2023 Best Value Public Administration Bachelor's Degree Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Public Administration Bachelor'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.
The Best Value Public Administration Bachelor's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 99 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best value bachelor's degree programs for public admin students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 15% Best Public Administration Bachelor's Degree Schools
Our analysis found Colorado State University - Global Campus to be the best value school for public administration students who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree in the United States. Located in the large city of Greenwood Village, Colorado State University - Global Campus is a public college with a fairly large student population.
Colorado State University - Global Campus undergraduate students pay an average of $8,400 in tuition and fees each year. On average, public admin graduates from Colorado State University - Global Campus take out $38,130 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, Colorado State University - Global Campus also did well on our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 5% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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Out of the 99 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Brigham Young University - Idaho landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the town of Rexburg, BYU - I is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at BYU - I are $4,416 a year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Brigham Young University - Idaho
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Out of the 99 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Carolina University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the distant town of Cullowhee, WCU is a public school with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at WCU are $8,367 a year. On average, public admin graduates from WCU take out $21,846 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
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A rank of #4 on this year’s list means Winona State University is a great value for public administration students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the distant town of Winona, Winona State is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Winona State are $16,684 a year.
In addition to its great value ranking, Winona State is in the top 15% of all schools on our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list.
Full Public Administration at Winona State University Report
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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend National University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. National University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of La Jolla.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at National University are $13,320 per year. On average, public admin graduates from National University take out $30,137 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, National University also did well on our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 15% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
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University of North Dakota landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree public administration programs. Located in the city of Grand Forks, UND is a public school with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UND are $15,037 a year.
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University of Maryland Global Campus ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. UMGC is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Adelphi.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UMGC are $12,336 per year. The average amount in student loans that public admin majors at UMGC take out while working on their Bachelor's Degree is $26,158.
UMGC also claimed a spot on our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.
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Park University landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree public administration programs. Located in the suburb of Parkville, Park University is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Park University are $8,853 a year.
Park University excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list.
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University of Phoenix - Arizona did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration students to get a bachelor’s degree. It came in at #9 on the list. UOPX - Arizona is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the city of Tempe.
UOPX - Arizona undergraduate students pay an average of $9,552 in tuition and fees each year. On average, public admin graduates from UOPX - Arizona take out $42,693 in student loans while working on their Bachelor's Degree.
As a testament to the quality of education it offers, UOPX - Arizona also is in the top 20% of our Best Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools ranking.
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With a ranking of #10, Franklin University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their bachelor’s degree. Franklin University is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Columbus.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Franklin University are $9,577 per year.
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Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania ranked #11 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Bachelor’s Degree Schools list. Ship is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Shippensburg.
Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Ship are $14,122 per year.
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With a ranking of #12, Youngstown State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their bachelor’s degree. Located in the small city of Youngstown, Youngstown State University is a public college with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Youngstown State University are $9,732 a year.
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With a ranking of #13, California State University - Northridge did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their bachelor’s degree. CSUN is a fairly large public school located in the city of Northridge.
CSUN undergraduate students pay an average of $18,923 in tuition and fees each year.
Full Public Administration at California State University - Northridge Report
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Indian River State College landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value bachelor’s degree public administration programs. Indian River State College is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Fort Pierce.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Indian River State College are $10,201 a year. After completing their Bachelor's Degree, public admin graduates from Indian River State College carry an average student debtload of $13,828.
Full Public Administration at Indian River State College Report
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These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Value Public Administration Bachelor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | West Texas A&M University | Canyon, TX |
| 16 | Kutztown University of Pennsylvania | Kutztown, PA |
| 17 | School Removed | |
| 18 | Columbia College | Columbia, MO |
| 19 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
Public Administration by Region
View the Best Value Public Administration Bachelor'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 |
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Public Administration Related Majors for Public Admin
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.
- 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.
More about our data sources and methodologies.