Recession-Proof Careers: Future Looks Bright for Federal, Public Sector Careers

During tough economic times, no job is safe, however, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, working for the government may be one of the safest careers to have during a recession.

November 13, 2008

• Masters in Public Administration

• Job demand continues in tough economy

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - During tough economic times, no job is safe, however, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics, working for the government may be one of the safest careers to have during a recession. Bureau statistics show that the government fires and lays off workers at 25 percent the rate of the private sector.

A report, "Brain Drain 2008," by the Partnership for Public Service states the within the next five years the federal government will lose about one-third of the full-time permanent workforce, mostly through retirement. Conversely, a July 7 issue of Philanthropy Today reported that nonprofit organizations were seeing a surge in the number of college graduates applying for jobs.

"The use of the government increases during hard times and crises like we have seen during the Sept. 11 crisis, [Hurricane] Katrina and other emergency situations," said University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Associate Professor Akhlaque Haque, Ph.D., who directs the UAB Masters in Public Administration Program, one of the fastest growing graduate programs at the university. Enrollment in the MPA program has increased 51 percent since 2002, Haque said.

UAB has one of only three MPA programs in Alabama that is accredited by the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) and UAB is one of only four NASPAA-accredited schools in the nation to offer a joint MPA/Masters in Public Health Administration degree, according to the NASPAA.

The UAB MPA program offers courses in budgeting, recruitment, hiring and firing, legal issues, information management and technology, including mapping using Geographic Information System technology and e-governance, where students learn how government can provide online services for greater efficiency.

The program's faculty includes experienced practitioners, Haque said.

"For example, we have adjunct professors from the United Way of Birmingham teaching a course on how to manage a nonprofit," Haque said. "The city manager of Mountain Brook is teaching the course on city management."

UAB's dual degree program in public health, the MPA/MPH degree, prepares students to deal with the complexities of the health care industry with courses in public health, organizational behavior and health care management.

UAB also offers a MPA/JD dual degree in partnership with Samford University's Cumberland School of Law, where students can earn a law degreed while earning a degree in public administration

"If the students are creative and they have a desire to make a change or make decisions in new ways, they can do it with this degree, and we have seen remarkable results from this program. If you are committed to public service and the nonprofit world this is probably the right degree."