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THE POLICY
RESEARCH PROJECT
The MPP
program culminates in a mandatory two-quarter seminar devoted to
individual preparation of a major policy research paper. The objective
is to require students to carry out an in-depth investigation of
a real policy question and to frame the problem in its wider social
context. Students are encouraged to grapple in the paper with the
challenges of policy implementation, just as they would be required
to do in actual public service. The seminar incorporates segments
on effective oral and written communication to policy audiences.
Each year, the Department presents awards of achievement to the
top three research projects
Examples
of student research projects include:
- The Health
Insurance Wars: Who is the Winner?
- Implementation
of Proposition 227: Direct Democracy, Decentralization, and Education.
- Enhancing
Army Multinational Force Compatibility
- Social Enterprising
and Venture Philanthropy
- Privatization
in Municipal Wastewater Treatment: Designing Effective Contracts
- Spatial Redistribution
of Point Source Emissions in South Coast AQMD After Implementation
of Tradable Permits Program
- Small Is
Important: Public Policy on Small Business in Shenzhen, China
- The Effect
of Voter Approval on Transportation Planning in Four California
Counties
- Triggering
International Justice: The Role of the Security Council in the
International Criminal Court
- Implementing
CALWORKS Support Services: An Evaluation of Los Angeles County’s
Child Care Plan
- The Feasibility
of Longer Hours in the Los Angeles Unified School District
Wherever
possible, faculty teaching in the seminar are supplemented with
guest lectures from practicing policy professionals, who also are
available to advise students on strategies for dealing with their
chosen topics.
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