Master in public affairs: core courses

The School of Public Affairs requires all students to successfully complete five core courses.

Public policy

The module provides students with a general introduction to public policy-making and public policy analysis. It is organised in three sections. In the first of these, students will be introduced to the core techniques of public policy analysis. The second section of the module is concerned with public policy dynamics - how public policy change occurs and how we might evaluate the success or failure of such change. A consistent theme is the evaluation of public policy and how such evaluation (and the policy learning it prompts) feeds into the evolution of policy over time. The third section of the module is concerned with the influence on the form and content of public policy of the changing context(s) in which it takes place today. Particular emphasis is placed on the influence of globalisation, austerity and the difficulties of designing and evaluating policy choices in a context of risk, uncertainty and crisis.

Macro-economics for public policy

This course introduces concepts and tools used in macroeconomic analysis for public policy: the theory, measurement, and determination of national income ; fiscal policy, budget deficits, and the national debt ; aggregate supply and aggregate demand ; money, banking, and monetary policy ; exchange rates and balance of payments accounts ; and stabilization policy for unemployment and inflation. The course aims to develop an understanding of macroeconomic policy using empirical and theoretical tools, with a special attention to empirical and institutional data for France, Europe and other major economies.

Publics economics

The course discusses the main theoretical and empirical tools of public economics and applies them to the analysis of taxation, redistribution, pensions, education, health care. It also discusses budget analysis and deficit financing. The course combines both normative and positive analysis not only formulating the rationale for government intervention but also discussing how governments work in reality given that governments are not necessarily benevolent, omniscient and omnipotent.

Leadership, management and organizational change

This course is to introduce the students to the concepts and tools of modern management. This will help the students understand the functioning of the private sector and of NGOs. The course will cover leadership, developing and executing a strategy, management of human resources including hiring, appraising, and incentivizing talent, management of for-profit and non-profit organizations.

Policy implementation

In the Semester 1, students have learned how and why policies are chosen. This course’s goal is to show how policies are implemented in practice – and what lessons should be drawn for policy design. The course will be taught as a collection of case that will demonstrate the role of strategic planning, communication, psychological and cognitive biases, and the importance of taking into account the interests of internal and external stakeholders.