Course Catalog
Policy in Action
90-879
Units: 6
Description
Policy in Action is a full year course offered in the fall and spring semesters to Heinz policy students in Washington, DC. The aim of the course is to provide students with a deep dive into 4 distinct policy areas, two each semester. The goal of the course is to inform students about a variety of important policy issues as well as give students the confidence to understand that the skills that they are learning at Heinz are adaptable to different policy areas. As a future public interest leader, students will need to gain understanding and professional fluency on a wide variety of policy issues; and as future policy professionals, being able to pivot confidently into new policy areas will be critical to forging a resilient and impactful career. This is a second year course, so students should have completed the first year MSPPM core curriculum in Pittsburgh before taking this class.
Learning Outcomes
Overall Course
● To understand, explain and track the legislative policy making process as a way to influence policy making on a wide variety of issues.
● Ability to read and understand legislation, with an introduction to drafting legislation
● Apply public policy tools to a wide range of current policy topics.
● Each module of the course (2 per semester) will include detailed learning objectives for that module; please refer to the module write up for that information.