Rutgers University School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) is accredited by the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration (NASPAA), a nonprofit organization with a mission to "ensure excellence in education and training for public service and to promote the ideal of public service." In keeping with NASPAA standards, Rutgers' MPA curriculum is designed around five core competencies that ensure graduates are adequately prepared to enter the field of public service. The competencies are: to lead and manage in the public interest; to participate in, and contribute to, the policy process; to analyze, synthesize, think critically, solve problems, and make evidence-informed decisions in a complex and dynamic environment; to articulate, apply, and advance a public service perspective; and, to communicate and interact productively and in culturally responsive ways with a diverse and changing workforce and society at large.