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Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky

2023 Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

12 Colleges
$15,171 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$35,171 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Administration & Social Service School for You

In 2020-2021, public administration and social service students earned 2,072 degrees and certificates from a Kentucky school, making the subject the 7th in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

The Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky ranking is one of many tools that Course Advisor has developed to help you make your educational decision. Our analysis looked at 12 schools in Kentucky to see which 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.

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

$9,752 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Eastern Kentucky University to be the best value school for public administration and social service students who want to pursue a degree in Kentucky. Eastern is a large public school located in the town of Richmond.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Eastern are $9,752 a year. While working on their degree, public administration and social service majors at Eastern accumulate an average of around $28,898 in student debt.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Eastern Kentucky University Report

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#2

Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY
$10,992 Average Tuition & Fees

Out of the 12 schools in Kentucky that were part of this year’s ranking, Western Kentucky University landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the city of Bowling Green, WKU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at WKU are $10,992 per year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at WKU take out an average of $26,000 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $220.

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#3

Northern Kentucky University

Highland Heights, KY
$10,392 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Northern Kentucky University is a great value for public administration and social service students. Located in the suburb of Highland Heights, NKU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at NKU are $10,392 per year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at NKU take out an average of $28,112 in student loans while working on their egree. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $169.

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$9,252 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Murray State University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky list. Located in the town of Murray, Murray State is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

Murray State undergraduate students pay an average of $9,252 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, public administration and social service graduates from Murray State take out $31,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#5

University of the Cumberlands

Williamsburg, KY
$9,875 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means University of the Cumberlands is a great value for public administration and social service students. Cumberlands is a large private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Williamsburg.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Cumberlands are $9,875 per year. On average, public administration and social service graduates from Cumberlands take out $19,431 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#6

Kentucky State University

Frankfort, KY
$9,020 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, Kentucky State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for public administration and social service students. Located in the town of Frankfort, KY State is a public school with a small student population.

KY State undergraduate students pay an average of $9,020 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#7

University of Louisville

Louisville, KY
$12,370 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Louisville landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value public administration and social service programs. Located in the city of Louisville, UofL is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UofL are $12,370 per year. While working on their degree, public administration and social service majors at UofL accumulate an average of around $25,267 in student debt.

UofL also claimed a spot on our Best Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

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#8

University of Kentucky

Lexington, KY
$12,610 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Kentucky landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value public administration and social service programs. Located in the large city of Lexington, UK is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UK are $12,610 per year. The average amount in student loans that public administration and social service majors at UK take out is $26,000. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $309, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

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$9,462 Average Tuition & Fees

Morehead State University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky list. Located in the remote town of Morehead, Morehead State University is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Morehead State University are $9,462 per year. The average amount in student loans that public administration and social service majors at Morehead State University take out is $35,160.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Morehead State University Report

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#10

Campbellsville University

Campbellsville, KY
$25,400 Average Tuition & Fees

Campbellsville University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Public & Social Service Schools in Kentucky ranking. Campbellsville University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the distant town of Campbellsville.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Campbellsville University are $25,400 a year. Public Administration & Social Service majors at Campbellsville University take out an average of $27,664 in student loans while working on their egree.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Campbellsville University Report

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Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Public Administration & Social Service Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 2,840
West Virginia 504
Mississippi 752
South Carolina 708
Florida 4,199
Virginia 2,154
Arkansas 683
Alabama 1,668
Georgia 1,475
Tennessee 1,564
Louisiana 1,118

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

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.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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