Connections

The hit television show "West Wing" followed the glamorous lives of key advisors to a fictional American President. Humber's Graduate Certificate program in Public Administration prepares students for real-life jobs advising politicians at all levels of Canadian government. While a career in public administration may be harder work than it appears to be on television, Public Administration graduates do admit to a certain amount of glamour in their jobs.

A TALE OF TWO PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION GRADS 

After graduating from the Public Administration program in 2003, Tim Shorthill worked as an Executive Assistant to MPP Linda Jeffrey and then as Senior Advisor to the Honourable John Gerretson, Ontario's Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Tim is currently a Special Assistant to the Honourable Jim Bradley, Minister of Tourism, Minister Responsible for Seniors, and the Government House leader. In this position, Tim provides advice on intergovernmental issues and stakeholder relations. When asked to describe a typical day, he says "there is no such thing as a typical day, there is no routine - it all depends on whether the legislature is in session, whether there is a by-election, or whether there is an election at any level of government."

Erika Mozes graduated from Public Administration in 2003 and is currently the Issues Manager for the Deputy Premier of Ontario and Minister of Long Term Care, the Honourable George Smitherman. The easiest way for Erika to describe her job is crisis manager: "I help prepare the Minister for daily question period, and work in conjunction with his press secretary, legislative assistant, and the Premier's Office to deal with issues that arise. I also help out in the development of issue plans, roll-outs of legislation, and major policy announcements." According to Erika, "for a political junkie, my position is quite glamorous - I get to be part of the political process on a daily basis!"

HUMBER'S PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION PROGRAM 

How does Humber's Public Administration program prepare graduates for jobs like Tim and Erika's? According to Program Coordinator Dr. Ted Glenn, the Public Administration program is 12 months long and is organized into three semesters. In semester one, students get exposed to the fundamental knowledge and skills required of all public sector employees, such as the basic machinery of government and the information technology used in public administration. Semester two provides students with more specific skills needed to plan, communicate, and manage within the public sector. In semester three, students develop project management and leadership skills specific to public administration. At the end of semester three, students apply their skills and knowledge on an eight-week field placement.

Like many students, Tim's field placement was central to his current success. After researching where exactly he wanted to work, Tim secured a placement as a Research Assistant to Gerard Kennedy, then a member of the Liberal opposition at Queen's Park. Some of Tim's responsibilities included researching education policy, managing the Ontario Provincial Education Network, and responding to concerns about education from the general public. Tim says he regularly uses the contacts he made during his placement in his current position.

Not all graduates go on to work in political positions like Tim and Erika's. Ted says that Public Administration graduates get jobs in all areas of public administration. According to him, the program "complements students' own education, interests, talents and goals - independent of political leaning - by providing education in all of the key administrative functions of government." As the curriculum suggests, these functions include public policy, finance, information technology, human resources, and communications. Ted says the program needs to cover such a wide-range of topics "because government itself is so broad. Students interested in a career in the public service need to be prepared to perform a variety of tasks in a hands-on, practical way and that is what the Public Administration program prepares them to do."

Tim Shorthill agrees. According to Tim, Humber provided him with the skills and knowledge that he "wouldn't have gotten anywhere else."

Interested in finding out how Humber can help you prepare for a rewarding - and possibly glamorous - career in public administration? Contact Program Coordinator Ted Glenn at ted.glenn@humber.ca for more information.