Master of Public Policy: Public Finance Specialisation

ANU ranks among the world's very finest universities. Our nearly 100,000 alumni include political, business, government, and academic leaders around the world. We have graduated remarkable people from every part of our continent, our region and all walks of life. The MPP specialisation prepares finance professionals for leadership roles in public finance.

Higher education

At a minimum, all applicants must meet program-specific academic/non-academic requirements, and English language requirements. Admission to most ANU programs is on a competitive basis.

· Bachelor degree or international equivalent with GPA 5/7; or

· Bachelor degree or international equivalent with GPA 4/7 and a minimum of 3 years full-time equivalent work experience at ANZSCO Skill Level 1 in a field related to the program; or

· Bachelor degree or international equivalent with GPA 4/7 and a Graduate Certificate or international equivalent with a GPA of 4/7; or

· Graduate Diploma or international equivalent with a GPA 4/7; or

· 48 units of courses in a postgraduate program with a GPA of 4/7; or

· Graduate Certificate or international equivalent with a GPA of 4/7 and a minimum of 3 years full-time equivalent work experience at ANZSCO Skill Level 1 in a field related to the program; or

· Graduate Records Examination (GRE) General test, completed no more than 5 years before the time of application, with a minimum score of 155 for Verbal Reasoning, 155 for Quantitative Reasoning and 4.0 in Analytical Writing and a minimum of 3 years full-time equivalent work experience at ANZSCO Skill Level 1 in a field related to the program; or

· A minimum of 10 years full-time equivalent work experience at ANZSCO Skill Level 1 in a field related to the program.

In line with the university's admissions policy and strategic plan, an assessment for admission may include competitively ranking applicants on the basis of specific academic achievement, English language proficiency and diversity factors.

Find more details about the Master of Public Policy at the ANU Programs and Courses.

Work and Life

A minimum of 10 years full-time equivalent work experience at ANZSCO Skill Level 1 in a field related to the program.

English Proficiency Requirements

Applications must meet the ANU English Language Requirements for Admission.

Applicants with a Bachelor Degree, Bachelor degree with Honours, Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma in a cognate discipline may be eligible for up to 24 units.

Public Finance, one of the Master of Public Policy specialisations, equips you to transition into public finance leadership with your high-level understanding of the use of fiscal policy in the economy. The specialisation is designed to prepare finance professionals for leadership roles in public finance, examine principles and conceptual benchmarks of public finance policy, and enable you to understand the interaction between taxes, spending and the budget. If you want to strengthen your leadership capacity in the field of public finance, this degree specialisation is for you.

Central to the program is the question of financing government, with a focus on how the interaction of taxes and expenditure impacts all levels of decision making in national and global economies. Through your examination of the policies, institutions and regulatory structures for raising public finance, and managing public expenditures, you will gain clarity on public finance policy benchmarks. These include efficiency, equity and redistribution, administration and compliance, and the politics of policy making. By understanding the core features of the budget and of fiscal institutions in the executive and legislature, as well as the role of the judiciary, you’ll be ready to critically engage in reform debates about taxes and expenditures, economic disruption, management of the budget in times of austerity, and the use of fiscal policy in the economy.