Frequently Asked Questions

Integrating Leadership & Public Policy 

The Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy is designing a new model of public policy education – one that infuses leadership with policy, and policy with leadership. Our programs are defined by a multidisciplinary approach to problem-solving, rigorous quantitative and qualitative analytical training, experiential learning opportunities, and evidence-based decision-making. 

World-Class Teaching & Research 

Our community is defined not only by academic rigor, but also real-world experience, teaching, and mentoring. This approach has attracted a multidisciplinary faculty of leading scholar-practitioners in political science, social psychology, public administration, history, economics, and law from around the globe. Our research centers and policy labs are hubs for collaboration and impact. 

Excellence with Humanity 

At home in one of the world’s great public universities, we are passionate about improving lives and solving humanity’s toughest policy challenges. We seek to attract a community as diverse in thought, experience, background, and aspiration as the world we want to serve, and to bring them together in an intellectually courageous and collaborative environment. We are advancing new knowledge, new skills, and new solutions, cultivating  leaders for our common future. 

Our programs prepare students for a wide variety of policy-oriented careers in the public, non-profit, and private sectors. The Batten School offers its own career advancement team that supports students from landing a summer internship and full-time position, to making career changes long after graduation. They help with resumes, interviews, and networking, among other things.  

Example employers include congressional committees, federal agencies (e.g., EPA, GAO, CBO, CRS, FTC, CDC), cabinet departments, various state and local government agencies, the World Bank, consulting firms (e.g., Deloitte, McKinsey, Accenture), and non-profits and NGOs in many policy sectors, such as environmental, health, education, and international development policy. 

We offer a variety of graduate and undergraduate programs. For students interested in graduate studies, we offer a two-year Master of Public Policy program in addition to six dual degree options with other schools at the University of Virginia, and two graduate certificates – one in Public Leadership and one in Public Policy. Current UVA (and prospective transfer) students may pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and Leadership, a Minor in Public Policy and Leadership, a Minor in Social Entrepreneurship, and an Accelerated MPP, which allows students to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in just one additional year of study. 

If you are interested in booking an appointment with an admissions representative, scheduling a visit, or requesting more information, click here for ways to engage with Batten Admissions! 

The MPP is a full-time, residential, two-year program.  New students enter the fall of each academic year. 

The Accelerated MPP program begins in the fall of each academic year and takes place over the course of your final undergraduate year at the University plus one additional year as a full-time graduate student. It cannot be expedited further or taken part-time. 

Batten’s Graduate Certificate programs are offered both part-time and full-time, online or in-person, and can be started in the fall or spring semesters. Students must complete 12 credits for each certificate, and students can take one to four classes a semester. 

There are no formal concentrations, but 15 elective credits let you build depth in any area. Student will have the opportunity to learn from and work with UVA Batten faculty who specialize in a wide array of policy areas including national security, congress, education, health, humanitarian aid, public safety, and environmental policy.

Students also have the opportunity to take graduate courses from other UVA schools. Examples of policy-relevant courses offered around the University include Urban Law and Policy (School of Law), U.S. Education Policy (School of Education and Human Development), Data Analysis and Optimization (Darden School of Business), Environmental Policy and Planning (School of Architecture), Global Health and Human Rights (Graduate School of Arts and Sciences), and Public Health Law, Ethics, and Policy (School of Medicine). Batten’s research centers also connect students with faculty and practitioners around shared policy interests.

Students in the postgraduate MPP or graduate certificates must earn a baccalaureate degree by the time of matriculation. There are no prerequisite courses, though microeconomics, statistics, and calculus-based math are strongly recommended. These will provide the best preparation for the four required analytics courses in the MPP curriculum.  

The Accelerated MPP requires completion of ECON 2010: Microeconomics (or equivalent) and a calculus-based math course, earning a C or higher, prior to matriculation. You can check to see if a course at another institution will satisfy equivalent credit here. Students are encouraged to take a collegiate-level statistics course if they are relying on AP credit to fulfill the prerequisite, have fewer quantitative courses in their academic history, or would simply like to enhance their skills. STAT 1100, STAT 2120, and STAT 1601 are good options. 

The Batten School does not require the submission of standardized test scores. If you have already taken the GRE, GMAT, or LSAT, you are welcome to submit your scores if you believe they provide another useful data point for your application. Please email a copy of your unofficial scores to BattenAdmissions@virginia.edu to be attached to your application.

The Batten School is proud to offer merit- and need-based fellowships to offset the cost of tuition. Students also secure assistantships, other employment (no more than 20 hours/week, including Federal Work Study), external awards, and loans. Accelerated MPP students are not eligible for graduate financial aid until their second year. For more information about different funding opportunities, please visit our financial aid page. 

Educational benefits are available for veterans, family members of veterans, and active-duty military personnel. These programs have different benefit packages and eligibility requirements. To determine your eligibility and benefits package, please consult your Education Services Officer (ESO) and see Military Tuition Assistance, for active duty, or GI Bill, for veterans. For additional questions, please contact the University’s Veterans’ Affairs Coordinator. 

Postgraduate MPP and certificate admits may request a one-year deferral; decisions are made on a case-by-case basis. Because of the structure of the curriculum, deferral for the Accelerated MPP is rarely possible. Please contact our Admissions team if you believe you are eligible for deferment. 

Any student at the University can explore our programs! Undergraduate students majoring in any department may apply to our Social Entrepreneurship or Public Policy & Leadership minors. It is possible to double-major only with another program in the College of Arts and Sciences or the Youth and Social Innovation (YSI) program in the School of Education and Human Development. 

When you add the Public Policy & Leadership major, your school of enrollment shifts over to the Batten School if you are a student in the College. Students double-majoring in YSI may choose their school of enrollment.

Prior to matriculation, students in the BA are required to earn a C or higher in ECON 2010: Microeconomics (or equivalent), PSYC 2600: Introduction to Social Psychology or LPPL 2600: Foundations of Behavioral Science (or equivalent), and LPPP 2200: Introduction to Public Policy. Students interested in the Public Policy & Leadership minor must take ECON 2010 and PSYC 2600 or LPPL 2600, earning a C or higher. You can check to see if a course at another institution will satisfy equivalent credit here.  

Students interested in the Social Entrepreneurship minor must take ENTP 1010: Startup at the time of application.

Yes, financial aid is available.

For undergraduate students, AccessUVA will continue to meet 100% of financial need for all in-state and out-of-state students in our undergraduate major through a combination of grants, work-study, and need-based loans. Student Financial Services will determine your new need amount using the higher tuition and fees for UVA Batten. If you remain eligible for financial aid upon entering UVA Batten, your need, based on the higher cost of attendance, will continue to be met. 

For graduate students, funding options include merit-based fellowships, need-based aid, graduate teaching assistantships, and educational loans.

Incoming third-year transfers may apply directly to the BA through UVA’s transfer admissions process via the Common Application (specify an interest in the Batten School). You can find out more information about transferring to UVA from the Office of Undergraduate Admission.  

Second-year transfers to the University apply to Batten through the regular application process for all internal UVA students. See our transfer admission page for more information. 

Applications are reviewed holistically, and there is no single factor that will determine an offer of admission. There are no GPA cut-offs or minimum requirements, outside of specified course prerequisites. Among the many factors we consider are overall academic performance, including in quantitative coursework; work experience and community engagement; writing ability; leadership experience and potential; and a clear policy motivation. In the end, we are looking for individuals not only to join our programs for two years, but to be part of a lifelong community leading positive change in the policy world. We want to get to know you through your application, so make sure your voice and passion shine through. 

The Batten minors require application, but all students who have completed prerequisite requirements and demonstrate readiness for the curriculum are admitted.

Good choices are professors, TAs, advisors, supervisors, mentors, or others who can highlight your strengths inside and outside the classroom, and can speak to your academic ability, policy interest, or leadership capacity. Avoid asking for an academic reference from high school. If you are asking for someone from your high school or pre-collegiate experience to highlight additional dimensions of your candidacy, be sure to balance that with someone who can speak about your strengths today. 

Deadlines and notification dates vary by program and are listed on our undergraduate and graduate program pages. The postgraduate MPP has three rounds; the Accelerated MPP has a priority deadline and second deadline later in the semester. The BA and minors have a single spring deadline for current UVA students. 

Accelerated MPP/BA/Minor in Public Policy and Leadership applicants can track their application status by logging in to the application portal; MPP or Certificate program applicants can track their application status here. Each academic program has a different notification date, and admissions decisions will be released by email as well as reflected in the application portal. 

Applications to the Social Entrepreneurship minor are handled collaboratively across multiple schools of enrollment, and the application is hosted by the McIntire School. More information and a link to the application can be found here. 

We make initial offers of admission with the intent of filling our classes but maintain an unranked waitlist in the event space becomes available. Each year, the number of students placed on the waitlist and offers of admission vary. Students can be admitted from the waitlist until the end of summer, but most empty seats will be filled by June.  Once the class is full, we will notify candidates that there is unlikely to be further movement off the waitlist.   

We do not re-evaluate applications or consider new material as part of the process. Rest assured, you have done everything you can to submit a competitive application! Batten is small by design to offer an exceptional academic experience, which means—unfortunately—each year we turn away talented, passionate, and engaged individuals who would undoubtedly succeed in our programs. When you receive your waitlist decision, you will have the opportunity to signal your continued interest in the portal — no other action is necessary. 

We recommend using Google Chrome with your application. If problems persist, email batten_apphelp@virginia.edu with a screenshot.