Farmingdale State College is introducing a new bachelor's degree program designed to prepare graduates for roles in government, nonprofit leadership and industries driven by public policy.

The Public Administration and Policy program combines a core foundation in political science with coursework in economics, communications and law. At the very start of the program, students will be tasked with applying classroom concepts to real-world challenges, building skills for careers across the public, private and nonprofit sectors.

"The Public Administration and Policy program will help students get their first job but, in today's economy, they need the breadth to be able to move within and across industries and entire sectors," Michael Motta, an associate professor of political science at Farmingdale State, said in a news release about the program.

"We want the students to understand how government works and, more importantly, we want them to know how they can work." Motta said.

Focused on real-world practice and experiential learning, the program is designed to train students to apply research and analytical methods to design, implement and assess public policies across all levels of government, including fields such as energy, healthcare and technology. The program aims to prepare graduates with the grounding and practical skills needed for public administration roles in public, private and nonprofit organizations.

"The program draws on existing academic strengths across FSC's curriculum, including political science, geospatial information systems, history and other disciplines," Motta said. "Students are learning a common core regarding how change happens and, more importantly, how they can be part of that change."