About Us
The McCourt School of Public Policy at Georgetown University is a community of global citizens, conducting policy-relevant research and building bridges between our work and the communities we serve.
The McCourt School of Public Policy — which started as an ambitious vision of Georgetown University’s Department of Government and Economics — is now of one of the nation’s premier public policy schools. Our mission is to tackle the complex issue of today, and inspire and empower the leaders of tomorrow.
Our founding donor
Frank H. McCourt, Jr. — business and sports leader, entrepreneur and philanthropist — is an accomplished leader in building value through entrepreneurial, strategic and philanthropic investments.
The McCourt difference
The McCourt School of Public Policy is a top-ranked public policy school and research institution at the center of the policy world. Our degree programs are led by world-class faculty, scholars and practitioners motivated to effect change through policy.
Undergraduate degree
We train future leaders to design, analyze and put effective policies into practice in the public, private and nonprofit sectors.
Graduate programs
McCourt prepares future leaders to design, analyze and implement effective policy across sectors. Our five master’s degree programs build the expertise to take on complex challenges and turn good ideas into lasting impact.
World-class faculty
McCourt School faculty are distinguished scholars, teachers and leading expert practitioners dedicated to shaping the next generation of policy leaders.
Impact-driven research centers
We are an incubator of bold new ideas to solve today’s most pressing policy challenges. McCourt’s research centers, institutes and initiatives produce impact-driven scholarship that drives real-world change.
Advancing public policy for the common good
The McCourt School of Public Policy advances public policy for the common good, grounded in the dignity of every person and committed to human flourishing, justice and peace.
Public policy is stronger when the people shaping it reflect the communities they serve. We actively welcome first-generation students, military-connected students and students of varied political perspectives, geographic backgrounds, cultures and lived experiences, and we work to reduce barriers to a McCourt education. Rooted in the Jesuit values that animate Georgetown University, we foster an environment where all students, faculty and staff feel welcome, heard and able to participate fully, whatever their racial, ethnic, gender or religious identity, socioeconomic status, ideology or lived experience.
We also prepare students to engage constructively across differences. In an era of heightened polarization, that ability is itself a policy skill. We build it from the start through our Foundations course; strengthen it through the Conflict Transformation Lab, Georgetown’s commitment to free and open inquiry and our diverse array of student organizations; and model it through our Free Exchange lecture series and the Institute of Politics and Public Service, which bring voices from across the ideological spectrum to campus.