Welcome to the Pardee RAND Graduate School

The Pardee RAND Graduate School is the Original Ph.D. in Public Policy Analysis

Unique in American higher education, the Pardee RAND Graduate School is the nation's largest public policy Ph.D. program and the only program based at an independent public policy research organization—the RAND Corporation. 

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How to Apply

Applications are now being accepted for Fall 2017. Visit our Admissions section to learn more about the application process and fellowship and scholarship information. For personal feedback before you apply, submit a pre-application.

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Degree Program

The Pardee RAND Ph.D. Program comprises an interdisciplinary core curriculum, optional analytic concentration, policy specialization, on-the-job training, and a policy-relevant dissertation.

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News & Featured Research

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  • Charles Wolf Jr. Dies at 92. Founding Dean of RAND's Graduate School Pioneered Modern Policy Analysis

    Oct 25, 2016

    Charles Wolf Jr., a leading economist and founding dean of what is now the Pardee RAND Graduate School who was regarded as one of the intellectual founders of modern policy analysis, has died. He was 92.

  • Pardee RAND Partners with Eisenhower Fellows Program

    Oct 24, 2016

    In conjunction with Eisenhower Fellowships’ inaugural Africa Program, EF is sending eight Fellows to Pardee RAND Graduate School in Santa Monica, California for three days of intensive skill-building, leadership training and transformative knowledge development, October 24-26, 2016.

  • The Hot Spots of the World

    Oct 13, 2016

    Scarcity of food, energy, and water endangers the lives of millions. So Pardee RAND professors and students created a tool with the potential to help make aid initiatives more effective.

  • How to Rethink Data Privacy

    Oct 5, 2016

    Society benefits from the exchange of large-scale data in many ways. Anonymization is the usual mechanism for addressing the privacy of data subjects. Unfortunately, according to professors Osonde Osoba and John Davis, anonymization is broken.

  • Security Sector Reform in Ukraine

    Oct 5, 2016

    The 2014 Maidan revolution created an opportunity for change in a system that had resisted it for 25 years. Jakub Hlavka and Andriy Bega (both cohort '14) contributed to a report that found the Ukrainian security establishment has progressed since then, but its efforts have been insufficient to address the threats now facing the nation.

  • How to Be Safer in the Arctic

    Oct 3, 2016

    The Arctic is more accessible than it once was, but it's still a formidable place to travel. An emergency involving a cruise ship or a downed plane could stress the search-and-rescue system. But modest investments and planning measures can make a big difference, write alum Timothy Smith (cohort '13) and prof. Abbie Tingstad.

In Their Own Words