Program Overview

This certificate program provides you with the basic skills and techniques for sound economic analysis of public policy, along with an understanding of the advantages or disadvantages of various policy models.

It is designed for those of you currently working, or wanting to work, directly in the area of policy analysis in the public sector.

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Quick Facts

Program Type Certificate Program
Program Length 12 months studying part time (one course per term)
Start Date Entry is possible in any semester (September/Fall, January/Winter, and May/Spring).
Application Deadline

Domestic Students: May 1 (for September entry), October 1 (for January entry), February 1 (for May entry)

*International Students: May 1 (for September entry), October 1 (for January entry), February 1 (for May entry)

*JSGS does not recommend graduate certificate programs to international students due to complications with maintaining registration across terms and course offerings per term that may affect full-time student status.
Tuition Effective September 1, 2023, the tuition rate per three-credit-unit course for domestic students is approximately $1,598 and $2,492 for international students. Students are also required to pay on-campus graduate student fees.
JSGS Scholarship Funding None
GRE/GMAT Requirement None
English Language Requirements Proof of language proficiency is required.
Location This certificate is delivered fully in person, and students must attend all classes in person. If you live outside of Regina or Saskatoon, please consider applying for the online offering of this certificate.
Potential Career Paths Senior Business Analyst, Senior Policy Analyst, Senior Economic Analyst

Core Learning Outcomes

In consultation with our public sector and community partners, the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy has created a signature JSGS pedagogy to support your development in core competencies and skills needed for success in public administration. This competency framework encourages students to demonstrate the ability to:

  • Develop and apply an evidence-informed approach to policy issues and policy options;
  • Be able to communicate with different audiences to build relationships and harness diverse perspectives to gain understanding, design, and advance policy solutions; and
  • Lead self, teams, and partners to implement policy decisions, manage change initiatives, monitor progress, and support continuous improvement.

As a student enrolled in the Economic Analysis for Public Policy Certificate, depending on your course selection, you may be exposed to specific readings, assignments and activities that will help you both acquire and develop the ability to:

  • Demonstrate how economic factors influence policy through a series of policy case analyses;
  • Think critically and analytically about policy problems and issues from an economic perspective;
  • Understand how economic and political factors interact to create and determine the effect of
    policy;
  • Analyze policy problems using economic theory;
  • Communicate information and analyses critically and effectively;
  • Understand policy, policy analysis, and the policy cycle and its components from an academic and practical perspective;
  • Effectively use tools of policy analysis including briefing notes, decision items, SWOT analysis, and many more; and
  • Formulate an argument and apply evidence and reason to support your claims.

Upon successfully completing your Economic Analysis for Public Policy Certificate, we encourage you to speak with an academic advisor to explore the option of applying your courses to a full master's degree at JSGS.

Courses

Curriculum

Certificate students are required to complete 9 credit units, consisting of one core course (3 credit units) and two elective courses (6 credit units).

Students at both our University of Saskatchewan or University of Regina campuses must register in one of the following core courses (3 credit units):

The purpose of this course is to provide an economic framework for the analysis of public policy. The course uses microeconomic concepts to examine when and how the government should intervene in the economy. Using the starting point of policy as intervention, the course examines the circumstances under which government involvement is most likely to be desirable. The course then moves to consider the key instruments that government uses in its intervention. In the examination of these two broad issues, the course pays particular attention to how people and firms behave and how they are likely to respond to policy instruments. The course also develops the key concepts associated with cost-benefit analysis and shows how these concepts are used in the analysis of public policy.

This course focuses on the politics of aggregating individual decisions into collective action, revealing the difficulty of formulating and implementing public policy broadly construed. The course readings emphasize formal approaches to this subject, while the assignments and discussion emphasize their application to real problems.

All students must also complete, two of the following elective courses (6 credits units):
*Or another equivalent economic analysis course recommended and approved by the Graduate Chair.

This course provides students with the statistical concepts and techniques required for conducting research and critically evaluating empirical studies. Topics include statistical inference, sampling theory, and data and regression analysis as applied to problems in public policy.

 

The purpose of this course is to provide an economic framework for the analysis of public policy. The course uses microeconomic concepts to examine when and how the government should intervene in the economy. Using the starting point of policy as intervention, the course examines the circumstances under which government involvement is most likely to be desirable. The course then moves to consider the key instruments that government uses in its intervention. In the examination of these two broad issues, the course pays particular attention to how people and firms behave and how they are likely to respond to policy instruments. The course also develops the key concepts associated with cost-benefit analysis and shows how these concepts are used in the analysis of public policy.

 

The purpose of this course is to focus on the analysis of the processes whereby public policies arise and are enacted in Canada. The course compares theories and models of policy making and decision-making to illustrate the special requirements of the Canadian environment and examines the roles of various participants in the policy process: legislators, political parties, interest groups, administrators and administrative structures, citizens, and the judiciary.

Administrative decision-making and policy development often require the analysis of quantitative data. This course will introduce students to descriptive and inferential statistics often used in policy environments so that they will be effective data users and interpreters. Students will be taught how to use and present descriptive statistics.

 

This course is designed to familiarize students with some models of advanced microeconomic theory and teach how these models can be used to address practical problems in the policy world. In particular,  we will look at how individuals make choices and how this information can be used by policymakers in designing and implementing welfare programs. We will look at classic policy issues in competitive markets such as rent controls, taxes and minimum wages. We will discuss market failures and the role of the government to correct those. 

This course provides an introduction to the major policy questions of macroeconomics, presenting macroeconomic models to assist policy development. An emphasis is placed on current policy issues including monetary policy, fiscal policy, currency regimes, productivity and growth, demographic patterns and fiscal sustainability. Prerequisites: JSGS 805 or permission.

This course is designed to provide students with an introduction to economic concepts and analysis relevant to health, health care and health care systems. Students will examine economic aspects of various elements of the healthcare sector, identify relevant policy questions and apply economic concepts and techniques to analyze them.

This course focuses on the politics of aggregating individual decisions into collective action, revealing the difficulty of formulating and implementing public policy broadly construed. The course readings emphasize formal approaches to this subject, while the assignments and discussion emphasize their application to real problems.

In this course, students examine the manner in which decisions are made in organizations, with a particular focus on policy decisions. The course uses a wide variety of behavioural theories to look at phenomena such as policy traps, framing, unwarranted optimism, and group think.

Tuition

Effective September 1, 2023, the tuition rate per three-credit-unit course for domestic students is approximately $1,598 and $2,492 for international students. Students are also required to pay on-campus graduate student fees.

If you are offered admission into the Economic Analysis for Public Policy Graduate Certificate program, a non-refundable tuition deposit of $1,000 CAD is required to save your seat. You have 30 days from the date of the offer of admission being made to accept. If you enroll in the program consistent with the terms of the offer, the $1,000 deposit will be applied to your student account. If you do not enroll, the deposit is retained by JSGS.

NOTE: Tuition and fees are subject to change. Should there be a discrepancy between the information posted on the institution's website and information posted on the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy website, the institution's website should be viewed as accurate.

NOTICE: If you are an Indigenous student from Canada, you are eligible for a waiver for the non-refundable deposit. For more information, please contact the advisor for the program and campus to which you are applying.

Admissions and Deadlines

Application Deadlines

Applications to Graduate Certificate programs are accepted on an ongoing basis and are reviewed in the order in which they are completed. Therefore, it is to your advantage to submit a completed application as early as possible, as enrollment is limited. The admission process is competitive and late application submissions may be at a disadvantage. 

Entry is possible in any semester (September/Fall, January/Winter, and May/Spring).

Program Entry Latest Application Deadline for International Students*  Latest Application Deadline for Domestic Students
September/Fall May 1  May 1
January/Winter October 1 October 1
May/Spring February 1 February 1

To meet these deadlines, ALL components of your application must be received by the dates above. Applications that are incomplete will not be reviewed nor will they be deferred to future terms.

* JSGS does not recommend graduate certificate programs to international students due to complications with maintaining registration across terms and course offerings per term that may affect full-time student status.

Application Qualifications

Please ensure that you meet the entrance requirements of either the University of Regina Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research or the University of Saskatchewan College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (depending on your choice of campus).

Application Qualifications
University of Regina

Applicants interested in this program must have completed a four-year undergraduate degree with a minimum overall GPA of 70 percent.

There is also a mid-career option for admission, through which prospective students with at least five years of government or non-profit organization management experience may be admitted without an undergraduate degree.
University of Saskatchewan Applicants must have completed a four-year undergraduate degree from a recognized university. A cumulative weighted average of at least 70 percent must be maintained during the final two years (60 credit units). Proof of English proficiency may be required for international applicants and for applicants whose first language is not English. 

NOTICE: JSGS does not recommend graduate certificate programs to international students for the following reasons:

  • The certificates are only 3 courses (9 credit units) in length, and to be considered a full-time student, you must register in 6 credit units (2 courses) per term.
    • For example, if a graduate certificate student wants to maintain full-time status, the maximum time in the graduate certificate program would be 6 months if starting in January (encompasses Winter and Spring terms), or 8 months if starting in May (encompasses Spring and Fall terms) or September (encompasses Fall and Winter terms), and a student would need to take a fourth course and pay additional tuition to have full-time status in each term.
  • JSGS cannot guarantee that courses required for our graduate certificate programs will be available each term.
  • If a required course is unavailable, it can affect the opportunity for full-time studies.

Application Process and Required Documentation

The Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy has aligned its application requirements (where possible) across its two university campuses; however, please note that the application portal varies by campus.

Please apply through one campus only

When applying to the JSGS University of Regina campus, please note that you must submit an application through the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. 

You may choose to upload unofficial transcripts, supporting documents, letter of intent, and resume via your online application portal.

You will have the opportunity to enter the names and email addresses of your referees in the online application portal. Once you pay the application fee and submit the application, the system will automatically contact your referees with a link for their submission. Remember to advise your referees to check their spam folder for the auto-email from uregina.ca domain.

To troubleshoot document uploads, referee issues, other technical aspects of the online application, contact the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research at grad.publicpolicy@uregina.ca.

Required Documents Description
Student waiver form

Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy is a collaboration between the University of Regina and University of Saskatchewan. To share information between the two universities, please complete and upload the student waiver form.
Official Transcripts

Upload unofficial transcripts for all post-secondary education, that is, from each accredited institution you’ve attended where you’ve received at least one grade for one course for academic credit. If you are registered in such a course presently, upload a transcript even without the course completed.

Do NOT upload University of Regina transcripts. FGSR staff will access these internally.

JSGS will evaluate applications based on unofficial documents. JSGS only requires official documents after an acceptance letter is issued.

Option 2: Is it easy to obtain official transcripts? Is it inexpensive? Is the application deadline at least a month away? If you answer yes to all questions, consider skipping the unofficial transcript upload and send your official documents directly to FGSR.
Proof of English proficiency (if required)

International applicants may need to submit proof of English proficiency in the form of a recognized test. Search for your post-secondary institution on the WHED database. If this database clearly indicates solely English as language of instruction, this will suffice as proof of English proficiency.
Resume An updated resume with scholarly contributions, background information, education history, and relevant employment history.
Personal Statement / Letter of Intent

The University of Regina’s online application form includes a personal statement section where applicants are asked to answer the following four questions:

  1. Please describe your specific area of academic interest, and explain what motivated you to choose this area.
  2. Describe how your past education, professional and other experiences have prepared you to be successful in this graduate program.
  3. Describe what you hope to achieve in this graduate program.
  4. Describe why this particular graduate program at the University of Regina may help you fulfill your long-term aspirations/objectives.

As you answer these questions, please keep in mind the Admissions Committee is assessing your ability to write in a clear, coherent and professional manner. You should make every effort to ensure your personal statement is free of spelling and grammatical errors, is properly referenced (if applicable) and is concise. Please limit your response to each of the questions to no more than 200 words.
Letter of recommendation

The University of Regina requires three letters of recommendation. Please choose academic and/or professional people who can comment on your ability to succeed in the program. Applicants can supply name and contact information in the online application portal.

When applying to the JSGS University of Saskatchewan campus, please note that you must submit an application through the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. The online application takes about 30 minutes to complete. You may start an application, save it and return to it any time before the application deadline.

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Once you have completed an online application, you will need to upload a series of documents. Please note that in most cases, you will need to allow one business day after paying your application fee before you are permitted to upload documents.

If your application fee has not been processed after 48 hours after being submitted, please contact grad.studies@usask.ca or phone 1-306-966-5788 for assistance. Please ensure you are checking the status of the application fee before emailing or calling. To check the status, please log into your application profile.

Required Documentation Description
Transcripts Preliminary Statement of Marks
  • Once you have submitted your application for admission and paid the application fee, you will be required to upload unofficial PDF copies of your academic transcript(s) from each post-secondary institution attended. This requirement will appear as a Preliminary Statement of Marks or Additional Preliminary Statement under admission requirements on your Application Summary when you check your application status.
  • The uploaded transcript can be an unofficial copy of the transcript issued by the university or college and must include a grading key/legend.
  • All pages of a transcript must be uploaded as a single PDF document.
  • Uploaded transcripts will be considered unofficial or preliminary. Official copies of your transcripts will only be required once you have been offered admission. This requirement will appear as Post-secondary Transcript under admission requirements on your Application Summary when you check your application status.

Uploading documents

Post-secondary Transcripts

If you receive an offer of admission, you will then be required to have your official post-secondary transcripts sent (by mail in a sealed envelope directly from the institution) to the address below. Please do not send official documents until we request them.

College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
Room 116 Thorvaldson Building, 110 Science Place 
Saskatoon, SK CANADA S7N 5C9

  • Transcripts usually indicate the institution’s name, grading scheme (typically on the back of the transcript), your name, course names, numbers, credits, and the grades you have received. Depending on the country or institution, some features may not be available.
  • Transcripts in languages other than English must be accompanied by a certified translation.
  • If you are a current University of Saskatchewan student completing your undergraduate program then a letter of completion of degree requirements will be required from your college.
Letter of Recommendation

When applying to the University of Saskatchewan campus, you will need to submit three letters of reference. Two of these referees must be academic, and one must be professional.

As an applicant, you are responsible for sending the reference letter links and updating the referee’s contact information. Through your application profile, you can update your referees, change your referee contact information, and send/re-send the link for the letter of reference. 
Proof of English language proficiency (if required)

For students who are required to provide proof of English proficiency:

  • It is your responsibility to have completed an official and approved test with the appropriate score before the application deadline.
  • Tests are valid for 24 months after the testing date and must be valid at the beginning of the student's first term of registration in the graduate program.
  • Applicants will be required to upload a PDF copy of any required language test score. Uploaded test scores will be considered unofficial or preliminary.

If you receive an Offer of Admission you may be required to have your official language test scores sent to the address below. Please do not send official documents until we request them.

College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies
Room 116 Thorvaldson Building - 110 Science Place
Saskatoon, SK CANADA S7N 5C9
Resume A current resume that includes background and relevant employment history.
Personal Statement / Letter of Intent The University of Saskatchewan requires that all Graduate Certificate applicants submit a personal statement, two pages maximum, that outlines your purpose in applying to the certificate program.

The Admissions Committee wants to see that you can clearly articulate your interests and ideas. You should make every effort to ensure your personal statement is free of spelling and grammatical errors, is properly referenced (if applicable) and is concise. 

For questions about the application process or requirements for the Graduate Certificate program, please contact:

Graduate Administrator | jsgs@usask.ca

Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy
Diefenbaker Building
101 Diefenbaker Place
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B8

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