Careers

On average, students who graduate from our MPA Program have a starting salary of $56,000. Seventy-seven percent of our graduates, who do not have employment while pursuing their degree, are employed within six months after graduation.

Notable Alumni

Local/State Communities

  • Jen Zellmer-Cuersema, UM Athletics Advisor
  • Shyra Scott, Missoula County Clerk & Recording
  • Anne Hughes, Missoula County Communications Director
  • Dayna Swanson, Office of Senator Tester
  • Holly Luck, Office of Senators Melcher, Baucus, and Walsh
  • Tim Fox, Montana Attorney General

Tribal Communities

  • Eldena Bear Don’t Walk, tribal judge, first female Chief Justice of the Crow Tribe
  • Debra DuMontier, Office of Special Trustee for American Indians

Nonprofit/International Communities

  • Deena Mansour, Executive Director of the Mansfield Center
  • Jesse Mahugh, Executive Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Flathead County
  • Aubrie Lyons, Director of Montana World Affairs Council
  • Mike Halligan, Executive Director of the Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation

Jobs and Internships

Please review this portion of our website regularly because it is updated often.

Jobs

  • PublicServiceCareers.org
    PublicServiceCareers.org is a widely used website for finding jobs and career advice for public service and public affairs students and professionals.
  • AmeriCorps Service Positions (MT, various cities) 
  • Human Resources Generalist for the City of Missoula (Missoula, MT) Under limited supervision, this position will perform work on recruitment and selection, compensation administration, benefits and leave administration, policy and regulation compliance, job analysis and classification, organizational development, training and professional development, employee and labor relations. Full time with benefits. Deadline to apply is July 3, 2020. 
  • Montana Nonprofit Association job board 
    Statewide resource for those interested in a nonprofit career. 
  • Peace Corps Strategic Campus Recruiter (pdf) (Missoula, MT) UM is currently accepting applications from candidates with a successful completion of a two-year assignment in the Peace Corps. Position anticipated to begin at end of August 2020 and run through the academic year. Part-time (up to 32 hours/week) and $12.28/hour. Open until filled.
  • Summer Positions with the Fund for the Public Interest (National) Currently hiring students to join summer campaign staff in over 25 cities across the country. Students will get the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in grassroots organizing, learn valuable communication skills and have the opportunity to participate in a variety of campaign actions including: running media events, coalition building, canvassing, and writing editorials, all while being paid as members of staff, typically earning an average of $6,000-8,000 over the summer.
  • Development Director for Montana Audubon (Helena, MT) Full-time staff whose primary responsibility is to coordinate all fund development activities, working with the Executive Director and the Development Committee to promote a culture of philanthropy throughout the organization. Salary commensurate with experience, benefits include vacation, simple IRA w/match, & health insurance. Open until filled.
  • Policy & Accreditation Support Specialist for Western Montana Mental Health Center (pdf) (Missoula, MT) This position is responsible for developing, maintaining, managing, coordinating, and supporting the accreditation, licensing, and policy and procedure functions. 
  • Boys & Girls Club of Missoula County

Internships

  • Virtual Student Federal Service Through this program, students can work on projects that advance the work of government on multiple fronts. Projects include helping counter violent extremism, strengthening human rights monitoring, developing virtual programs, engaging in digital communications, mapping, economic and political reporting, data analysis, graphic design, and app building. 10 hrs/week, flexible. 
  • Summer Opportunities with the Mansfield Center
  • Higher Education Data Internship for NASPAA (part-time, virtual) Summer 2020. The Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA) is a nonprofit association in Washington DC, and is offering a virtual internship for a graduate student interested in higher education data collection and analysis. The student chosen for this internship will have the opportunity to develop their policy analysis skills and real-world data analysis skills (including data visualization) at the intersection of higher education and public service. 10 weeks, starting in June, $15-$17/hour, 20-25 hours per week. Open until filled. 
    Logistics Coordinator Internship with Inner Roads (pdf)
  • Internships at the Missoula Food Bank (pdf)