2023 Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington
Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing
Finding the Best Public Administration & Social Service School for You
In 2020-2021, 1,252 degrees and certificates were awarded to public administration and social service students who went to a Washington college or university. This makes it the #14 most popular major in the state.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington ranking. This report analyzed 12 schools in Washington to see which ones offered the best value programs for public administration and social service students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. 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.
Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.
Top 10 Best Public Administration & Social Service Schools
Our analysis found Tacoma Community College to be the best value school for public administration and social service students who want to pursue a degree in Washington. Tacoma Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Tacoma.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Tacoma Community College are $4,929 per year. While working on their degree, public administration and social service majors at Tacoma Community College accumulate an average of around $24,966 in student debt.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Western Washington University. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list. WWU is a large public school located in the small city of Bellingham.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at WWU are $8,703 a year. After completing their degree, public administration and social service graduates from WWU carry an average student debtload of $19,418.
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Out of the 12 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Central Washington University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the town of Ellensburg, CWU is a public school with a fairly large student population.
CWU undergraduate students pay an average of $8,685 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at CWU take out an average of $21,390 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Out of the 12 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, Eastern Washington University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the town of Cheney, EWU is a public college with a fairly large student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at EWU are $7,922 a year. On average, public administration and social service graduates from EWU take out $17,560 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Out of the 12 schools in Washington that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Washington - Tacoma Campus landed the # 5 spot on the list. UW Tacoma is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Tacoma.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at UW Tacoma are $12,196 a year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at UW Tacoma take out an average of $15,612 in student loans while working on their egree.
UW Tacoma also made our Best Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list, coming in at #1.
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The Evergreen State College landed the #6 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value public administration and social service programs. Located in the midsize suburb of Olympia, Evergreen is a public school with a small student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Evergreen are $8,529 per year.
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University of Washington - Seattle Campus ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list. Located in the city of Seattle, UW Seattle is a public school with a fairly large student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UW Seattle are $12,076 per year. After completing their degree, public administration and social service graduates from UW Seattle carry an average student debtload of $15,612.
In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UW Seattle is ranked #2 for overall quality for public administration and social service in Washington.
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Washington State University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list. Wazzu is a fairly large public school located in the town of Pullman.
Wazzu undergraduate students pay an average of $12,417 in in-state tuition and fees each year.
In addition to its great value ranking, Wazzu is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list.
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Heritage University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list. Located in the rural area of Toppenish, Heritage University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Heritage University are $18,500 a year. After completing their degree, public administration and social service graduates from Heritage University carry an average student debtload of $16,479.
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With a ranking of #10, Seattle University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration and social service students. Located in the large city of Seattle, Seattle U is a private not-for-profit school with a moderately-sized student population.
Seattle U undergraduate students pay an average of $49,335 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at Seattle U take out an average of $25,916 in student loans while working on their egree.
Seattle U excels when it comes to quality. It’s ranked in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Public & Social Service Schools in Washington list.
Request InformationBest Value Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Far Western US Region
Explore all the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| California | 8,979 |
| Oregon | 832 |
| Hawaii | 396 |
| Nevada | 610 |
| Alaska | 121 |
More Public Administration & Social Service Rankings in Washington
Public Administration & Social Service Related Majors for Public Administration & Social Service
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 |
Most Popular Majors Related 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 12 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.
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More about our data sources and methodologies.
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