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Best Value Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

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2023 Best Value Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

14 Colleges
$13,692 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$25,305 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Administration & Social Service Associate Degree School for You

Out of all the majors we analyze each year, public administration and social service was ranked #14 in the country. In fact 98,583 degrees and certificates were handed out in 2020-2021.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking. Our analysis looked at 14 schools in the Great Lakes Region to see which associate degree programs offered the best value experiences for public administration and social service students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Associate Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Public Administration & Social Service Associate Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Indiana Wesleyan University - National & Global the best value school in the Great Lakes Region for public administration and social service students working on their associate degree. IWU is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the rural area of Marion.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at IWU are $9,239 a year.

IWU did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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Out of the 14 schools in the Great Lakes Region that were part of this year’s ranking, Central Ohio Technical College landed the # 2 spot on the list. COTC is a small public school located in the suburb of Newark.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at COTC are $7,656 a year.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Central Ohio Technical College Report

#3

Stark State College

North Canton, OH

The excellent associate degree programs at Stark State College helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best value public administration and social service schools in the Great Lakes Region . Stark State College is a large public school located in the large suburb of North Canton.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Stark State College are $7,406 per year.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Stark State College Report

#4

Ohio Christian University

Circleville, OH

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Ohio Christian University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the distant town of Circleville, OCU is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at OCU are $14,395 per year.

OCU excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 10% of all schools on our Best Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Ohio Christian University Report

#5

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, OH

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Youngstown State University is a great value for public administration and social service students working on their associate degree. Youngstown State University is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Youngstown.

Youngstown State University undergraduate students pay an average of $9,732 in tuition and fees each year.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Youngstown State University Report

#6

Ferris State University

Big Rapids, MI

With a ranking of #6, Ferris State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration and social service students working on their associate degree. Located in the town of Big Rapids, Ferris is a public college with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Ferris are $13,188 a year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Ferris also is in the top 20% of our Best Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region ranking.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Ferris State University

Rasmussen University - Wisconsin landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree public administration and social service programs. Located in the medium-sized city of Green Bay, Rasmussen University - Wisconsin is a private for-profit school with a fairly small student population.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Rasmussen University - Wisconsin are $12,860 per year.

Rasmussen University - Wisconsin also claimed a spot on our Best Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. It’s in the top 10% of all schools in this category.

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Grace Christian University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list. Located in the suburb of Wyoming, Grace is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Grace undergraduate students pay an average of $15,000 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Grace Christian University

#9

Purdue University Global

Indianapolis, IN

With a ranking of #9, Purdue University Global did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration and social service students working on their associate degree. Located in the small city of Indianapolis, Purdue University Global is a public college with a very large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at Purdue University Global are $14,436 a year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Purdue University Global is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Public & Social Service Associate Degree Schools in the Great Lakes Region list.

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Ohio University - Athens Campus did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration and social service students to get a associate degree. It came in at #10 on the list. OHIO Athens is a fairly large public school located in the town of Athens.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at OHIO Athens are $22,810 a year.

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Best Public Administration & Social Service Colleges by State

Explore the best public administration and social service schools for a specific state in the Great Lakes region.

State Degrees Awarded
Indiana 3,206
Michigan 3,411
Ohio 3,030
Illinois 3,948
Wisconsin 1,299

Public Administration & Social Service Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 58,326
Public Administration 16,905
Human Services 13,238
Public Policy 6,430
Community Organization & Advocacy 3,096
Other Public Administration 588

Majors Similar to Public Administration & Social Service

Related Major Annual Graduates
Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting 142,610
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies 73,813
Legal Professions 61,055
Military Technologies & Applied Sciences 4,477

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 14 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 University of the Fraser Valley.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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