Real-world experience is an important part of the MPP program. Here are five notable ways MPP students receive hands-on opportunities to hone their skills.
Spring Consulting Projects
Teams of first-year MPP students serve as consultants to clients. The semester begins with a 72-hour memo experience and ends with client recommendations. Students define a problem, frame a policy question, conduct interviews in the field, research and develop policy options, undertake analysis, draw conclusions, and make recommendations.
The project helps prepare students for their master’s projects and gives them concrete experience to show future employers.
If you are an organization or an agency with a policy question that needs answering and you are interested in being a client, explore more information on the Spring Consulting Project.
Brittany Gabriel MPP'24 gives insight into the 72-Hour Memo project.
Worldwide Internships
MPP students also complete a required internship. Students test new analytical tools, make connections for their master’s projects and/or determine areas for further study.
MPP students have interned at organizations such as:
- The White House
- The World Bank
- UNICEF, India
- US Agency for International Development
- Action Aid, Ghana
- FBI: Counterintelligence Unit
- Booz Allen Hamilton
- US Senate Finance Committee
- World Health Organization
- UN Environmental Programme
Capstone Research Project
All students work closely with a faculty advisor while completing a yearlong capstone master’s project.
Jordan Wilson MPP'24 actually parlayed his capstone project into a dream job! A fifth-generation San Franciscan, Jordan is headed home to work in the mayor's office. "I was able to leverage my master’s project to get a role there," he says. "I’ll be working on various policy initiatives, and implementing my master’s project, which aims to advance career technical education in public schools in San Francisco." Jordan plans to build the program in a local high school and construct a pipeline to employers for local public-school students. Read more about Jordan and his Sanford experience.
Citizen Experience Lab
The goal of the CX Lab is to improve the citizen experience working directly with organizations in the Durham community. Using human-centered design, students work with local organizations to design improved customer and employee experience. Student teams act as consultants to local organizations, using the design process of Discover, Design and Deliver, to understand, improve and measure the user experience.
Sanford Board Leadership Initiative
This initiative places MPP students as non-voting members on local nonprofit leadership boards for one calendar year. The partnership offers nonprofits strategic support from graduate students with policy-specific knowledge and the opportunity for students to learn about nonprofit governance.
Client-Focused Opportunities
Sanford offers many ways for students to gain additional real-world experience in policymaking. For example, we have a Policy Lab where students research policy questions for policymakers, issue advocates, and other change agents.