This graduate diploma program provides the opportunity for students already enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program other than the MA in Public Administration to complement their primary program with a relevant education in Indigenous Policy and Administration. With courses at the graduate level, this diploma is shorter than the MA in Public Administration program, which has a concentration in Indigenous Policy and Administration similar in content.

The diploma will serve current and future leaders of Indigenous governments and organizations, as well as the governments and public, private and non-profit organizations that work with them. Its goal is to provide students with the knowledge, skills and cultural competencies for meeting the challenges of governance, policy development and its implementation. The ultimate aim is to enhance the effectiveness of First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) governments and organizations, and non-FNMI governments and organizations that work with them, and improve relationships between FNMI and non-FNMI governments and industries in ways that are culturally appropriate and sustainable.

The initiative to introduce this diploma is the result of a successful bid by Carleton’s School of Public Policy and Administration in a competition established by Ontario’s Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities to provide funding for the development and implementation of master’s-level education in this area.