The development of student-learning assessment systems is a resource- and time-intensive process. Instituting a comprehensive assessment system is especially important in Master’s of Public Administration (MPA) programs, due to the emphasis on skill-based education. This paper details the development of an assessment system in the MPA program at California State University, Long Beach, and reports some preliminary data collected from this new system. An argument is presented for the use of a holistic, rather than a layered, assessment system.
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