Admissions Decision Making in Master of Public Administration Programs: Affirmative Inaction?

Abstract

Published admissions standards typically include factors such as test scores, grades, and letters of recommendation. Yet there is little direct evidence in the literature on how these criteria as well as race and sex are actually utilized in student selection. That is, what are the operative rules in admissions decisions? This study reports the results of a survey of the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration principal representatives. Each respondent was presented an applicant profile booklet designed to estimate the impact of grades, GRE scores, references, race, and gender on admission decisions. In the findings we discuss how these variables are considered in the selection process. The analysis concludes with a commentary on the implications of the data for Master of Public Administration programs, and their admissions practices.

Do I Have to Take the GRE? Standardized Testing in MPA Admissions

“…Bowman's (1988, 871) analysis not only reinforces the ubiquity of the GRE; it also supports its use in some circumstances, noting that "GRE scores, especially when consistent with other evidence…can lead to more informed judgments." In a related study, Bowman and Mangelsdorf (1989) asked NASPAA principal representatives to participate in an experiment in which they made admissions decisions on a series of fictitious candidates who varied by grade point average (GPA), GRE, quality of letters of recommendation, race, and sex. GRE scores were a common and important predictor of the representatives' ultimate decisions on whether to admit a candidate-falling second only to undergraduate GPA.…”