What are the opening hours?

Monday 8:30am - 5pm Tuesday 8:30am - 5pm Wednesday 8:30am - 5pm Thursday 8:30am - 5pm Friday 8:30am - 5pm

University of North Carolina Department of Public Policy

Home
United States
Chapel Hill, NC
University of North Carolina Department of Public Policy

Welcome to the Department of Public Policy at the University of North Carolina! The Ph.D. Please contact us if you would like to hear more.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has a strong commitment to public policy education and research, and to engagement with the public to improve policy outcomes. This page provides a gateway to the Department of Public Policy and the new Carolina Institute for Public Policy, and links to other related units. The Department offers a distinctive emphasis on public policy educat

ion and research at the undergraduate and doctoral levels, rather than on professional master's degrees. Our undergraduate major includes strong preparation in writing and analysis, personal advising, internship opportunities (including an optional Washington Policy Semester), thesis research experience, and a capstone practicum in which our students develop policy solutions for public agencies and non-profit organizations. in Public Policy provides a strong core curriculum in research design and methods, policy economics and institutions, and ethics, and particular strengths in education and child policy, domestic and international social policy, health, aging, immigration, environmental policy, and entrepreneurship and innovation. Our doctoral graduates now hold positions in many leading universities and policy research organizations. We invite you to share the intellectual excitement we experience here every day. Please also visit us on twitter! www.twitter.com/uncpublicpolicy

04/20/2026

Still looking for a PLCY elective for next semester? Consider PLCY 590: Debt, Wealth, & Public Policy. Enroll in the course through ConnectCarolina during open enrollment, beginning today!

Course Description: Why do some families build wealth while others stay trapped in debt? And, what role does policy play? This course explores how public policies in areas like higher education finance, consumer credit, and homeownership shape who gets ahead and who falls behind in the United States. Students will learn to analyze real policy systems, evaluate evidence on what works (and what doesn't), and understand why the wealth gap and not just income inequality is central to questions of economic mobility and financial security. This course is open to all students who want to think critically about how policy shapes economic opportunity in America.

04/08/2026

Join us on Friday, April 24th to celebrate the community driven public policy projects and internships completed during the 2026-academic year. This is a poster event, so drop in anytime between 10:30 am to 12:00 pm for discussion and snacks.

In keeping with Carolina’s IDEAs in Action Curriculum, UNC Public Policy’s experiential education programs offer students structured, active learning opportunities that invite them to explain the connections between academic studies and outside-the-classroom experiences, apply knowledge in complex situations, and use these experiences to raise or answer questions in academic settings.

To learn more about all our offerings in the experiential learning program, please visit our website (Linked in bio).

Congrats on all of your hard work this year, TarHeels!

🐏

03/30/2026

UNC Public Policy seniors put their skills to work through the Public Policy Capstone course— partnering with communities, tackling real policy challenges, and making a difference beyond the classroom.

Read the full story on our website to see how students from the Fall 2025 Capstone course are creating meaningful change using their skills aquired in the classroom.

03/25/2026

The deadline for our awards and fellowship is approaching. Please submit your applications by 11:50PM on March 31st.

If you are interested in applying, please see our website (scan the QR Code or click the link in our bio) to learn more about each award and to access the application forms.

For questions or assistance, feel free to reach out to Meredith Albright ([email protected]).

Happy Spring, and Go Heels!

01/23/2026

Dr. Levitsky gave thought provoking responses to each question asked during this year's Lambeth Lecture. To see the full recording, click the link in our bio.

01/21/2026

Over three hundred undergraduate students attended Dr. Levitsky's lecture on Authoritarianism in the United States. Thank you to Dr. Steven Levitsky for an engaging and compelling talk at the 2026 Lambeth Lecture! His talk, “America’s Road to Authoritarianism,” which took place on January 13, 2026, is now available on our YouTube page (linked in our bio).

A special thanks to the Lambeth Lecture Committee for curating such a timely and impactful program. We look forward to continuing these important conversations in the future.

The Lambeth Lectureship was established in 2006 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill by the late Joel L. Fleishman with a generous anonymous gift. It was supported in later years by additional donations under the leadership of Erskine Bowles. Presented annually, its purpose is to bring to campus distinguished speakers who are practitioners or scholars of public policy, particularly those whose work touches on the fields of education, ethics, democratic institutions, and civic engagement. The lectureship is administered by the Lambeth Lecture Committee, composed of faculty members, students, and distinguished individuals engaged in public policy, in collaboration with UNC Public Policy.

01/12/2026

Join us tomorrow, January 13th, 2026, at 5:30pm in Moeser Auditorium to hear from our distinguished guest lecturer, Dr. Stevin Levitsky. The title of his talk is, “America’s Road to Authoritarianism.” Dr. Levitsky is the David Rockefeller Professor of Latin American Studies and Professor of Government at Harvard University. His research focuses on democratization and authoritarianism, political parties, and weak and informal institutions, particularly in Latin America.

Dr. Levitsky is the co-author of the 2018 book How Democracies Die (with Daniel Ziblatt) which was a New York Times bestseller. Levitsky’s book explores how elected leaders undermine democratic institutions and grab power for themselves, illustrating this process of democratic backsliding with case studies of Hungary, Turkey, Venezuela, and the American South during Jim Crow, and offering an analysis of troubling trends in the contemporary United States. Dr. Levitsky’s follow-up 2023 book Tyranny of the Minority: Why American Democracy Reached the Breaking Point (with Daniel Ziblatt) explains how the U.S. Constitution enables minority rule and threatens America’s future as a multiracial democracy.

This event is available as CLE credit for undergraduate students. Registration Link for Remote Option: https://unc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_QfO96kUnSOuWhwYlnxPAeg

11/03/2025

The Department of Public Policy had the pleasure of supporting our doctoral student researchers at the Inaugural Graduate Research Symposium this past October 23rd. We had four students ranging from first year to fifth year PhD students. The following students Juba Kafumba, Musopa Kalenga, Christian Osei, and Myra Rafiq presented their research at the poster presentation. Towards the end of the event, Christian Osei had the opportunity to give an oral presentation on various tax policies to address smoking usage and public health in Ghana.

To learn more about our current PhD students and our Doctorate Program in Public Policy, see our website linked in our bio for more information!

🐏

09/03/2025

Welcome back to campus, Tarheels! We are happy to have you for the 2025-2026 academic school year. It's nice to see some familiar and new faces on campus. Please swipe through this post to learn about new faculty, staff, and appointments made over the summer!

To learn more about each of our faculty and staff, please see our website https://publicpolicy.unc.edu/ (link in bio).

See you around! 👀

🐑

06/12/2025

Congratulations to the UNC MPP Class of 2025!🐏🩵 This cohort accomplished so much in their short time in the one-year master’s program. TarHeel grads, go change the world✨🌎🎓

Address

Abernathy Drive
Chapel Hill, NC
27599

Opening Hours

Monday	8:30am - 5pm
Tuesday	8:30am - 5pm
Wednesday	8:30am - 5pm
Thursday	8:30am - 5pm
Friday	8:30am - 5pm

Telephone

+19199621600

Website

http://publicpolicy.unc.edu/, https://linktr.ee/uncpublicpolicy

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when University of North Carolina Department of Public Policy posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The University

Send a message to University of North Carolina Department of Public Policy:

Shortcuts

Address
Telephone
Opening Hours
Alerts
Contact The University
Claim ownership or report listing

Want your university to be the top-listed University in Chapel Hill?