Master's Project Information for Clients

All master’s students in public policy are required to produce a professional report or Master’s Project (MP) that helps a client decide what to do about a policy problem. Its purpose is to recommend and defend a specific course of action. It is important to recognize that the MP is also a key component of a student’s academic program requirements and must be approved by a Sanford Institute Faculty Advisor. As such, the MP must measure up to the standards of good analysis, including precise definition of the problem, dispassionate evaluation of the evidence, identification of important trade-offs, and clear presentation of the results and recommendations.

MP Topics: An interesting policy problem is the starting point for a good MP. The main criterion for an acceptable Master's Project topic is a significant policy problem posed in the form of a "should" question: What should the client do? or How should the client do it? The goal of the Master's Project is to develop policy recommendations, not simply to describe or measure impacts of a particular policy.

What is Expected from the Client: The client should work closely with the student to develop an appropriate topic that is of practical use to the client. The student's Faculty Advisor will be involved in defining the topic and developing the research strategy for the MP. The student and client should plan to talk or meet periodically to discuss the shape and direction of the project over the course of the academic year.

Schedule: During the fall term, the student writes a prospectus, which must be approved by the Faculty Advisor and a faculty committee, and begins the research and writing of the project. During the spring term, the student completes the project. A draft project will be due to the Faculty Advisor in March; a final version is due both to the Faculty Advisor and to the client in April. Clients are encouraged to request that the student make a presentation of his or her project to the client's agency. Clients are invited to attend the short project presentations students make to faculty and peers at the Sanford Institute in April.

Support: Students welcome financial or in-kind assistance to help with the costs of their research.

Contact: Clients should feel free to contact the MPP Senior Program Coordinator for any clarification or advice on the progress of the Master's Project – Helene McAdams, at 919.613.9207.