FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – In 2008, the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service and the Sam M. Walton College of Business announced a new dual degree program, in which students could receive both a Master of Public Service and a Master of Business Administration.

Sarah Clark is the first graduate of the dual program. A native of Little Rock, Ark., she graduated from Central High School. She received an English degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she developed an interest in urban planning and community development.

The new dual degree program is taught on both the Little Rock and Fayetteville campuses and provides students going into public service with needed business skills.

Marion Dunagan, assistant dean for graduate programs for Walton College, said, “This generation of graduates is interested in finding work with more meaning and making a difference in the world. These degrees give them the tools they need to be successful in the fields of corporate responsibility, sustainability and nonprofits.”

Clark was interested in the management and leadership skills she could gain from the M.B.A.; and, since starting the program, she has seen the value of the dual degree multiply as well as its many applications. She said, “I had a great experience in the M.B.A. program as well as at the Clinton School. I learned a lot from my classmates who came from diverse backgrounds. The faculty and staff from both schools were very helpful. The M.P.S./M.B.A. is a well-rounded program; it’s at the intersection of business and public service.”

Through the Clinton School, Clark did an internship in Cocobambu, Bolivia, in which she taught people in prisons how to set up and manage micro-enterprises or small businesses. “It was an amazing and eye-opening experience,” she said. Clark is now interning with Green Valley Development in Fayetteville as part of her M.B.A. degree.

 At the launch of the degree, Dean Skip Rutherford of the Clinton School, said, “Many students interested in public service find that they need business skills such as accounting and marketing to help the communities where they are working. We are very excited to be partnering with the Walton College on this joint degree. Combining the practical work involved in these degrees is another way of providing academics for the real world.”

 Joe Ziegler, Walton College professor and director of international programs, along with Rutherford, conceived the idea of the joint degree program.

“The Walton College has many partnerships with universities around the world,” Ziegler said. “We see this collaboration as a win for all of the students.”

Students pursuing a Master of Public Service spend their first semester at the Clinton School in Little Rock and then move to Fayetteville for two semesters of business courses before returning to the Little Rock campus for their final semester. In between, they complete group and international projects with practical elements of both business and public service.

The Clinton School of Public Service is the first institution in the country to offer a Master of Public Service degree, teaching students to gain knowledge and experience to further their careers in the areas of nonprofit, governmental, volunteer or private sector service work. The school is an independent entity of the University of Arkansas System, working in collaboration with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

In addition to the M.P.S./M.B.A., the Clinton School offers concurrent degree options including an M.P.S./Juris Doctor in collaboration with the William H. Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, as well as two variations of the M.P.S./Master of Public Health in conjunction with the College of Public Health at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

The Walton College Graduate School of Business, which is housed Willard J. Walker Hall, offers a full-time M.B.A. program as well as a managerial/part-time M.B.A. program. In addition, the school offers master’s degrees in accounting, economics and information systems as well as doctoral degrees in accounting, finance, economics, information systems, marketing and management.