What can you do with an MPP or MPA?

• Communication: The course Arts of Communication taught me to deliver a compelling speech in 4 minutes or less. When I make videos for my company, I force myself to keep them within this 4-min limit and I often run them by the top student that was in that class with me to see what he thinks. I also use what I learned in this class about writing op-eds when writing guest posts as well.
• Public Narrative: In this course, I was taught how to craft and deliver my personal story to motivate others toward a common purpose. We learned the “Why me?” “Why us?” “Why now?” model of personal storytelling and I actually use that exact model to help convince people that I am the best admissions consultant in the business at getting nontraditionals into top business and policy schools.
• Financial and Reporting Control for Nonprofits: This accounting class was focused on nonprofits but it taught me all the ways I could get caught up with faulty and fraudulent practices and the importance of having internal controls.
• Followership: In this course, we learned the importance of looking beyond good leadership to learn what it means to be a good follower. We learned about the power followers have to support and build up leaders as well as tear them down and destroy them. I use what I learned in this class every day as I try to build up a base of raving fans for my business–and my writing!

The types of jobs you can get with an MPP or other similar degree from a top policy school:

Note: These jobs are for MPPs anywhere from 0-15 years out of school. Since professional school always has a focus on both the short-term and the long-term benefits to your career, I included job titles with a mix of years of work experience. These are real people from my LinkedIn network.

• Economist at The World Bank
• Global Cybersecurity Practice Lead at Good Harbor Consulting
• Project Manager at Ethiopian Global Initiative
• Economist at International Monetary Fund
• Policy Coordinator at Innovations for Poverty Action
• Director, Greenhouse Gas Management at BP
• Executive VP at Africa Aid
• Consultant to EOHHS Children Youth and Families at Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services
• Strategic Planner
• Manager, Strategic Planning at Boston Public Schools
• Monitoring & Evaluation Manager at TechnoServe
• Legislative Correspondent at The United States Senate
• Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Public Engagement at The White House
• Program Manager, City Connects at Boston College
• Program Officer at Millennium Challenge Corporation
• Energy and Income Generation Specialist at The Earth Institute, Columbia University
• Associate at the World Resources Institute
• Associate at Censeo Consulting Group
• Implementation Manager at McMaster-Carr
• Strategy Consultant at KPMG Sustainability
• Fellow at Open Capital Advisory
• Specialist in African Community Development
• Director, Recruiting and Career Development at Oblong Industries Inc
• Case Team Leader at Monitor 360
• President, Environment & Enterprise Strategies
• Executive Director at Youth Venture
• CEO at New Mexico Green Chamber of Commerce
• Director of Business Development, Acumen Fund
• Executive Director at New Mexico Independent Power Producers
• Healthcare Entrepreneur and General Manager at DaVita
• Executive Director at Equality North Carolina
• Senior Director, Alumni Relations at Harvard Kennedy School
• Director of Influence Projects at Year Up
• Consultant at The Bridgespan Group
• Consultant at The Boston Consulting Group
• Management Consultant at McKinsey & Company
• Executive Director at The Cambridge-Roxbury Foundation
• Economic Policy Legislative Assistant at United States Senate
• Director of Special Projects at New Teacher Center
• Consultant at Bain & Company
• Advisor at Mexico’s Ministry of Finance
• Lead Research Fellow, UNDP
• Chief of Staff at The Boston Foundation
• Manager of Social Media at Dell Services, Strategy and Business Consultant
• Director of Operations and Strategic Planning at Year Up
• Managing Director at District Management Council
• Senior Policy Analyst at 1199 SEIU
• Associate at Standard & Poor’s – Municipal Enterprise – Housing/Structured Finance
• Executive Director at Generation Rwanda
• Chief of Staff at US Congressman Chet Edwards
• Writer & President at EDUBERRY Institute of Global Education
• Director of Student Attendance at DC Public Schools
• Policy Analyst at MassBudget
• Program Examiner, Health at Office of Management and Budget
• Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State
• Revenue & Performance Management at City of Houston
• Program Development Consultant and Contractor
• Grade Chair and Lead Teacher at Blackstone Valley Prep
• Special Assistant for Cyber Policy at the United States Department of Defense
• Deputy Project Manager at MAXIMUS
• Founder of Our Global Victory
• Director of Special Programs, DIV at USAID
• Adjunct Professor, Social Entrepreneurship at New York University
• Senior Change Manager at Ashoka: Innovators for the Public
• Managing Director at India Internet Fund
• Presidential Management Fellow at U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
• Consultant – Governance for Extractive Industries at The World Bank
• Managing Partner at The Fuentes Consulting Group
• Chief Executive Officer at RWL Water, LLC
• Entrepreneurial Advisory Board at the City of Cambridge
• Program Manager at Institute for War and Peace Reporting
• Outreach Director at Wealth for the Common Good
• Chief of Staff for the Deputy Chief of Teaching and Learning at District of Columbia Public Schools
• Policy Director at Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
• Associate Client Advisor at Bridgewater Associates

If getting an education that would prepare you for these types of jobs sounds great to you, you should definitely consider getting a policy degree.