Best Colleges for Public Administration
50 Public Administration programs ranked by real graduate earnings, debt, and completion — from the College Scorecard Field-of-Study data.
For Public Administration, Anna Maria College (Massachusetts) ranks #1 by our outcome score, with median graduate earnings of $123,207. Rankings reflect earnings, debt, and completion — not reputation or cost — across 50 programs with published outcome data.
| # | School | Credential | Median earnings | Median debt | Completers | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anna Maria College Paxton, MA | Master's Degree | $123,207 | $20,759 | 90 | 96.4 |
| 2 | San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA | Master's Degree | $108,093 | $25,864 | 29 | 89.9 |
| 3 | Alfred University Alfred, NY | Master's Degree | $94,571 | $19,140 | 30 | 88.5 |
| 4 | CUNY Bernard M Baruch College New York, NY | Master's Degree | $93,751 | $27,150 | 158 | 88 |
| 5 | Marist College Poughkeepsie, NY | Master's Degree | $99,846 | $30,625 | 61 | 87.6 |
| 6 | California Baptist University Riverside, CA | Master's Degree | $98,056 | $27,334 | 40 | 87.3 |
| 7 | Calumet College of Saint Joseph Whiting, IN | Master's Degree | $121,754 | — | 32 | 85.4 |
| 8 | California State University-East Bay Hayward, CA | Master's Degree | $99,879 | $35,500 | 59 | 85.2 |
| 9 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | Master's Degree | $122,517 | $39,301 | 39 | 85.2 |
| 10 | Syracuse University Syracuse, NY | Bachelor's Degree | $89,732 | $26,000 | 85 | 85.2 |
| 11 | Barry University Miami, FL | Bachelor's Degree | $97,702 | $33,381 | 39 | 84.2 |
| 12 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | Master's Degree | $104,073 | $41,000 | 91 | 82.8 |
| 13 | California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA | Master's Degree | $86,271 | $23,136 | 105 | 82.7 |
| 14 | California State University-Northridge Northridge, CA | Master's Degree | $92,353 | $37,074 | 238 | 82.4 |
| 15 | Brigham Young University Provo, UT | Master's Degree | $87,075 | $26,500 | 90 | 82.4 |
| 16 | Harvard University Cambridge, MA | Master's Degree | $177,149 | $70,763 | 310 | 82.2 |
| 17 | George Mason University Fairfax, VA | Master's Degree | $100,692 | $41,000 | 93 | 82.2 |
| 18 | Golden Gate University San Francisco, CA | Master's Degree | $122,598 | $41,000 | 31 | 82 |
| 19 | University of Maryland Global Campus Adelphi, MD | Bachelor's Degree | $85,909 | $21,169 | 68 | 82 |
| 20 | Indiana University-Indianapolis Indianapolis, IN | Graduate/Professional Certificate | $97,043 | — | 39 | 81.7 |
| 21 | George Washington University Washington, DC | Master's Degree | $113,891 | $46,979 | 60 | 81.4 |
| 22 | Syracuse University Syracuse, NY | Master's Degree | $107,868 | $51,317 | 184 | 81.4 |
| 23 | Villanova University Villanova, PA | Master's Degree | $96,385 | $38,458 | 52 | 81.3 |
| 24 | National University San Diego, CA | Master's Degree | $88,988 | $33,712 | 88 | 81.1 |
| 25 | Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY | Master's Degree | $115,874 | $71,000 | 241 | 80.8 |
| 26 | University of Connecticut Storrs, CT | Master's Degree | $86,879 | $28,500 | 73 | 80.5 |
| 27 | American University Washington, DC | Master's Degree | $107,866 | $55,000 | 155 | 80.2 |
| 28 | New York University New York, NY | Master's Degree | $109,946 | $75,234 | 175 | 80.1 |
| 29 | San Diego State University San Diego, CA | Master's Degree | $91,303 | $28,278 | 18 | 79.9 |
| 30 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | Master's Degree | $98,798 | $44,568 | 87 | 79.8 |
| 31 | Hamline University Saint Paul, MN | Master's Degree | $93,090 | $33,398 | 24 | 79.8 |
| 32 | Portland State University Portland, OR | Master's Degree | $99,801 | $41,000 | 39 | 79.6 |
| 33 | Bowie State University Bowie, MD | Master's Degree | $98,800 | $39,924 | 26 | 79.4 |
| 34 | University of Missouri-Columbia Columbia, MO | Master's Degree | $84,412 | $21,455 | 87 | 78.8 |
| 35 | Cornell University Ithaca, NY | Master's Degree | $100,325 | $51,608 | 73 | 78.7 |
| 36 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA | Master's Degree | $103,721 | $75,887 | 111 | 78.4 |
| 37 | Boston University Boston, MA | Master's Degree | $106,292 | — | 0 | 78 |
| 38 | California State University-Dominguez Hills Carson, CA | Master's Degree | $89,849 | $40,750 | 67 | 77.6 |
| 39 | University of La Verne La Verne, CA | Bachelor's Degree | $85,403 | $25,666 | 29 | 77 |
| 40 | Walden University Minneapolis, MN | Doctoral Degree | $100,861 | $138,500 | 155 | 76.7 |
| 41 | Drake University Des Moines, IA | Master's Degree | $83,764 | $20,075 | 39 | 76.7 |
| 42 | University of Washington-Seattle Campus Seattle, WA | Master's Degree | $91,499 | $46,652 | 197 | 76.6 |
| 43 | University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus Denver, CO | Master's Degree | $85,272 | $32,448 | 118 | 76.4 |
| 44 | University at Albany Albany, NY | Master's Degree | $84,950 | $28,125 | 68 | 76.4 |
| 45 | University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Minneapolis, MN | Master's Degree | $97,311 | $41,754 | 26 | 76.1 |
| 46 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Blacksburg, VA | Master's Degree | $88,961 | — | 28 | 76 |
| 47 | California State University-Long Beach Long Beach, CA | Post-baccalaureate Certificate | $89,626 | — | — | 75.7 |
| 48 | University of San Francisco San Francisco, CA | Master's Degree | $99,141 | $48,010 | 28 | 75.6 |
| 49 | Kent State University at Kent Kent, OH | Master's Degree | $87,606 | $35,655 | 29 | 75.6 |
| 50 | Suffolk University Boston, MA | Master's Degree | $92,015 | $41,000 | 34 | 75.4 |
How we ranked this
Programs are scored 0–100 within the Public Administration field (CIP 44.04) using three College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (weighted 70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, inverted so lower debt scores higher), and completer count (10%, log-scaled). Each input is percentile-ranked against the other Public Administration programs, so the score is robust to outliers and comparable across schools. Programs with no published earnings are excluded — never given a fabricated number. This is the same engine that powers our interactive Major Rankings. Minimum 5 scorable programs required to publish.
Frequently asked questions
Which college has the best Public Administration program?+
By our outcome score, Anna Maria College (Massachusetts) ranks #1 for Public Administration, with median graduate earnings of $123,207.
How are these Public Administration programs ranked?+
Each program gets a 0–100 outcome score from three real College Scorecard figures: median graduate earnings (70%), median federal-loan debt (20%, lower is better), and completer count (10%). Programs are compared within the major so the score reflects the best schools for this field specifically.
Where does the earnings and debt data come from?+
The U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard Field-of-Study file, which publishes median earnings and median debt by institution and major (4-digit CIP). Figures are post-graduation medians; programs without published earnings are not scored and are omitted from this ranking.
Can I filter Public Administration programs by state or degree level?+
Yes. This page shows the national top programs; use the interactive Major Rankings tool to filter the same data by state, and by credential level (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral).
Keep exploring
Data sources: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (Field of Study) · IPEDS Completions. Figures are the most recent values published in each federal dataset; cells with no published value are shown as “—” and never estimated. CertiHomes Education does not sell rankings or accept placement fees.