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Pi Alpha Alpha is the Global Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration that seeks to promote the advancement of quality in the education and practice of the art and science of public affairs and administration. Its purpose is to encourage and recognize outstanding scholarship and accomplishment in public affairs and administration, and to foster integrity, professionalism and effective performance in the conduct of government and related public service activities.
Pi Alpha Alpha is administered by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA). There are more than 160 chapters located around the world at NASPAA member schools. Visit the official Pi Alpha Alpha website here.
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Criteria for Membership
The CSUDH Chapter of Pi Alpha Alpha (PAA), the Global Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration, wants to recognize those students who have demonstrated scholastic excellence in the Public Administration programs. eligible students are strongly encouraged to apply. Not only is membership in the Honor Society recognition of your accomplishments but chapter activities will also offer you a variety of opportunities for professional and academic enrichment. All memberships are national memberships with a local chapter affiliation.
Undergraduate applicants:
- Must have completed at least 15 semester units (300- or 400-level) in public administration
- Must have reached the equivalent of the last semester of the junior year
- Must have a GPA of 3.5 for all courses in the public administration major
- Must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 for all college work completed
Graduate applicants:
- Must have completed at least 18 units (500-level) of MPA courses
- Must have a GPA of 3.7 or higher
Application Process
- Complete an application form online at:https://forms.gle/qw7LAc4XeNMd8ow3A
- Email an electronic copy of your CSUDH transcript (unofficial one is fine) to paa@csudh.edu. In the subject line, please indicate “PAA Membership Application 2023.” Application deadline: Friday, March 17, 2023.
- The faculty advisors will review your application and notify you of acceptance decisions in late March).
- Accepted applicants will receive an invoice from PAA’s PayPal account. Make the payment of $85 via PayPal by March 28, 2023. The fee pays for the certificate, pin, and first year’s chapter membership.
Accepted applicants will be inducted at the Honors Induction Ceremony on May 6, 2023 from 5:00-7:00pm (expected to be hybrid). Families and friends are welcome to attend the ceremony and celebrate your accomplishments together.
Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at paa@csudh.edu
Awards Programs
- PAA Best Capstone Awards: The purpose of the awards is to recognize students’ achievements in their public administration capstone projects and promote academic excellence. The awards are given annually to a graduate student and a group of undergraduate students who have successfully completed their capstone projects in the previous calendar year (through PUB 490 or PUB 592). A cash prize of $200 is awarded to the best paper and $50 to the runner-up. The awards are funded by the PAA-CSUDH Chapter membership fees and donations. Both individual and group capstone projects are eligible for the competition. To compete for the awards, the student author (or at least one of the student co-authors) must be a Pi Alpha Alpha member. Students must submit an application form and a copy of the capstone paper. Applications are accepted in February-March of each year. For further information, please contact Dr. Rui Sun at rsun@csudh.edu.
- PAA Research Fellowship Awards: The purpose of the awards is to promote graduate and undergraduate scholarship in the CSUDH Department of Public Administration. Each awarded student will be granted a fellowship amount of $700 for working on a research project of his or her interest under the supervision of a faculty mentor. Awarded students are expected to work on the research project for at least ONE semester and up to two semesters during the award period and must submit a deliverable (such as a manuscript for scholarly journal publication, a paper or presentation at the Student Research Day or other academic conferences, a proposal for capstone project or external grant applications, etc.). The awards are funded by the PAA-CSUDH Chapter membership fees and donations. Applications are accepted in August-September of each year. For further information, please refer to the Call for Applications here.
Best Capstone Award Application
Research Fellowship Award Application