2023 Best Urban Studies Schools
Finding the Best Urban Studies School for You
Urban Studies is the #208 most popular major in the country with 1,507 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.
Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Urban Studies Schools ranking. Our analysis looked at 89 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best educational experiences for students.
View our full ranking methodology.
2023 Best Urban Studies Schools in the United States
Check out the urban studies programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.
Top 15% Best Urban Studies Schools
Our analysis found The Graduate Center, CUNY to be the best school for urban studies students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. The Graduate Center is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of New York.
Full Urban Studies at The Graduate Center, CUNY Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Pennsylvania. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Philadelphia.
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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Stanford University is a great place for urban studies students. Located in the suburb of Stanford, Stanford is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of California - Berkeley. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.
After completing their degree, urban studies graduates from UC Berkeley carry an average student debtload of $15,000.
Full Urban Studies at University of California - Berkeley Report
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Barnard College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. Located in the large city of New York, Barnard is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
Urban Studies majors at Barnard take out an average of $18,650 in student loans while working on their egree.
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Carnegie Mellon University ranked #6 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. Located in the large city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.
Full Urban Studies at Carnegie Mellon University Report
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Tufts University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Urban Studies Schools ranking. Located in the suburb of Medford, Tufts is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.
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Haverford College ranked #8 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. Haverford is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Haverford.
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University of Washington - Tacoma Campus ranked #9 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. UW Tacoma is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Tacoma.
On average, urban studies graduates from UW Tacoma take out $21,157 in student loans while working on their degree.
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Trinity College ranked #10 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. Located in the midsize city of Hartford, Trinity Bantams is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.
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University of Maryland - College Park came in at #11 in this year’s edition of the Best Urban Studies Schools ranking. Located in the large suburb of College Park, UMCP is a public school with a very large student population.
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Virginia Tech ranked #12 on this year’s Best Urban Studies Schools list. Located in the city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public college with a very large student population.
Full Urban Studies at Virginia Tech Report
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Washington University in St Louis did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best schools for urban studies students. It came in at #13 on the list. Located in the large suburb of Saint Louis, WUSTL is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.
Request InformationHonorable Mentions
These are some additional schools worth mentioning that are also great but just didn't quite make the cut to earn our top Best Urban Studies Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 14 | Columbia University in the City of New York | New York, NY |
| 15 | University of Southern California | Los Angeles, CA |
| 16 | University of California - San Diego | La Jolla, CA |
| 17 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
Urban Studies by Region
View the Best Urban Studies Schools for a specific region near you.
| Region |
|---|
| Southeast |
| New England |
| Rocky Mountains |
| Plains States |
| Middle Atlantic |
| Far Western US |
| Southwest |
| Great Lakes |
More Urban Studies Rankings
Rankings in Majors Related to Urban Studies
Urban Studies is one of 12 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Urban Studies
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Political Science & Government | 49,282 |
| Economics | 49,055 |
| Sociology | 38,475 |
| General Social Sciences | 18,997 |
| International Relations & National Security | 14,306 |
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 Andrew Bossi.
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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