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Best Public Policy Doctor's Degree Schools

2023 Best Public Policy Doctor's Degree Schools

34 Colleges
$77,523 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Policy Doctor's Degree School for You

In 2020-2021, 6,430 people earned a degree or certificate in public policy, making the major the #113 most popular in the United States.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 Policy Doctor's Degree Schools ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 34 schools in the United States to see which ones offered the best doctor's degree programs for students. To come up with a school's ranking, we analyzed numerous factors related to post-graduation wages, the quality of education offered by the school, average accumulated student debt, and more.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools in the United States

The colleges and universities below are the best for public policy majors pursuing a doctor's degree.

Top 10 Best Public Policy Doctor's Degree Schools

#1

Harvard University

Cambridge, MA

Our analysis found Harvard University to be the best school for public policy students who want to pursue a doctor’s degree in the United States. Harvard is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the midsize city of Cambridge.

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Out of the 34 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, University of California - Berkeley landed the # 2 spot on the list. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the city of Berkeley.

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#3

Princeton University

Princeton, NJ

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Princeton University is a great place for public policy students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the small city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.

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#4

Duke University

Durham, NC

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Duke University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Duke is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Durham.

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#5

Loma Linda University

Loma Linda, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Loma Linda University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools list. Loma Linda University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Loma Linda.

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George Washington University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the city of Washington, GWU is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

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#7

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

Carnegie Mellon University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Located in the large city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

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#8

Clemson University

Clemson, SC

Clemson University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Policy Doctor’s Degree Schools ranking. Clemson is a very large public school located in the large suburb of Clemson.

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University of Michigan - Ann Arbor landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best doctor’s degree public policy programs. U-M is a fairly large public school located in the city of Ann Arbor.

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#10

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

George Mason University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public policy students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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Public Policy by Region

View the Best Public Policy Doctor'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

Public Policy is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 58,326
Public Administration 16,905
Human Services 13,238
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.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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