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International Public Service Project (3 credit hours)

Course Description

The Clinton School's International Public Service Project program is designed to provide a practical or 'hands-on' experience in the Master of Public Service degree program, with placement in a public service agency or organization that is located overseas or carries out international work within the continental United States. Clinton School projects are designed to allow students to participate in the daily activities of the public service agency, serving as an integral member of the organizational staff. Past Clinton School students have served on all six of the world's inhabited continents. Click here to learn about some of those projects.

As part of the project, a student is expected to engage in a public service project that builds on the knowledge and skills gained in the first two semesters of the Clinton School curriculum, along with learning acquired from prior academic and pubic service experience. The student is expected to work directly with the host agency to both plan and implement the project. The purpose of the International Public Service Project is to provide enrolled students an opportunity to experience some type of public service that is well outside their previous acquaintance, stretching their boundaries of existing knowledge and skills.

Prerequisites
Completion of required core courses (13 credit hours) of the Master of Public Service degree program with a cumulative 3.0 GPA or higher.

Course Objectives

  1. Develop an understanding of the host agency or organization, its method of service delivery, its networks, its local and international resources, and its constituents and constituent groups.
  2. Increase the knowledge of ongoing and emerging public service issues faced by the host agency or organization and the host country.
  3. Increase the student's understanding of how domestic and international public service issues relate to and interact across international borders.
  4. Contribute meaningfully to the work of the host agency or organization by carrying out a public service project that is in alignment with the agency's mission.
  5. Frame the activities of the entire summer project within the context of advancing the public good, as expressed in the vision, values, and mission of the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service.

Course-related Programmatic Objectives

  • Exploring ethical and legal parameters of public service in the host agency.
  • Understanding the management/policy context of host agency programs.
  • Reviewing global leadership capacities of the host agency's staff and directors.
  • Studying the communications/marketing strategies of the host agency.
  • Assessing the effectiveness of the social change programs of the host agency.
  • Summarizing the economic, social and political development impacts of the host agency's work.
  • Defining the ways that the host agency partners with or collaborates with other similar groups to carry out its mission.