2023 Best Public Administration Schools
Finding the Best Public Administration School for You
In 2020-2021, 16,905 people earned a degree or certificate in public administration, making the major the #59 most popular in the United States.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.
The Best Public Administration Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 316 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best programs for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
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2023 Best Public Administration Schools in the United States
Check out the public admin programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 25 Top Schools in Public Administration
Our analysis found Harvard University to be the best school for public administration students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Located in the medium-sized city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at Harvard University
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Johns Hopkins University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Public Administration Schools list. Johns Hopkins is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Baltimore.
Full Public Administration at Johns Hopkins University Report
Out of the 316 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, University of South Dakota landed the # 3 spot on the list. USD is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Vermillion.
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Public Administration Schools list. Located in the small city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
Out of the 316 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Winona State University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the town of Winona, Winona State is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at Winona State University
University of Pennsylvania came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Schools ranking. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at University of Pennsylvania
Colorado State University - Global Campus landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Located in the large city of Greenwood Village, Colorado State University - Global Campus is a public school with a large student population.
Cornell University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Public Administration Schools list. Located in the small city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
Georgetown University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.
Read full report on Public Administration at Georgetown University
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for public administration students. It came in at #10 on the list. UMN Twin Cities is a very large public school located in the large city of Minneapolis.
San Jose State University landed the #11 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Located in the city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public college with a very large student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at San Jose State University
Villanova University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of Villanova, Villanova is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
University of Virginia - Main Campus ranked #13 on this year’s Best Public Administration Schools list. University of Virginia is a very large public school located in the small suburb of Charlottesville.
Read full report on Public Administration at University of Virginia - Main Campus
University of Southern California landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. USC is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles.
Full Public Administration at University of Southern California Report
University of San Francisco ranked #15 on this year’s Best Public Administration Schools list. USFCA is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Francisco.
Full Public Administration at University of San Francisco Report
Columbia University in the City of New York came in at #16 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Schools ranking. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of New York.
Full Public Administration at Columbia University in the City of New York Report
Kansas State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for public administration students. It came in at #17 on the list. Located in the city of Manhattan, K -State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Clemson University landed the #18 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Located in the suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public college with a very large student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at Clemson University
New York University landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Located in the large city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Read full report on Public Administration at New York University
George Washington University landed the #20 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. GWU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.
American University ranked #21 on this year’s Best Public Administration Schools list. Located in the large city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
Virginia Tech landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Virginia Tech is a very large public school located in the city of Blacksburg.
With a ranking of #23, Carnegie Mellon University did quite well on this year’s best schools for public administration students. Carnegie Mellon is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Pittsburgh.
Full Public Administration at Carnegie Mellon University Report
Golden Gate University - San Francisco landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. Located in the large city of San Francisco, Golden Gate University - San Francisco is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
Mount Vernon Nazarene University landed the #25 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best public administration programs. MVNU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the town of Mount Vernon.
Read full report on Public Administration at Mount Vernon Nazarene University
Rest of the Top Best Public Administration Schools
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great schools for Public Administration students that almost earned our Best Public Administration Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 48 | Saint Cloud State University | Saint Cloud, MN |
| 49 | Indiana University - Bloomington | Bloomington, IN |
| 50 | Indiana University - South Bend | South Bend, IN |
| 51 | California Baptist University | Riverside, CA |
| 52 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 53 | Syracuse University | Syracuse, NY |
| 54 | Hamline University | Saint Paul, MN |
| 55 | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, MI |
| 56 | California State University - Fresno | Fresno, CA |
| 57 | Saginaw Valley State University | University Center, MI |
| 58 | California State University - Bakersfield | Bakersfield, CA |
| 59 | Alfred University | Alfred, NY |
| 60 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | Denver, CO |
| 61 | University of Maryland - Baltimore County | Baltimore, MD |
| 62 | National University | La Jolla, CA |
| 63 | University of Kansas | Lawrence, KS |
Public Administration by Region
View the Best Public Administration Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Public Administration Rankings
Public Administration Related Rankings by Major
Public Administration is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.
Majors Similar to Public Admin
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Social Work | 58,326 |
| Human Services | 13,238 |
| Public Policy | 6,430 |
| Community Organization & Advocacy | 3,096 |
| Other Public Administration | 588 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.
- Read more about our ranking methodology.
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Credit for the banner image above goes to The Official CTBTO Photostream.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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