MPP Elective Courses

Elective coursework in the MPP program should be used to develop an area of policy expertise. In order to develop an area of policy expertise, students are to direct their required 16 or 12 elective units (depending on when you started at Cal Poly) toward a specific policy specialization. Students may develop policy expertise by choosing courses from a wide array of disciplines throughout the university.

Elective units may be chosen from 400 or 500 level courses offered by academic departments as appropriate. It is important to check with the instructor of the elective course to determine the current applicability the course has with the MPP degree. Students must take at least 1 elective at the 500-level. For a description of each course, check out Cal Poly’s online Catalog.

Example Elective Courses

**Departments add new elective courses frequently. Please check PASS at the beginning of each quarter and confirm eligibility with the MPP Director if you have questions. 
 

Agriculture

• AG 452 Issues Affecting California Agriculture (4)
   

Agribusiness

• AGB 405 Agribusiness Marketing Research Methods (4)
• AGB 411 Agribusiness Risk Management
• AGB 412 Advanced Agricultural Policy (4)
• AGB 422 Logistics in Global Agribusiness (4)
• AGB 427 Advanced Agribusiness Data Analysis
• AGB 445 Produce Marketing
• AGB 450 Agribusiness Strategy Formulation
• AGB 452 Agriculture Market Structure and Strategy (4)
• AGB 455 Advanced Fair Management Seminar (2)
• AGB 510 International Development and Agribusiness (4)
• AGB 514 AGB Managerial Leadership and Communication (4)
• AGB 543 Agribusiness Policy and Program Analysis (4)
• AGB 555 Technological and Economic Change in Agribusiness (4)
• AGB 563 International Agribusiness and Trade (4)
   

Animal Science

• ASCI 520 Comparative Animal Nutrition (4)
   

Architecture

• ARCH 401 Toward a Barrier-free Environment (4)
• ARCH 445 Urban Design in Architecture (4)
• ARCH 532 Research Methods in Architecture (4)
   

Biology

• BIO 401 Principles of Conservation Biology (4)
• BIO 414 Evolution (4)
• BIO 415 Biogeography (4)
• BIO 421 Wetlands (4)
• BIO 427 Wildlife Management (4)
• BIO 442 Behavioral Ecology (4)
• BIO 444 Population Ecology (4)
• BIO 445 Community Ecology (4)
• BIO 446 Ecosystem Ecology (4)
   

Biomedical Engineering

• BMED 450 Contemporary Issues in Biomedical Engineering (4)
   

Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering

• BRAE 418 Agricultural Systems Management I (4)
• BRAE 448 Bioconversion (4)
   

Business

• BUS 404 Government and Social Influences on Business (4)
• BUS 409 Law of Real Property (4)
• BUS 410 The Legal Environment of International Business (4)
• BUS 417 Taxation of Corporations and Partnerships (4)
• BUS 422 Accounting for Government and Not for Profit Entities (4)
• BUS 433 International Business Finance (4)
• BUS 436 Entrepreneurial Finance (4)
• BUS 443 Case Studies in Finance (4)
• BUS 445 Ethics and Behavioral Finance (4)
• BUS 446 International Marketing (4)
• BUS 453 Digital and New Media Marketing (4)
• BUS 472 Labor Relations (4)
• BUS 473 Employment Law (4)
• BUS 477 Managing Change and Development (4)
• BUS 478 Organization Design (4)
• BUS 489 Negotiation (4)
   

City and Regional Planning

• CRP 401 Disaster Recovery (3)
• CRP 404 Environmental Law (3)
• CRP 408 Water Resource Law and Policy (3)
• CRP 420 Land Use Law (4)
• CRP 430 Professional Planning Practice (4)
• CRP 435 Transportation Theory (4)
• CRP 436 Collaborative Planning (4)
• CRP 438 Pollution Prevention and Control (4)
• CRP 440 Climate Action Planning (3)
• CRP 442 Housing and Planning (3)
• CRP 445 Planning and Urban Ecology (4)
• CRP 452 Community Design Methods (4)
• CRP 458 Local Hazard Mitigation - Planning and Design (4)
• CRP 470 Selected Advanced Topics (4)
• CRP 472 Planning Colloquium (4)
• CRP 501 Foundations of Cities and Planning (4)
• CRP 512 Introduction to Visual Communication and GIS (4)
• CRP 513 Planning Research Methods (4)
• CRP 516 Demographic and Analytic Tools (4)
• CRP 518 Policy Development (4)
• CRP 520 Feasibility Studies (4)
• CRP 525 Plan Implementation (4)
• CRP 530 Planning Agency Management (4)
• CRP 535 Land Use and Planning Law (4)
• CRP 545 Principles of Environmental Planning (4)
• CRP 548 Principles of Urban Design (4)
• CRP 552 Community and Regional Planning Studio (4)
   

Civil Engineering

• CE 424 Public Transportation (4)
   

Communication Studies

• COMS 413 Advanced Organizational Communication (4)
• COMS 418 Health Communication (4)
• COMS 419 Media Effects (4)
• COMS 435 American Political Rhetoric (4)
   

Economics

• ECON 403 Industrial Organization (4)
• ECON 404 International Trade Theory (4)
• ECON 406 Applied Forecasting (4)
• ECON 408 Mathematical Economics (4)
• ECON 410 Public Finance and Cost-Benefit analysis (4)
• ECON 413 Labor Economics (4)
• ECON 417 Development of Economic analysis (4)
• ECON 424 Monetary Economics (4)
• ECON 431 Environmental Economics (4)
• ECON 432 Economics of Energy and Resources (4)
• ECON 434 Urban Economics (4)
• ECON 435 Economics of Land and Water (4)
• ECON 470 Selected Advanced Topics (1-4)
   

Environmental Design

• EDES 406 Sustainable Environments (4)
• EDES 409 Implementing Sustainable Principles (4)
• EDES 409 Advanced Implemention of Sustainable Principles (4)
   

Ethnic Studies

• ES 410 Advanced Topics in Comparative Ethnic Studies (4)
  
   

Food Science and Nutrition

• FSN 415 Nutrition Education and Communications (4)
• FSN 417 Nutrition Counseling (4)
   

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences Disaster Managment and Homeland Security

• DMHS 401 Disaster Recovery (4)
• DMHS 405 Managing Sustained Operations (4)
• DMHS 432 Disaster Operations Planning (4)
   

Earth Science

• ERSC 414 Global and Regional Climatology (4)
  
   

Forestry and Natural Resources

• FNR 401 Disaster Recovery (3)
• FNR 404 Environmental Law (3)
• FNR 406 Indigenous Peoples and International Law and Policy (3)
• FNR 408 Water Resource Law and Policy (3)
• FNR 414 Sustainable Forest Management (4)
• FNR 416 Environmental Impact Analysis and Management (4)
• FNR 418 Applied GIS (3)
• FNR 425 Applied Resource Analysis (4)
• FNR 432 Disaster Operations Planning (4)
• FNR 435 Natural Resources Policy Analysis (4)
• FNR 450 Community Forestry (3)
• FNR 455 Wildland - Urban Interface Fire Protection (3)
• FNR 465 Ecosystem Management (4)
• FNR 472 Leadership Practice (1) (Also listed as REC 472)
• FNR 475 Sustainable Forest and Environmental Practices (3)
   

Food Science and Nutrition

• FSN 410 Nutritional Implications of Food Industry Practices (4)
• FSN 416 Community Nutrition (4)
• FSN 420 Critical Evaluation of Nutrition Research (4)
• FSN 426 Food Systems Management (4)
• FSN 480 Policy Arguments in Food and Nutrition (4)
   

Geography

• GEOG 414 Global and Regional Climatology
• GEOG 440 Geo-Social Applications of GIS
   

History

• HIST 410 Recent America Since 1950: Shattering of the American Consensus (4)
• HIST 432 United States Environmental History (4)
• HIST 435 American Women's History from 1870 (4)
   

Horticulture and Crop Science

• AEPS 437 Park and Public Space Management (4)
   

Kinesiology

• KINE 450 Worksite Health Promotion Programs (4)
• KINE 453 Lifestyle Prescriptions for Wellness
• KINE 503 Current Health Issues (4)
• KINE 510 Advanced Health Behavior Change Programs (4)
• KINE 511 Management and Administration in Kinesology (4)
• KINE 534 Planning Health Promotion Programs (4)
   

Landscape Architecture

• LA 402 Design Theory and Exploration Focus Studio (4)
• LA 433 Cultural Environments (4)
   

Military Science

• MSL 401 Developmental Leadership I (4)
   

Philosophy

• PHIL 439 Selected Problems in Ethics and Political Philosophy (4)
   

Political Science

• POLS 419 Social Movements and Political Protest(4)
• POLS 420 Contemporary Foreign Policy (4)
• POLS 426 International Organizations and Law (4)
• POLS 427 International Political Economy (4)
• POLS 435 Political Communication (4)
• POLS 445 Voting Rights and Representation (4)
• POLS 451 Technology and Public Policy (4)
• POLS 456 Politics and Economic Policy (4)
• POLS 457 The Politics of Reproductive Policy (4)
• POLS 459 The Politics of Poverty (4)
• POLS 470 Selected Advanced Topics (1-4)
• POLS 471 Urban Politics (4)
• POLS 484 Community Research Seminar (2)
• POLS 500 Independent Study (1-4)
• POLS 516 Public Finance (4)
• POLS 517 Administrative Theory and Behavior (4)
• POLS 519 Public Personnel Policy (4)
• POLS 568 Topics and Issues in Public Policy (4)
   

Psychology

• CD 413 Children, Adolescents & Technology (4)
• PSY 405 Abnormal Psychology (4)
• PSY 456 Behavioral Disorders in Children (4)
• PSY 460 Child Abuse and Neglect (4)
• PSY 465 Cross-cultural International Psychology (4)
• PSY 472 Multicultural Psychology (4)
• PSY 475 The Social Psychology of Prejudice (4)
   

Recreation, Parks, Tourism and Administration

• RPTA 413 Tourism and Protected Area Management (4)
• RPTA 420 Festival and Event Management (4)
• RPTA 424 Financing Recreation, Parks and Tourism Services (4)
• RPTA 460 Research in Recreation, Parks and Tourism (4)
• RPTA 472 Leadership Practice (4)
• RPTA 502 Current Issues in Recreation, Parks and Tourism (4)
   

Sociology

• SOC 402 Crime and Violence (4)
• SOC 406 Juvenile Justice (4)
• SOC 412 Criminal Justice (4)
• SOC 413 Methods of Social Work (4)
• SOC 421 Social Theory (4)
• SOC 470 Selected Advanced Topics in Sociology (1-4)
   

Statistics

• STAT 416 Statistical Analysis of Time Series (4)
• STAT 417 Survival Analysis Methods (4)
• STAT 419 Applied Multivariate Statistics (4)
• STAT 421 Survey Sampling and Methodology (4)
• STAT 423 Design and Analysis of Experiments II (4)
• STAT 425 Probability Theory (4)
• STAT 426 Estimation and Sampling Theory (4)
• STAT 465 Statistical Communication and Consulting (4)
• STAT 512 Statistical Methods (4)
• STAT 512 Statistical Methods (4)
• STAT 513 Applied Experimental Design and Regression Models (4)
• STAT 523 Design and Analysis of Experiments I (4)
• STAT 531 Statistical Computing with R (4)
   

Wine and Viticulture

• WVIT 423 Wine Law and Compliance (4)
   

Women's Studies

• WS 450 Feminist Theory (4)