On July 31, the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) announced that its Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation (COPRA) has accredited five new programs from China, the United States, and Vietnam. The Master of Public Affair at Zhejiang University becomes one of the members in the NASPAA accredited community. It receives a seven-year accreditation decision after going through a thorough review/accreditation process which combines program self-study, review by the Commission on Peer Review and Accreditation, and a two to three-day campus visit by a COPRA-appointed site visit team.
NASPAA is the global standard for public service education. Accredited programs share NASPAA’s commitment to transparent, effective, inclusive, and ethical public service. The NASPAA Standards ensure programs promote public service values, bound in the pursuit of programmatic improvement and educational quality. Each of these programs underwent a years-long process of self-study, site visit, and peer review, during which they demonstrated their commitment to the knowledge, research, and practice of public service.
NASPAA accreditation ensures that accredited programs are visible to their peers, through achievement of accreditation, and as participants in the peer review process. The validation of quality assists in the creation of partnerships, exchanges of best practices, and student transfer.
NASPAA accreditation gives programs the ability to showcase the competencies and skills each of their graduates possess. The self-study process helps programs identify what their students learn, and can demonstrate, in future public service careers.