This year, we are excited to welcome 103 new students into our Master of Public Policy program, our largest MPP cohort to date.

For the Accelerated MPP program, we received 65 applications for 47 seats, about a 70% admittance rate. This year, we brought in students from sixteen states across the country, including Missouri, Maine, and South Carolina. First generation students make up almost 18% of our class, up from only 8% the year before and marking the continual progress of increasing first-generation representation at Batten. Minority students comprise over a third of the class, and women comprise two-thirds of the program.

Additionally, we admitted students with GPAs that ranged from 2.92 to 3.95. Most students admitted (middle 50%) had a GPA that fell within the 3.5-3.8 range. Students in this cohort are majoring in degrees throughout the College, including Political Philosophy, Policy, and Law; Sociology; Foreign Affairs; and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, in addition to students from the Architecture School (Architecture History) and the School of Education and Human Development (Youth & Social Innovation). Students were active volunteers through Madison House, were engaged in a variety of CIOs and undergraduate research opportunities, and hold part-time positions across Grounds including in Housing and Residence Life, the UVA Career Center, and the Maxine Platzer Lynn Women’s Center. Additionally, our students work in roles throughout Charlottesville and internships, including with the Tennessee Democratic Party, the Office of the Governor of Virginia, and the Sierra Club.

For the postgraduate MPP program, we received 205 applications for 54 seats. We brought in students from twenty states including California, Texas, Maryland, and Kansas, as well as students with primary or dual citizenship to five countries, including Croatia and the Congo. First generation students make up almost a quarter of our class, double the representation from a year ago. Minority students comprise over a third of the class, and women comprise a little more than half of the postgraduate cohort. Additionally, we have five active duty or veterans of the armed services who joined our program this fall.

We admitted students with GPAs that ranged from 2.85 to 4.0; most students admitted (middle 50%) had a GPA that fell within the 3.3-3.8 range. While the GRE is optional this year, average reported GRE scores were 157 (Verbal), 154 (Quantitative), and 4.4 (Analytical). Forty-four undergraduate universities are represented in the Class of 2022, including Miami University, Texas A&M, the College of William & Mary, Amherst College, and Baylor University. Students had diverse areas of study as well, including Applied Physics, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Nutrition, Russian and Eastern European Studies, and Political Science.

Our postgraduate students bring a diverse range of experiences to the classroom. Some students joined right after completing their undergraduate programs, while others joined with over ten years of work experience. This range of experience brings the average age of our students to 25. The cohort contains members of the armed services and returned Peace Corps volunteers, as well as individuals who have worked at the American Enterprise Institute, Department of Defense, Virginia Department of Health, and Congressional Hunger Center.

Together, our differences make us stronger. Together, we are Batten. We look forward to bringing in the next group of committed policy leaders in the months to come!