La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison

What La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison does

The Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs is Wisconsin's only public affairs school and a constituent academic unit of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, named after former Wisconsin Governor and U.S. Senator Robert M. La Follette. It offers graduate degree programs (Master of Public Affairs and Master of International Public Affairs), an accelerated 5+1 pathway for UW-Madison undergraduates, dual degrees with Law, Public Health, Neuroscience, and Urban Planning, and graduate certificates in Business and Energy Analysis and Policy. At the undergraduate level, it provides a Public Policy major (BA/BS) and certificates in Public Policy and Health Policy. Enrollment is small by design, with roughly 50 graduate admits per year (about 35 MPA, 15 MIPA) and a faculty-to-student ratio of approximately 1:5.

The school's core methodology is evidence-based policy analysis combining statistics, economics, cost-benefit analysis, and qualitative frameworks. Curricular differentiation is reinforced by structured experiential learning: capstone, workshop, and cost-benefit analysis courses where student teams deliver research-based reports to real clients across Wisconsin government, healthcare, nonprofit, and education sectors. MIPA students can cluster courses into regional focus fields (African, East Asian, European, Latin American studies) leveraging UW-Madison's area studies centers. The La Follette Seminar Series convenes policy experts each semester. There are no proprietary software products, APIs, or AI systems; technology footprint is limited to standard academic tools including Google Calendar-based course schedule publication.

The school's operating model combines tuition (offset heavily by graduate assistantships providing full tuition remission, stipends, and benefits), state appropriations routed through UW-Madison, philanthropic giving via the UW Foundation, and sponsored faculty research. Notable 2026 inflows include a $30 million gift from Herb Kohl Philanthropies for the future Herb Kohl Hall and $100,000 from Culver's co-founder Craig Culver. Revenue concentration risk is low due to a distributed individual-student customer base, but operational dependence on parent university funding is the principal structural feature. The school markets through a multi-channel mix including its website, monthly newsletter, six social media platforms, virtual and in-person information sessions, alumni engagement, and a dedicated career hub, leveraging its top 10% U.S. News ranking, low graduate debt-to-income ratio, and 2,000+ alumni network as primary demand-generation assets.

Name

La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison

Legal name

Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison

Website

https://lafollette.wisc.edu

Company type

Public

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The La Follette School of Public Affairs is a top-10%-ranked public affairs school within UW-Madison offering MPA, MIPA, and undergraduate policy programs to roughly 50 graduate admits per year, combining evidence-based quantitative policy analysis with hands-on client projects for Wisconsin government and nonprofit partners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education — Public Affairs and Public Policy

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Research Universities with Major Extension & Outreach Missions (EDAHAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Health Administration & Health Policy Schools (MHA/MPH Policy) (EDAHAGAL), State/Provincial Education Department Administration (BPAIABAJ)

Keywords

• Public policy education
• Graduate degree programs
• Public administration training
• Policy analysis coursework
• Higher education research

Headquarters

HQ city

Madison

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Graduate tuition and fees: Students pay tuition for master's degree programs (MPA and MIPA). Most students secure campus funding through assistantships, fellowships, or scholarships. Graduate assistantships typically include full tuition remission, a stipend, and benefits.
2. Donations and philanthropy: The school receives charitable contributions through the UW Foundation. Notable gifts include $100,000 from Culver's co-founder Craig Culver and a $30 million gift from Herb Kohl Philanthropies ($10M for programming, $20M for building renovations). Leadership Circle requires annual gifts of $500 or monthly gifts of $42.
3. Student project partnerships: Organizations partner with La Follette students for policy research projects at no cost to clients. While the service is free for clients, this creates future pipeline of students and alumni donors.
4. Sponsored research and grants: Faculty conduct research funded by external grants. The Herb Kohl Public Service Research Competition supports faculty research. Funding from organizations like Ascendium supports student scholarships and the career hub.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The La Follette School of Public Affairs delivers graduate and undergraduate academic programs in public affairs, public policy, and international public affairs, including the Master of Public Affairs (MPA, 48 credits), Master of International Public Affairs (MIPA, 42 credits), an undergraduate Public Policy major (BA/BS), and certificates in Public Policy, Health Policy, Business, and Energy Analysis and Policy. Programs combine quantitative policy analysis (statistics, economics, cost-benefit analysis) with experiential capstone, workshop, and consulting projects for real-world clients in government, nonprofit, and private-sector settings, and are delivered primarily on-campus at UW-Madison in Madison, Wisconsin.

Product overview

The La Follette School of Public Affairs offers a portfolio of academic degree programs and certificates. At the graduate level, it provides the Master of Public Affairs (MPA) and Master of International Public Affairs (MIPA) as core degree programs, along with accelerated pathways for UW-Madison undergraduates, dual degree options in Law, Public Health, Neuroscience, and Urban Planning, and graduate certificates in Business and Energy Analysis and Policy. At the undergraduate level, it offers a Public Policy major (BA/BS) and certificates in Public Policy and Health Policy. The school integrates experiential learning through capstone projects, workshops, and cost-benefit analysis courses where students partner with real-world clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Master of Public Affairs (MPA)
• Master of International Public Affairs (MIPA)
• Public Policy Major (BA/BS)
• Certificate in Public Policy
• Certificate in Health Policy
• Accelerated MPA/MIPA
• Dual/Double Degree Programs
• Business Certificate (Graduate)
• Energy Analysis and Policy Certificate

Quantifiable outcome

• Graduates find employment in 3-6 months post-graduation
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Harvard Kennedy School: HKS is the flagship public policy school, offering MPA, MPP, and MC/MPA programs with a strong evidence-based and quantitative curriculum similar to La Follette's; serves as the upper-bound benchmark for ranking, prestige, and alumni network effects.
• University of Michigan Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy: Michigan Ford School offers MPP, MPA, and dual degrees with a policy-analysis curriculum and capstone structure closely mirroring La Follette's experiential model; comparable as a top-tier public research university policy school.
• Indiana University O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs: O'Neill is one of the largest U.S. public affairs schools with MPA, MPP, and environmental policy concentrations; directly comparable curriculum (cost-benefit analysis, policy evaluation) but at significantly larger scale and broader geographic footprint than La Follette.
• Princeton School of Public and International Affairs: Princeton SPIA offers MPA and MPA-MBA tracks with strong quantitative policy emphasis and elite brand positioning; highly comparable to La Follette's MPA/MIPA structure and policy-analysis methodology, though at a much larger scale and with private-university resources.
• UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy: Berkeley GSPP offers an MPP focused on quantitative policy analysis and evidence-based policymaking — a near-perfect functional peer to La Follette's MPA, with comparable debt-to-income metrics (0.45) and similarly strong public-university value proposition.
• University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy: Harris is a top-ranked public policy school with a heavily quantitative, economics-driven curriculum similar to La Follette's analytical emphasis; direct peer for evidence-based policy training and career outcomes in government and analytics.
• Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs: Maxwell offers MPA and MAIR programs with strong international affairs and public administration concentrations; comparable to La Follette's MIPA and to its state-government experiential learning model, though at much larger scale.
• Georgetown McCourt School of Public Policy: McCourt offers MPP and MPA programs in Washington, D.C., with a policy-analysis curriculum and capstone structure closely paralleling La Follette's; differs by leveraging federal-government proximity instead of state-capital access.
• University of Virginia Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy: Batten offers an MPP with a quantitative, evidence-based core analogous to La Follette's MPA; UVA's 0.43 debt-to-income ratio cited alongside La Follette's in WSJ analysis makes it a direct value-proposition peer.
• George Washington University Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration: Trachtenberg offers MPA, MPP, and policy-focused degrees with strong ties to federal policymakers in D.C.; comparable to La Follette in curriculum structure and career-outcomes emphasis, with a different jurisdictional focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/uwlafollette
• YouTubeyoutube.com/uwlafollette
• Facebookfacebook.com/uwlafollette
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/uwlafollette
• Instagraminstagram.com/uwlafollette

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison