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  • RELEVANT

    Our world is changing rapidly, creating opportunity but also inequity. Poverty, affordable housing, climate change, criminal justice reform, health, education, migration – these are among society’s most pressing issues. At UCLA, students are stepping up to meet these challenges head-on, and the Public Affairs Undergraduate Program gives them the skills to succeed. Students in Public Affairs learn to analyze information, use evidence for decision making, and make compelling arguments for collective action. They develop the skills needed to go into the community and apply their scholarship in nonprofit organizations, private ventures, government agencies, advocacy groups, and other settings. Public Affairs prepares our future leaders to immediately and effectively bring about social change.

  • RIGOROUS

    The Public Affairs Undergraduate Program provides a multidisciplinary foundation in social science theories, data collection and analysis, critical thinking, and written and oral communication. Students can delve into topics such as social movements and their policy underpinnings, microeconomics and human development, and the use of statistics to inform and persuade. This undergraduate experience prepares students for careers in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, and for graduate study in fields such as law, public policy, social welfare, urban planning, education, or any of the social sciences. Public Affairs is also a complementary education for science or engineering students who wish to concentrate on policy issues.

  • REWARDING

    Public Affairs students step into the real world to put their scholarship and skills to work. Through the B.A. in Public Affairs students conduct a three-quarter-length capstone project that provides an immersive learning experience in a wide variety of settings. However they choose to structure their education, students can connect with community-based organizations, regional governments, and private companies, or pursue projects through UC’s international, Washington, D.C., or Sacramento programs. This exceptional opportunity provides first-hand experience at the intersection of governance, corporate citizenship, civil society, and grassroots activism.

Academic Programs

Bachelor of Arts in Public Affairs

The world needs agents of social change whose passion to improve people’s lives is matched by the knowledge and skills to deliver results. UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs will help cultivate this next generation of civic-minded leaders.

The B.A. in Public Affairs offers an in-depth and engaged educational experience with a clear public service ethos. Drawing from UCLA Luskin’s expansive resources in Public Policy, Social Welfare, and Urban Planning, the major combines critical thinking, social science methodology, and experiential learning, connecting the dots between theory and action.

Learn more about the major!

Minors

The Luskin School of Public Affairs offers three minor programs.

The Minor in Public Affairs teaches students the skills of policy analysis and exposes them to the many issues facing today’s policymakers and opinion leaders. The Minor in Urban and Regional Studies offers students a means to address some of the most pressing issues faced by our cities and communities at the urban and regional level. The Minor in Gerontology provides students with a foundational understanding of the current state of science related to human aging and enables them to contribute, personally and professionally, to a diverse aging society.

Learn more about the minors!

News

Kian Goh is an assistant professor of urban planning. Photo by Ye Rin Mok

A New Role for a Climate Justice Expert  As associate faculty director at the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy, Kian Goh brings a global perspective on environmental issues

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As associate faculty director at the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy, Kian Goh brings a global perspective on environmental issues

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A project called CiBiC, for Civic Bicycle Commuting, is intended to make commuting by bike safer and more accessible.

Bike Commuting Project Designed by UCLA Team Earns $1 Million Award CiBiC initiative, which will create digital art in real time, advances in NSF competition

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CiBiC initiative, which will create digital art in real time, advances in NSF competition.

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The U.S. Census Bureau sends representatives into the field to improve response rates, but some groups will likely remain undercounted in the 2020 enumeration. Photo by FG Trade / iStock

Where 2020 Census Undercounts Were Most Likely in L.A. County Neighborhoods with lower incomes, more immigrants were less likely to be accurately counted, CNK analysis finds

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Neighborhoods with lower incomes, more immigrants were less likely to be accurately counted, CNK analysis finds

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