Doctoral Education at the Washington Public Affairs Center

The Washington Public Affairs Center offered the Doctor of Public Administration degree for public officials in the Washington, D.C. area for nearly 28 years. In that time it awarded 192 doctorates, with recipients coming from all parts of the Federal government and many other public service organizations. It pioneered a unique educational delivery system, the Intensive Semester, which divided courses into three phases: preparation through extensive reading, processing new information acquired, and applying new knowledge. There were many other innovations. This book provides a review of that experience, largely from the perspectives of 24 who received the doctorate and who wrote essays. Faculty members at the Center also provided insights. The DPA degree was abolished by the University of Southern California in 1998, with the closing of the WPAC coming about two years later. The DPA, as a professional degree with a focus on practicing administrators in the public service, has been losing favor in the nation's universities. The end of the WPAC, while a major concern, raises questions both about the possibilities of innovation in our educational institutions and also about the extent to which our major learning centers see public service as a significant obligation.