2023 Best Value Public Administration Master's Degree Schools
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
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 assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Public Administration Master's Degree Schools ranking. This report analyzed 276 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best value master'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.
Featured schools near , edit
2023 Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools in the United States
The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for public admin majors pursuing a master's degree.
Top 25 Best Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Public Administration
Our 2023 rankings named Columbia Southern University the best value school in the United States for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Columbia Southern University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the town of Orange Beach.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Columbia Southern University are $4,035 per year.
The excellent master’s degree programs at Minnesota State University - Mankato helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value public administration schools in the United States. Located in the city of Mankato, Minnesota State Mankato is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Minnesota State Mankato graduate students pay an average of $9,308 in tuition and fees each year.
Minnesota State Mankato also claimed a spot on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.
Read full report on Public Administration at Minnesota State University - Mankato
A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of South Dakota is a great value for public administration students working on their master’s degree. USD is a moderately-sized public school located in the distant town of Vermillion.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at USD are $12,768 a year.
USD also claimed a spot on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.
Read full report on Public Administration at University of South Dakota
Out of the 276 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Metropolitan State University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the city of Saint Paul, Metro State is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Metro State are $10,237 a year.
The excellent master’s degree programs at Brigham Young University - Provo helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value public administration schools in the United States. Located in the city of Provo, BYU is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at BYU are $7,700 a year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, BYU also did well on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Anna Maria College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the rural area of Paxton, Anna Maria is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Anna Maria are $10,530 per year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Anna Maria College
American Public University System ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. American Military University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the town of Charles Town.
American Military University graduate students pay an average of $7,050 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Public Administration at American Public University System
With a ranking of #8, Hamline University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Hamline is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Saint Paul.
Hamline graduate students pay an average of $10,402 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Hamline University
Park University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the large suburb of Parkville, Park University is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Park University are $6,435 a year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Park University
Drake 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 #10 on the list. Drake is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Des Moines.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Drake are $11,988 a year.
In addition to its great value ranking, Drake is in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list.
Read full report on Public Administration at Drake University
With a ranking of #11, Westfield State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Located in the suburb of Westfield, Westfield is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Westfield are $6,696 per year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Westfield State University
Post 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 #12 on the list. Post University is a fairly large private for-profit school located in the suburb of Waterbury.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Post University are $7,700 a year.
Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus landed the #12 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the suburb of Teaneck, FDU is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at FDU are $10,722 per year.
Full Public Administration at Fairleigh Dickinson University - Metropolitan Campus Report
Arizona State University - Skysong landed the #14 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Scottsdale, ASU - Skysong is a public school with a fairly large student population.
ASU - Skysong graduate students pay an average of $9,982 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Arizona State University - Skysong
Northern Illinois University landed the #15 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. NIU is a large public school located in the suburb of Dekalb.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at NIU are $11,390 a year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Northern Illinois University
With a ranking of #16, Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. FDU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Madison.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at FDU are $10,722 a year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Fairleigh Dickinson University - Florham Campus
Saint Cloud State University ranked #17 on this year’s Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. Located in the small city of Saint Cloud, St. Cloud State University is a public school with a large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at St. Cloud State University are $13,412 a year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Saint Cloud State University
Seattle 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. Seattle U is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the city of Seattle.
Seattle U graduate students pay an average of $14,310 in tuition and fees each year.
Seattle U excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list.
San Jose State University came in at #19 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of San Jose, San Jose State is a public school with a fairly large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at San Jose State are $18,790 per year.
On top of its placing in our value ranking, San Jose State also did well on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools reviewed in this analysis.
Marywood University landed the #19 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. Located in the city of Scranton, Marywood is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Marywood graduate students pay an average of $11,438 in tuition and fees each year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Marywood University
Marist College came in at #21 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Poughkeepsie, Marist is a private not-for-profit college with a medium-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Marist are $15,760 per year.
Marist excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Public Administration Master’s Degree Schools list.
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville landed the #22 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value master’s degree public administration programs. SIUE is a large public school located in the large suburb of Edwardsville.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at SIUE are $9,316 per year.
Read full report on Public Administration at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Lindenwood 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 #24 on the list. Located in the city of Saint Charles, Lindenwood University is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Lindenwood University are $9,784 per year.
With a ranking of #25, California Baptist University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of Riverside, Cal Baptist is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.
Out-of-state tuition fees for graduate students at Cal Baptist are $14,320 per year.
Read full report on Public Administration at California Baptist University
Rest of the Top Best Value Public Administration Master's Degree Schools
Additional Noteworthy Schools
Here are some additional great value schools for Public Administration students seeking value that almost earned our Best Value Public Administration Master's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 42 | University of Nebraska at Omaha | Omaha, NE |
| 43 | Indiana University - South Bend | South Bend, IN |
| 43 | Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania | Shippensburg, PA |
| 45 | Clemson University | Clemson, SC |
| 46 | Liberty University | Lynchburg, VA |
| 47 | California State University - Bakersfield | Bakersfield, CA |
| 48 | The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley | Edinburg, TX |
| 49 | University of La Verne | La Verne, CA |
| 50 | Augusta University | Augusta, GA |
| 51 | University of Delaware | Newark, DE |
| 52 | Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, MI |
| 53 | San Francisco State University | San Francisco, CA |
| 54 | Missouri State University - Springfield | Springfield, MO |
| 54 | Kansas State University | Manhattan, KS |
Public Administration by Region
View the Best Value 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 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.
.jpg){kind=link}
More about our data sources and methodologies.
Featured Schools
Request Info
|
Southern New Hampshire University You have goals. Southern New Hampshire University can help you get there. Whether you need a bachelor's degree to get into a career or want a master's degree to move up in your current career, SNHU has an online program for you. Find your degree from over 200 online programs. Learn More > |
Course Advisor provides higher-education, college and university, degree, program, career, salary, and other helpful information to students, faculty, institutions, and other internet audiences. Presented information and data are subject to change. Inclusion on this website does not imply or represent a direct relationship with the company, school, or brand. Information, though believed correct at time of publication, may not be correct, and no warranty is provided. Contact the schools to verify any information before relying on it. Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. The displayed options may include sponsored or recommended results, not necessarily based on your preferences.
© Course Advisor – All Rights Reserved.