Public Services Policy & Management

Public Services Policy & Management is comparative and international in focus. The MSc equips you to understand and evaluate policy options for organising and delivering contemporary public services. The programme is for both mid-career managers and recent graduates planning to enter public and voluntary sector Non Governmental Organisations.

Watch the video here, or access the 'interactive' tab to view at a larger size and see any alternative films playOverviewVideo('/prospectus/images/home.jpg','http://podcast.ulcc.ac.uk/accounts/kings/KCL_Marketing/Kings_College_Management_Course.flv','true','details_23'); KEY BENEFITS

• Regular and senior speakers from UK-based government departments, public sector bodies, NGOs and policy-making units who discuss the implementation and evaluation of Public Services policy.
• Offers opportunities to select different Public Service areas for in-depth study, drawing on King's-wide expertise.
• Combines in-depth treatment of underlying principles with practical applications, including Human Resource Management and Design of Programme Evaluations.

PURPOSEThe MSc equips students to understand and evaluate policy options for organising and delivering high-quality Public Services. It combines study of theoretical concepts with analysis of real world policies and their lessons for managers and policy-makers.

DESCRIPTIONComparative and international in focus, the programme is suitable both for career professionals and for recent social science graduates. It is built around taught core modules, which include: Political Economy of the Public Services; Economics and Management of the Public Services; Management, Finance and Accounting; Human Resource Management in the Public Services; Research Methods (quantitative and qualitative). Optional modules relate to specific Public Service areas, including Health; Education and Defence but also include in-depth modules on Policy Design; Strategic Management in the Public Services and Leadership and Innovation. You may take options from more than one area (some optional modules are provided by other Departments. Places on such non-departmental options may be capped).

There is an emphasis on effective provision of public services (including their evaluation), and on the lessons of the 'new public management'; by comparison, the MA in Public Policy emphasises the analysis and understanding of the political process.

Seminars are central to the course and focus on current research and policy implementation. They involve senior policy-makers and practitioners including individuals actively involved with current UK government policymaking. There is an active alumni network which organises events during the year, including seminars for current students.