Carleton University - School of Public Policy and Administration (MPA)

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Hello everyone! Hope all is well! I am a new member here and I am glad to have joined.

 

 

I have a deep interest in applying to the Masters of Public Administration program at Carleton University here in Ottawa. In April (2014) I will be finished my undergrad in Public Administration at the University of Ottawa

 

 

Politcs has always been an interest for me. I have always enjoyed political science. However, one of the things that bothers me about political science is the fact that it is rarely solutions based, which is one of the big reasons why I study public administration now and want to continue studies in the same field.

 

I also have a huge admiration for the public service. Having done an internship as a policy advisor at a government department here in Ottawa, it really solidified my admire for the public service. Governing; and how to do it better has been fascinating me.

 

I feel the Carleton program will open doors for me in not only in regards to mental stimulation, but also career paths.

 

I have had an "academic renaissance". I started to take school much more seriously in the last two years of my undergrad. My GPA for the past two years (60 credit) is looking to be between a 7.8 and a 8.0 (out of 10).

 

I wanted to ask you all about research interests. There are many policy fields that I am interested in but it is hard to pin-point. Even though I am interested in the course work option, should I still discuss research interests in the statement of intent? It also seems like it would be a good idea to contact a supervisor at the school before applying to discuss my research interests. Is this correct?

 

Should I mention this academic renaissance of mine in the statement of intent?  Or will they see the huge improvements in my transcript?

 

On a side note, I have two very strong recommendations who are willing to be a part of my application and I am currently working on a third. Carleton requires two but I would like 3 just in case, as professors can be very forgetful at times.