Social Sciences

Master of Science in Public Administration and Leadership

The Master of Science in Public Administration and Leadership is a postgraduate programme that prepares professionals for advanced practice in public administration, governance, and leadership. The programme provides specialised training in public policy, leadership theory, governance, strategic management, organisational behaviour, and public sector reform.

Core areas include public administration principles, leadership theories, governance and development, strategic management, organisational behaviour, ethics and accountability, public finance, research methods, and thesis. Students engage with both theoretical and practical work through coursework, case studies, and research.

The programme is offered by Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology as a public institution and Mount Kenya University as a private institution. Both universities offer the programme over two years through full-time and part-time study, combining coursework with research.

Students develop competencies in public administration, leadership, governance, strategic management, policy analysis, ethics, and research. The programme includes coursework, examinations, case studies, and a supervised research thesis, preparing graduates for public sector leadership, governance, and administrative roles.

JKUAT charges approximately KES 126,000 per year while Mount Kenya University charges approximately KES 130,000 per year. Entry requires at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree in a relevant field from a recognised institution.

Graduates pursue careers as public administrators, policy analysts, governance officers, leadership consultants, county government officials, and lecturers across national government, county governments, NGOs, and private sector organisations.

Skills Required

Public Administration and Governance
Leadership Theory and Practice
Strategic Management in the Public Sector
Public Policy Analysis
Organisational Behaviour and Change Management
Ethics and Accountability in Leadership
Public Finance and Budgeting
Governance and Development
Research Methods in Public Administration
Academic Writing and Thesis Research

Key Subjects

Public Administration Principles
Leadership Theories and Philosophies
Governance, Law and Development
Strategic Management and Leadership
Organisational Behaviour and Change
Ethics and Accountability in Leadership
Public Finance and Budgeting
Gender in Leadership and Governance
Research Methods in Public Administration
Thesis Research

Certifications

KSG Professional Certification
IASIA Professional Membership

Specializations

Transformative Leadership

Focuses on transformative leadership, covering leadership, transformation, teams, change, and managing transformative leadership in organisations.

Governance and Development

Examines governance and development, covering governance, development, public, corporate, and managing governance and development.

Public Policy and Administration

Covers public policy and administration, covering policy, public, administration, analysis, and managing public policy and administration.

Strategic Leadership

Focuses on strategic leadership, covering strategy, leadership, management, planning, and managing strategic leadership in organisations.

Ethics and Accountability

Examines ethics and accountability, covering ethics, accountability, leadership, governance, and managing ethics and accountability in leadership.

Electoral Governance

Covers electoral governance, covering elections, governance, frameworks, regulation, and managing electoral governance and leadership.

Duration: 2 years
Public, up to: Ksh 187,200
Job market: High

The programme

What you study, how long it takes, and how it is delivered.

Practicalities

Study mode: Full-time, Part-time
Attachment: 0 months
Average class: 25 students
Award: Masters

What you study

10 subjects

Public Administration Principles
Leadership Theories and Philosophies
Governance, Law and Development
Strategic Management and Leadership
Organisational Behaviour and Change
Ethics and Accountability in Leadership
Public Finance and Budgeting
Gender in Leadership and Governance
Research Methods in Public Administration
Thesis Research

Modules

12 in the programme

Social Science Research Methods
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines research, methods, social science, design, and managing social science research methods for public administration.
Philosophies and Theories of Leadership
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers leadership, philosophies, theories, practice, and managing leadership philosophies and theories.
Organisational Management and Leadership
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines organisations, management, leadership, behaviour, and managing organisational management and leadership.
Ethics and Accountability in Leadership
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Covers ethics, accountability, leadership, governance, and managing ethics and accountability in leadership.
Gender in Leadership and Governance
Year 1Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines gender, leadership, governance, equality, and managing gender in leadership and governance.
Governance, Law and Development
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers governance, law, development, public, and managing governance, law and development.
Strategic Management and Leadership
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines strategy, management, leadership, planning, and managing strategic management and leadership.
Leading Organisational Change
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers change, organisations, leadership, management, and managing and leading organisational change.
Organisational Behaviour
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Examines behaviour, organisations, psychology, management, and managing organisational behaviour.
Research Methodology in Leadership and Governance
Year 1Semester 23 creditsCore
Covers research, methodology, leadership, governance, and conducting research in leadership and governance, preparing students for their thesis.
Public Governance
Year 2Semester 13 creditsCore
Examines public governance, covering public, governance, institutions, reform, and managing public governance.
Research Thesis
Year 2Semester 212 creditsCore
Original supervised research thesis on a public administration or leadership topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and public administration knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Specialisations

Transformative Leadership
Focuses on transformative leadership, covering leadership, transformation, teams, change, and managing transformative leadership in organisations.
Governance and Development
Examines governance and development, covering governance, development, public, corporate, and managing governance and development.
Public Policy and Administration
Covers public policy and administration, covering policy, public, administration, analysis, and managing public policy and administration.
Strategic Leadership
Focuses on strategic leadership, covering strategy, leadership, management, planning, and managing strategic leadership in organisations.
Ethics and Accountability
Examines ethics and accountability, covering ethics, accountability, leadership, governance, and managing ethics and accountability in leadership.
Electoral Governance
Covers electoral governance, covering elections, governance, frameworks, regulation, and managing electoral governance and leadership.

A day as a student

A typical day during the MSc in Public Administration and Leadership programme combines lectures, case studies, group discussions, seminars, and independent study. Sessions cover public administration, leadership, governance, and strategic management. Public administration sessions examine administration, public, governance, policy, and managing public administration. Leadership sessions cover leadership, theories, philosophies, practice, and managing leadership theory and practice. Governance sessions cover governance, law, development, public, and managing governance and development. Strategic management sessions cover strategy, management, leadership, planning, and managing strategic management and leadership. Organisational behaviour sessions cover behaviour, organisations, change, management, and managing organisational behaviour and change. Ethics sessions cover ethics, accountability, leadership, governance, and managing ethics and accountability. Public finance sessions cover finance, public, budgeting, management, and managing public finance and budgeting. Gender sessions cover gender, leadership, governance, equality, and managing gender in leadership and governance. Research methods sessions cover research, design, methods, ethics, and conducting research in public administration. Case studies provide practical experience in analysing real-world public administration and leadership scenarios. Seminars provide opportunities for presenting research findings. The programme culminates in a supervised research thesis on a public administration or leadership topic.

The trade offs

In its favour

Programme combines public administration with leadership, providing integrated skills for public sector and governance roles.
Programme offered at both public and private universities providing choice.
Highly relevant to Kenya's devolved government system creating demand for public administration and leadership skills.
Graduates may interact with KSG for public sector training and EACC for governance standards.

Against it

Only two universities confirmed offering this exact programme name.
Programme name varies across institutions, causing potential confusion.
Programme may require relevant work experience for Lower Second Class holders.
Fees are relatively similar across institutions, limiting cost-based choice.

What it costs

Tuition at both ends of the market, and how to pay for it.

What it costs, and where

Against 241 social sciences courses

Public126k to 187k

126k at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology187k at Moi University

Annual tuition in Kenyan shillings, rounded. The upright tick is the median for this field, so a bar sitting entirely to its right is an expensive programme by the standards of its own subject.

The fine print

Moi ~187K/yr (worldscholarshipforum). JKUAT ~126K/yr (applyscholars). Private: unverified.

HELB postgraduate loans are available for Kenyan students. Universities may offer scholarships for eligible students. Some employers, particularly in government and public sector, may sponsor staff for postgraduate study in public administration and leadership.

Funding options

HELB Postgraduate Loan
University Scholarship
Employer Sponsorship

Scholarships

3 recorded

HELB Postgraduate Loan
LoanKsh 200,000Kenyan
Kenyan students pursuing postgraduate studies at recognised universities.
University Scholarship
ScholarshipKsh 130,000Kenyan
Universities may offer scholarships for eligible postgraduate public administration students.
Public Sector Sponsorship
ScholarshipKsh 260,000Kenyan
Some government agencies and county governments may sponsor staff for postgraduate study in public administration.

Getting in

The grades, the alternatives, and who accredits the award.

What you need

KCSE mean grade: N/A (Postgraduate)
Alternative entry: Most universities require at least an Upper Second Class Honours degree in a relevant field. Lower Second Class may be considered with relevant work experience. Contact respective universities for specific admission requirements.

How you are assessed

4 components

Coursework and Continuous Assessment
Coursework30% of the mark
Continuous assessment through coursework assignments, case study analyses, seminar presentations, group discussions, and class participation.
Written Examinations
Examination70% of the mark
Written examinations covering public administration, leadership, governance, strategic management, and ethics.
Case Study Assessment
Project40% of the mark
Practical assessment through case studies, demonstrating public administration analysis, leadership problem-solving, and governance scenarios.
Research Thesis
Research100% of the mark
Original supervised research thesis on a public administration or leadership topic, demonstrating mastery of research methods and public administration knowledge, assessed through written submission and oral defence.

Accreditation

The programme is accredited by the Commission for University Education (CUE). JKUAT (public) and Mount Kenya University (private) offer MSc in Public Administration and Leadership or closely related programmes. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in public administration and leadership. Graduates may interact with KSG for public sector training and EACC for governance standards. The programme aligns with IASIA and NASPAA international public administration standards.

Accredited by

Commission for University Education (CUE)
Academic accreditationRequired
Programme accredited by CUE. JKUAT (public) and Mount Kenya University (private) offer MSc in Public Administration and Leadership or closely related programmes. The programme meets CUE standards for postgraduate training in public administration and leadership. Graduates may interact with KSG for public sector training and EACC for governance standards. The programme aligns with IASIA and NASPAA international public administration standards.

Where it leads

The roles it opens, and what you leave with.

Where graduates go

6 roles

Public Administrator
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Manages public administration, overseeing administration, public, governance, and managing public administration functions.
Policy Analyst
High demandKsh 130,000 to Ksh 450,000
Analyses public policy, overseeing policy, analysis, research, and managing public policy analysis and development.
Governance Officer
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 400,000
Manages governance, overseeing governance, compliance, ethics, and managing governance and compliance functions.
Leadership Consultant
Moderate demandKsh 130,000 to Ksh 500,000
Provides leadership consulting services, overseeing advisory, leadership, strategy, and managing leadership consulting.
County Government Official
High demandKsh 120,000 to Ksh 450,000
Manages county government operations, overseeing administration, governance, leadership, and managing county government functions.
Public Administration Lecturer
Moderate demandKsh 100,000 to Ksh 400,000
Teaches public administration and leadership at university or college level, overseeing instruction, research, and academic supervision.

Graduate outcomes

Where these fields lead

8 careers

Tools you will learn

Microsoft Excel
SoftwarePrimary
Excel for public administration data analysis and reporting, covering analysis, reporting, data, and managing public administration data.
SPSS
Software
SPSS for statistical analysis of research data, covering statistics, analysis, research, and managing research data.
Strategic Planning Software
Software
Strategic planning software for public sector planning, covering strategy, planning, management, and managing strategic planning.
Governance and Compliance Software
Software
Governance and compliance software for ethics management, covering governance, compliance, ethics, and managing governance and compliance.

Industry links

Common misconceptions

Public administration is only for civil servants.
Public administration and leadership skills are valuable in NGOs, private sector, international organisations, and consulting beyond just civil service.
Leadership is an innate trait, not something you can learn.
Leadership theory, strategic thinking, organisational behaviour, and governance skills can be developed through formal study and practice.
This programme is just about management.
The programme covers leadership, governance, ethics, policy analysis, public finance, and organisational change beyond just management.
Public administration is outdated in the digital age.
Public administration is evolving with e-government, digital transformation, and data-driven policy making, making it more relevant than ever.
Leadership studies have no practical application.
Leadership studies provide practical frameworks for team management, change leadership, conflict resolution, and strategic decision making.
This programme is only for those in national government.
Public administration and leadership skills are valuable at county government level, in NGOs, and in private sector organisations with governance functions.