The Bachelor of Law and Public Service (BLPS) program is designed for students seeking careers in law, public administration, public service, and community engagement. This interdisciplinary degree provides a direct pathway to graduate studies in law (JD) or public administration (MPA) while equipping students with essential knowledge and skills for public service roles. The program welcomes degree completion students, and non-traditional learners through flexible learning pathways.
Law and Public Service majors will develop a deep understanding of administrative practices related to public resource allocation and the broader multicultural and pluralistic factors that shape public organizations. Students will gain expertise in legal principles, municipal law, and legal techniques, applying these to analyze ongoing challenges in public administration. The curriculum emphasizes the ability to identify and evaluate institutional factors that influence public service delivery, including social class, race, gender, environmental, political, and cultural forces. Additionally, students will cultivate ethical reasoning skills essential for leadership in legal and public management settings.
This program is designed to prepare students for meaningful careers where they can drive change in their communities while maximizing educational efficiency through strategic graduate study pathways.
Program Choices:
- Students may enter the program as transfer or degree completion students.
- All general education requirements must be met prior to beginning the BLPS curriculum.
- Transfer students with an AA degree completed may enter the program directly, this includes SPCE, as well as current ROC and CAPA students.
- Students pursuing the Law School track will complete two vetting courses in their Junior year, Constitutional Law and Legal Analysis in the fall semester and Criminal Law in the spring.
- Performance in both vetting courses will determine viability for continuation to law school in the senior year.
Failure to successfully (2.0+ for each course and faculty recommendation) complete one of these courses will disallow continuation to law school. A student who cannot or chooses not to continue to law may request admission to the MPA 4+1 or continue to completion of the BLPS.
Total Program: 40 semester hours minimum
BLPS Curriculum:
10 courses / 40 semester hours
Course List
| Code |
Title |
Semester Hours |
| PADM 332 | Public Administration | 4 |
| PADM 333 | Ethics: Applications to Management and Administration | 4 |
| PADM 388 | Statistics | 3,4 |
| PADM 469 | Management of Change and Conflict | 4 |
| PADM 368 | Culture and Gender Issues in Management | 4 |
| PADM 314 | Local Government Management | 4 |
| PADM 436 | Policy-Making Process | 4 |
| PADM 439 | Organizational Behavior: Theory and Application | 4 |
| PADM 496 | Senior Project | 1-4 |
| Total Semester Hours | 32-36 |
Law Option
16 semester hours
Course List
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Title |
Semester Hours |
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FLEX
8 semester hours (possible options)
- Community Engagement
- Leadership Institute
- Law and Public Service Clinical Engagements
- Immigration Clinic
- Misdemeanor Appellate Advocacy Clinic
- Expungement Clinic