The Master of Public Policy (MPP) provides students with opportunities to conduct research and contribute to the study of public policy and the application of policy expertise in the real world. Students graduating from this program possess the research skills necessary to play integral roles in the civil service, research organizations and industry associations. Top students from this program may go on to doctoral programs in public policy.

The program is designed so that students can finish in as little as 16-24 months of studying full time. Upon entry into the program, each student is assigned a research advisor and an advisory committee.

Students entering the MPP program are required to participate in the Get Connected! academic orientation for new students, which is held in early September.

As one of Canada's leading schools for policy analysis and research, the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy is making a difference by concentrating its research capacity on three main priority areas:

• Social Policy and Inequality
• Governance
• Innovation, Science and Technology Policy

JSGS faculty are committed to encouraging student involvement on research projects, grant applications, seminar series, and other opportunities for knowledge translation. As such the school has on average three to five fully funded fellowships to support Master of Public Policy students.

Reseach Supervisors

It is not necessary to find a potential supervisor before you begin an application. The list below though may be helpful to learn about the individual research interests of our faculty.

JSGS faculty	Areas of research interest
Michael Atkinson	Structure of government, Political economy of public policy, Ethics and corruption
Daniel Béland	Comparative public policy, Fiscal policy, Social policy, Political sociology, Historical and comparative sociology
Cheryl Camillo	Public administration , Health administration , Comparative health policy , Health system reform , Canadian and United States public policy , Social policy , Inequality and inequity
Alana Cattapan	Stakeholder engagement in health policy making in Canada , Reproductive biotechnologies , Gender and public engagement in Canada , Medicalization and the social construction of health and illness , Science and innovation policy
Ken Coates	Regional innovation;University education and higher education generally; Aboriginal rights and land claims; Science and technology policy; Japan and Canada-Asia relations; Northern development/Circumpolar affairs
Bruno Dupeyron	Comparative politics; Multilevel governance; Processes of regional integration; Public action in the international and transnational fields; Border governance; Strategies of institutional building in the European Union, NAFTA and the Mercosur; Immigration policy
Brett Fairbairn	Governance and innovation in non-profit enterprises, Membership, participation, and organizational identity, History of democracy and democratic movements, Co-operatives in the new economy
Murray Fulton	Behavioural economics, Governance, Co-operatives and the social economy, Agricultural and resource policy
Robert Hawkins	Administrative law (public inquiries, bias, standards of review), Constitutional law (crown prerogative and conventions), Post-secondary education policy
Margot Hurlbert	Law, Government policy, Aboriginal governance, Environment and sustainability, Social justice
Tarun Katapally	Population health interventions; Active living research; Child and youth health; Built environment and health; Aboriginal health; Health policy
Iryna Khovrenkov	Economics of charities, Foundation and leadership giving, Applied microeconomics, Public economics and tax policy
Justin Longo	Applied information and communication technologies (i.e., open governance, open government, Web 2.0 technologies, etc.), Public policy studies, Environmental and natural resource policy, Transboundary governance
Kathleen McNutt	Digital government; Social Media; Policy Analysis; Program Evaluation
Haizhen Mou	Health policy; Fiscal policy
Peter Phillips	Science, technology and innovation policy; International political economy; Regulation, governance and trade policy; Decision making theory and behavioural experimentation
Ken Rasmussen	Public enterprise management; Administrative reform; Administrative history; Non-profit organizations; Ethics and leadership; Provincial politics
Jeremy Rayner	Global forest governance; Resource, environmental and energy policies; Policy theory (especially institutionalism and problems of policy change)
Peggy Schmeiser	Secularism/Religion law and policy, Science and innovation policy, Culture and heritage policy
Elizabeth Schwartz	Climate change policy, Energy policy, Environmental policy, Local government and governance, Qualitative research methodology
Amy Zarzeczny	Health law, Health and science policy, Governance of emerging, unproven and experimental medical interventions and biomedical technologies, Medical tourism

The MPP is a research-based degree that involves a combination of course work, research, and the writing of a thesis. Students are required to complete a minimum of 15 credit units of course work. Once an applicant has been admitted, the program of studies (i.e., selection of appropriate courses) will be determined.

Minimum one course (3 credit units) from the following:

• JSGS 805 - Economics for Public Policy Analysis
• JSGS 862 - Political Economy
• JSGS 865 - Decision Making in Organizations

Minimum one course (3 credit units) from the following:

• JSGS 806 - Public Policy Analysis
• JSGS 867 - Advanced Policy Analysis

Minimum one course (3 credit units) from the following:

• JSGS 817 - Health Policy
• JSGS 846 - Co-operatives in the New Economy:  Institutions, Policy and Sustainability
• JSGS 849 - Social Economy and Public Policy
• JSGS 854 - Higher Education Policy
• JSGS 859 - Innovation Policy
• JSGS 863 - Indigenous Peoples and Public Policy
• JSGS 864 - Social Policy: Interdisciplinary Perspectives
• JSGS 870 - Water Policy in an Age of Uncertainty

Minimum one course (3 credit units) from the following:

• JSGS 803 - Quantitative Methods
• JSGS 851 - Qualitative Methods

The remaining elective course (3 credit units) must be selected from the courses offered by the school. The rules and regulations of the university through which the course is taken will apply to the student.  

Students must also registered in the two following courses: 

• JSGS 990 or JSGS 990AB Seminar Series (continuous registration required)
• JSGS 994 Research (U of S campus students - continuous registration required) OR JSGS 901 Research (U of R students)

Students at the U of S campus must also complete (in their first term of study) GSR 960 Introduction to Ethics and Integrity. This is a non-credit, online course required by the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies and is at no cost to the student.

The Johnson Shoyama Graduate School (JSGS) offers MPP students the opportunity to enhance their postgraduate work with an internship in the federal or provincial public service, municipal government, the Saskatchewan School Boards Association or in health services research. The many concrete benefits to interns in the Johnson Shoyama Executive Internship Program include initial job placement, valuable career preparation and experience, the development of an extensive professional network as well as accelerated professional growth and advancement.

• More Information

Students will enter the program from a wide variety of disciplines - including everything from the fine arts, to the humanities, to the social sciences, to the physical sciences, to the professional college disciplines - are eligible. Because concepts derived from micro-economics and statistics are used in parts of the program, students without a background in these areas are encouraged to take additional non-credit instruction, which may be offered by the school.

University of Regina

To meet the entrance requirements of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, all applicants must have completed a four-year undergraduate degree in any area with a GPA of at least 75 per cent.

• Learn how to apply

University of Saskatchewan

To meet the entrance requirements of the College of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, applicants must have completed a four-year undergraduate degree from a recognized university. To meet the basic program requirements, an average of 75 per cent or better must be maintained during the final two years (60 credit units) of the undergraduate program or in the graduate program if students are entering the MPP after a graduate degree.

• Learn how to apply

Funding

Highly qualified students who are engaged in the program on a full-time basis will receive funding at a competitive rate to support their research. MPP students must commit to completing the program over a maximum of two academic years to be eligible for this funding.

All complete applications received by February 1, will automatically be considered for funding.

In addition to potential funding from the school, there are scholarships and awards available for students at the University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan.

• University of Regina Scholarships and Funding
• University of Saskatchewan Scholarships and Funding

Tuition

For the 2017-18 academic year, tuition is approximately $1,412/term plus graduate student fees, as well as an international surcharge (if applicable). Continuous registration for all students in the MPP program is required – that is, students must register in all three terms each academic year until their program is completed.