2023 Best Public Administration Master's Degree Schools
Finding the Best Public Administration Master's Degree 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.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Public Administration Master's Degree Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 276 schools in the United States to see which master's degree programs offered the best educational experiences for students. The factors used to develop this ranking include those related to how in-demand the school is, the overall quality of the school, and post-graduation wages, and more.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best for public admin majors pursuing a master's degree.
Top 25 Top Schools for a Master's in Public Administration
Our 2023 rankings named Harvard University the best school in the United States for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Johns Hopkins University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Johns Hopkins is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Baltimore.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of South Dakota. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. USD is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of Vermillion.
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Northwestern University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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The excellent master’s degree programs at University of Pennsylvania helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best public administration schools in the United States. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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Cornell University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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Georgetown University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington.
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University of Minnesota - Twin Cities ranked #8 on this year’s Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. UMN Twin Cities is a very large public school located in the large city of Minneapolis.
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San Jose State University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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With a ranking of #10, University of Southern California did quite well on this year’s best schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. USC is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.
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University of San Francisco did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #11 on the list. USFCA is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of San Francisco.
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Columbia University in the City of New York ranked #12 on this year’s Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of New York.
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Clemson University landed the #13 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the large suburb of Clemson, Clemson is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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New York University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #14 on the list. Located in the city of New York, NYU is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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Villanova University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #15 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Villanova, Villanova is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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George Washington University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #16 on the list. GWU is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.
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With a ranking of #17, American University did quite well on this year’s best schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Washington, The American University is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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Kansas State University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #18 on the list. Located in the city of Manhattan, K -State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
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Golden Gate University - San Francisco did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #19 on the list. Located in the city of San Francisco, Golden Gate University - San Francisco is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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Carnegie Mellon University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #20 on the list. Carnegie Mellon is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Pittsburgh.
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Virginia Tech came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Blacksburg.
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With a ranking of #22, Metropolitan State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Located in the city of Saint Paul, Metro State is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
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Minnesota State University - Mankato came in at #23 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the small city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public college with a large student population.
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Boston University landed the #24 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the large city of Boston, Boston U is a private not-for-profit college with a very large student population.
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University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ranked #25 on this year’s Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public college with a fairly large student population.
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Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great schools for Public Administration students that almost earned our Best Public Administration Master's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 42 | Hamline University | Saint Paul, MN |
| 43 | University of Michigan - Ann Arbor | Ann Arbor, MI |
| 44 | Saginaw Valley State University | University Center, MI |
| 45 | California State University - Bakersfield | Bakersfield, CA |
| 46 | California State University - Fresno | Fresno, CA |
| 47 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus | Denver, CO |
| 48 | Alfred University | Alfred, NY |
| 49 | Indiana University - Bloomington | Bloomington, IN |
| 50 | West Chester University of Pennsylvania | West Chester, PA |
| 51 | North Carolina State University | Raleigh, NC |
| 52 | University of Delaware | Newark, DE |
| 53 | San Francisco State University | San Francisco, CA |
| 54 | California Baptist University | Riverside, CA |
| 55 | National University | La Jolla, CA |
Public Administration by Region
View the Best Public Administration Master's Degree 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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