SIPA: School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University

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Master of Public Administration and Law

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30 SIPA credits + 83 Law School credits 10 of the 83 credits required for the JD can be taken at SIPA
3 semesters in residence at SIPA + 5 semesters in residence at the Law School

MPA/J.D. Dual Degree Curriculum Overview

Dual-degree students are required to fulfill the SIPA and Law School core requirements outlined below. For a list of courses that fulfill SIPA core requirements, please refer to the SIPA Registration Guide produced at the beginning of each semester.

Core Requirements – SIPA

U6110 Politics of Policymaking (4 credits)
U8200 Public Management (3 credits)
U8213/U8216 Microeconomics and Policy Analysis I/II (6 credits)
U6310 Quantitative Techniques (3 credits)
U4040 Professional Development (1 credit)
U9013 Internship (0-6 credits)

Financial Analysis Requirement:

(students must take one of the following courses)
U6416 Budgeting for Non-Profits (3 credits)
U8201 Budgeting for Government (3 credits)
U6014 Accounting for International and Public Affairs (3 credits)
U6022 Economics of Finance (3 credits)

Capstone Courses:

(students must take one of the following courses)
U9000 MPA Workshop or Concentration Workshop (3 credits)
U9300/9301 Public Policy Clinic (6 credits)

General requirements for the J.D. degree for Law students approved to pursue the joint JD/MPA degree with SIPA

  • 83 academic points (10 of which can be taken at SIPA)
  • 5 terms of full-time residency
  • 2 writing credits, at least one of which is a major writing credit
  • 40 hours of certified pro bono work
  • All required courses (Legal Methods, Contracts, Torts, Civil Procedure, Legal Practice Workshop, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law and Professional Responsibility, 1L Elective ).

For a full explanation of J.D. requirements, students should visit http://www.law.columbia.edu/academics/registrar/gradreq

Contact Information - SIPA

Office of Admissions                                                    
408 IAB, 854-6216                                                    
http://www.sipa.columbia.edu/admissions/
Matt Clemons, Director, Admissions                            
mc2793@columbia.edu           

Office of Computing
1513B IAB, 854-8347
http://www.sipa.columbia.edu/sipac/
Harpreet Mahajan, Director
mahajan@columbia.edu

Office of Career Services         
420 IAB, 854-4613    
http://www.sipa.columbia.edu/ocs/
Meg Heenehan, Director
mh374@columbia.edu            

Office of Student Affairs                                                          
612 IAB, 854-8690                                                                
http://www.sipa.columbia.edu/prog/
Caroline Kay, Assistant Dean                                      
cck11@columbia.edu
Claudio Vargas, Assistant Director, Financial Aid         
csv3@columbia.edu

Law School Contact Information

Office of Admissions
Suite 513, Wm & June Warren Hall
Admissions@law.columbia.edu
Phone:(212) 854-2670
Fax: (212) 854-1109                                                   

Information Technology Department
Jerome Greene Hall 731 or 216I
helpdesk@law.columbia.edu
Phone: (212) 854-1370

Office of Career Services
Jerome Greene Annex  (next to Faculty House)
careerservices@law.columbia.edu
Phone: (212) 854-5672

Student Services
5th Floor, Wm & June Warren Hall
Student_Services@law.columbia.edu   
(212) 854-2395

Registration Services
Suite 500, Wm & June Warren Hall
Registrar@law.columbia.edu
Phone: (212) 854-2668                                   

Law School Financial Aid
Suite 509, Wm & June Warren Hall
Financial_Aid@law.columbia.edu
(212) 854-6522