Clinton School Online FAQ

A qualified applicant is a professional who has demonstrated leadership in their career and in their personal pursuit of public service and has a strong academic background. Someone with 5+ years of both professional and public service experience after their undergraduate degree would be a competitive candidate.

There are five items needed to complete your Clinton School Online application:

– A completed application form
– Final transcripts of all higher education degrees awarded
– An updated resume
– One required short-answer question
– One required letter of recommendation: a recommender addressing the applicant’s professional experience and work ethic

The Priority Deadline to apply for May 2025 enrollment in Clinton School Online is January 15. Completed applicants will receive admission and merit scholarship decisions within two weeks of their completed submission.

The Regular Deadline is March 15. Completed applicants will receive admission and merit scholarship decisions by April 15.

No.

No. The program is designed on a set two-year progressive academic plan, and withdrawing during the program will, unfortunately, disrupt the sequence.

The tuition cost per credit hour of Clinton School Online is $850. In addition, there is a fee cost per credit hour of $83.33.

The total cost of tuition and fees for the full two-year CSO program is $33,600.

Yes, students admitted to Clinton School Online will be eligible for merit-based scholarships. Admitted students will be notified of merit-based scholarships in their acceptance letters.

Due to a range of domestic educational protocols, Clinton School Online is only available to students living in the United States while the program is ongoing.

Yes. A list of the courses can be found here.

The Capstone course is the only field service project online students will complete. The collaborating partner organization could be the student’s current employer, another organization in their local community or country of residence, or an international organization.

Yes. Students can transfer up to 3 hours of core credit and 3 hours of elective credit from other programs, subject to advance approval by the Clinton School Academic Dean. Courses to be transferred must meet the following criteria:

– Taken at an accredited higher education institution

– Passed with a grade of “B” or higher

– For electives, have course content relevant to the Clinton School Online program, and for core courses, have course content equivalent to the course taught in the online program.

All course content will be available on the Friday of the week it is scheduled at 8 a.m. (CT). The previous content for lectures will remain accessible online until the end of that course.

All assignments will be submitted through the school’s online platform, Blackboard. Grades will also be available to view through Blackboard.

No. The Clinton School Online program runs for 24 consecutive months, two courses at a time. An enrolled student will not be able to accelerate through the program or take courses at a faster pace.

Clinton School Online is bookended by in-person components at the start and conclusion of the program.

Depending on the course, there may be infrequent real-time meetings, but the majority of classwork will be delivered online.

Students can expect 15+ hours per week of online classwork, readings, and class preparation. Depending on other commitments in the student’s life, and the student’s time-management skills, it is possible for someone to work full-time and perform well in the online program.

The MPS is an in-person full-time degree program based in Little Rock, Arkansas, featuring classroom education and three required field service projects (domestic and international). The Clinton School Online program, designed for professionals with significant public service experience, is a distance program formatted through online courses and bookended by on-campus experiences at the start and conclusion of the program. Clinton School Online includes one required Capstone project.

Additionally, the in-person MPS can be earned concurrently with a Juris Doctor, Master of Public Health, Master of Business Administration, or Master of Social Work. The concurrent degree options are not available through Clinton School Online.

The Master of Public Service through Clinton School Online is a two-year, 36-hour program. Students are enrolled in two courses at a time over 16-week terms.

In total, students will complete 12 courses over a period of 24 months.

The enrollment term is two years. For example, if you started in May 2025, you would finish in May 2027.

The cohort size for Clinton School Online will be approximately 25-30 students.

Hardware Requirements:

– Desktop computer or laptop with webcam and microphone (tablets and cell phones are not recommended for coursework)
– 2GHz processor or higher
– 2GB or higher of memory (RAM)
– 30GB or higher of free storage
– Windows 7/Vista or higher operating system (for PC)
– Mac OS 10.6 or higher operating system (for Mac)

Software Requirements:

– Microsoft Office 2007 or higher (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint)
– Adobe Flash 10 or higher (Free Download)
– Adobe Acrobat Reader (Free Download)
– Java (Free Download)
– QuickTime (Free Download)

– If you already have these programs installed, please check for and run any updates necessary to ensure you’re ready to go! Some courses may have additional software requirements. Please talk to your academic advisor for details.

Network Connection Requirements:

– Broadband (Cable or DSL) with 512 Kbps or higher download speed. A direct connection to the router is preferred over wireless or satellite connections. As an online learner, a dependable, high-speed connection may be the most important investment you can make.