UMF Public Policy

Discover this 100% online Public Policy degree

We believe a strong public policy education should be flexible, affordable, and accessible to everyone. That’s why this University of Maine at Farmington Public Policy degree, powered by YourPace at UMPI, lets you earn your degree fully online at a pace that works for you. YourPace is designed to help you balance your studies with work and family while building skills that make a real difference in government, nonprofits, or community leadership.

Guided by experienced YourPace faculty, you’ll gain a solid foundation in governance, law, and civic engagement all through the innovative YourPace format that puts you in control of your schedule and progress. With affordable tuition, personal advising, and our commitment to student success, you’ll see why so many students trust YourPace to reach their goals faster. Take the next step to shape policy and lead change on your terms, with YourPace.

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What is Competency-Based Education?

Designed to leverage your previous knowledge, college coursework, and work experience, competency-based education enables you to earn your degree at your pace as you demonstrate mastery of relevant academic content. The University of Maine at Presque Isle has been a leader in delivering competency-based education since 2017.

How YourPace saves you time and money:

Prove your knowledge, move ahead—the faster you advance, the more you save
Flat tuition rate per 8-week session, no matter how many courses you complete
With no weekly deadlines, you control the speed of completion*

*Time to completion varies by student and is based on several factors including prior college coursework, relevant work experience, amount of time dedicated to studying, and the number of courses completed each session.

Upcoming Session Dates

The Dates YourPace Students Need to Know

There are six opportunities throughout the year to begin our YourPace online program. Find the start date below that works best for you and apply before the application deadline. Please note, application and document deadlines are the same. UMPI must receive all documents including official transcripts by the document deadline to be considered. Transcripts can often take 10 or more business days from the request date to be received by UMPI, please plan accordingly.

Term	APP DEADLINE (4:00 PM ET)	START DATE	DOCUMENT DEADLINE	CONFIRMATION DEADLINE (4:00 PM ET)	REGISTRATION DEADLINE	TUITION DEADLINE	CLASS END DATE	Term Length
Fall 1	08/01/25	09/02/25	08/12/25	08/19/25	08/26/25	08/28/25	10/24/25	8 weeks
Fall 2	09/26/25	10/27/25	10/07/25	10/14/25	10/21/25	10/23/25	12/19/25	8 weeks
Spring 1	12/12/25	01/12/26	12/23/25	12/30/25	01/06/26	01/08/26	03/06/26	8 weeks
Spring 2	02/06/26	03/09/26	02/17/26	02/24/26	03/03/26	03/05/26	05/01/26	8 weeks
Summer 1	04/10/26	05/11/26	04/21/26	04/28/26	05/05/26	05/07/26	07/02/26	8 weeks
Summer 2	06/05/26	07/06/26	06/16/26	06/23/26	06/30/26	07/02/26	08/28/26	8 weeks

YourPace Public Policy Program Offerings

The University of Maine at Farmington offers an innovative Public Policy degree through the YourPace format, built to match your leadership goals and community impact aspirations. With flexible online options and dedicated faculty, you gain the knowledge and skills to navigate today’s policy challenges confidently. Explore our program details below and discover your pathway to shape communities and drive meaningful change in public service.

The need for skilled public policy professionals continues to grow, and the UMF Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy YourPace online program prepares you to lead and serve in this dynamic field. Gain the foundational knowledge and practical tools to understand, develop, and implement policies that impact communities at local, state, national, and global levels.

In our accredited B.A. online public policy program, you will build a solid understanding of how government systems, laws, and institutions operate. As you master competencies aligned with the skills employers value, you will strengthen your ability to analyze complex policy issues, communicate effectively with diverse audiences, and make data-informed decisions that shape positive change.

In this YourPace online program, you will learn to:

Examine the structures and functions of government and public organizations
Analyze policy proposals and evaluate their social, economic, and political impacts
Apply ethical reasoning and critical thinking to real-world policy challenges
Develop clear, persuasive policy briefs, reports, and recommendations
Use data and research methods to support informed policy decisions

Faculty with Real-World Experience

Whether you want to influence local government, shape public programs, or lead community change, you’ll learn from UMF faculty who have worked directly in the policy field. Their insights and guidance help you master each competency at your own pace, so you gain practical skills and confidence to step into leadership roles.

YourPace Tuition

Learn more about our affordable tuition

The YourPace Public Policy Program offers an affordable flat tuition rate, ensuring you pay the same amount per session regardless of how many courses you complete. With no hidden fees or additional textbook costs, this flexible competency-based education program allows you to save more the faster you finish. Whether you’re looking to accelerate your degree or complete courses at your own pace, you’ll benefit from transparent pricing and a cost-effective learning experience.

Financial aid is available in the form of loans on the FAFSA website.
UMF school code 002040

Tuition breakdown:

$1,800 per session

Flat-Rate Tuition

Frequently Asked YourPace Public Policy Questions

In a competency-based model, you progress by demonstrating mastery of specific skills or topics rather than following a fixed schedule. This approach lets you focus on areas where you need development while bypassing content you already know.

The YourPace Public Policy program is an online, competency-based education (CBE) degree designed for learners who want to complete their degree at their own pace. This program allows students to demonstrate mastery of specific skills and knowledge areas to progress quickly through the coursework.

This program is ideal for adult learners, working professionals, or anyone with prior college credits or relevant work experience looking to complete their degree affordably and flexibly.

Yes. Students will complete the University of Maine at Farmington’s General Education Curriculum requirements and can use UMPI YourPace courses to meet those requirements.

Have questions or need more information about competency based education?

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Ready to take the next step toward earning your degree online?

Undergrad Apply

UMPI is ranked as one of the top 10 Regional Colleges in the North for graduates with least debt—UMPI is the top institution in Maine and all of New England to appear on this list. – U.S. News & World Report, 2025.

EXPECT to Finish at YourPace

YourPace Courses Success Coach Center for Innovative Learning

YourPace Admissions

Requirements for these Public Policy program offerings

We’ve made the admission process simple and streamlined so it’s easier for you to get started. Those interested in earning their competency based education degree in Public Policy should have the equivalent of a high school diploma and possess some prior college credit and/or work experience.

Admission Requirements:

No Application Fee

Minimum 1.75 GPA

Admissions Requirements and Guidelines for Undergraduate Programs

Students must be 20 years of age at the time of application.
High school diploma or equivalent (e.g., HiSet, GED)
Minimum cumulative college of GPA 1.75 from most recently attended institution
- Submission of all official transcripts:Transcripts are only considered official if they are sent directly to UMPI from the granting institution or their electronic ordering service. Student-submitted transcripts are not accepted.
Students who do not have any college credits must submit the following:
- Provide high school transcript, high school equivalency test (HiSet), or GED

Instructions for international students:

All international transcripts will only be accepted if the student provides them through an evaluation service. The evaluation agency must be a member of NACES or AICE. We will not accept unofficial copies (e.g., from the student)
Canadian schools and universities from a French-only institution (mostly in the province of Quebec) must be evaluated
International students are required to demonstrate English proficiency by submitting scores from an English language proficiency test taken no more than two-years prior to date of application

Additional guidelines for international applicants may be found here.

Please Note: Student under 20 years of age do not meet the requirements for the YourPace programs. We do offer other programs that may meet your needs. If you would like more information about our traditional programs, please visit https://www.umpi.edu/admissions/. You can also reach out to the Admissions Office at umpi-admissions@maine.edu or by calling 207.768.9433.

Institutions and third-party vendors may submit official documents such as official transcripts and English proficiency exam score reports to: edocs@maine.edu

Mailing Address:

Application Processing Center
PO Box 412
Bangor, ME 04402-0412

YourPace Public Policy Courses

This UMF Public Policy YourPace program helps you build the practical skills and real-world understanding needed to lead and influence policy decisions in your community and beyond. Use the buttons below to explore your degree options and see how YourPace can help you reach your goals on your schedule.

A look at the UMF Bachelor of Arts: Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy YourPace program

At UMF, we recognize that academic disciplines do not exist in a vacuum, and to fully understand a subject, one must move beyond the silos of the individual disciplines and integrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions that are found in related, complementary academic subjects. Through our interdisciplinary approach, students will study at least two differing subjects and look at the connections between them.

About the Concentration

Public Policy spans a variety of different disciplines, connecting any discipline’s focus with the laws, policies and institutional framework surrounding that particular focus. Someone entering the world of policy benefits from a broad knowledge of policy issues, and specific information about how agencies operate.

Building on a core set of courses on public policy, policy analysis, and statistical methods, students will branch out into areas directly connected to their own policy interests, ranging from globalization, health care, education, gender and development, human rights, climate change, and environmental policy. While the program has a focus on local government and public administration, this approach provides students with an opportunity to make the program more relevant to their own interests and experiences.

View Course Catalog

YourPace Partnership Program

This University of Maine at Farmington degree is powered by YourPace at UMPI. This innovative YourPace partnership program provides adult learners with an incredibly flexible, accessible, and affordable pathway to degree completion and career advancement. UMPI is the first public university in New England to offer accredited CBE degrees and is the only campus in the University of Maine System approved by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) to deliver CBE programming.

NECHE

The University of Maine at Presque Isle and the University of Maine at Farmington are accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).

University of Maine System

UMPI and UMF are respected members of the University of Maine System.

C-BEN

UMPI is proud to be a member institution in the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN).

What can you do with a degree in Public Policy?

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