greensboro
Grant Research Manager, Center For Creative Leadership
Business Development Services Manager, Greensboro Economic Development Alliance
Donor Relations Coordinator, Niagara University, Lewiston, NY
Member Engagement Associate at National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), Washington, DC

Colleges and Universities

Project Manager for School of Education, UNC Greensboro
Vice President for Development, UNC General Administration
Development Director, Wake Forest University
Literacy Programs Director, Student Coalition for Action in Literacy Education, UNC Chapel Hill
Employee Development Manager, University of Vermont Health Network
Assistant Director of Scheduling & Event Services, American University
Grants Administrator, Wake Forest Baptist Health
Student Support Manager, UNC Greensboro
Research Associate II, Winston-Salem State University
Grants & Contracts Administrator, Wake Forest University Health Services
Research Associate, UNC-Chapel Hill
Budget Officer, Bryan School of Business & Economics, UNCG

Private Business/Consulting

Community Development Research Analyst, Local Government Federal Credit Union
Global Project Manager, Supply Chain Inclusion & Collaboration Team, Cisco Systems
Communications Specialist, Mack Trucks, Inc./Volvo Trucks North America

NOTE: These graduates obtained these jobs prior to or within 9 months after graduation