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2024 Best Public Administration Schools in Virginia

8 Colleges in Virginia
604 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
If you pursue a degree in public administration, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #49 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 8 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Public Administration Schools in Virginia ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 604 degrees in public administration during the 2020-2021 academic year.

What's on this page: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Public Administration School

Best Public Administration Schools in Virginia The public admin program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Public Administration rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for public administration schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

In order to find the schools that are the best fit for you, you may want to filter to one of the degree levels below.

Public Administration Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Public Admin
Master's Degrees in Public Admin
Doctor's Degrees in Public Admin

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we've developed a number of rankings, including this Best Public Administration Schools in Virginia list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.


 

Best Schools for Public Administration in Virginia

The schools below may not offer all types of public admin degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

Top Virginia Schools in Public Admin

1
Virginia Tech crest
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In VA
44 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Any student who is interested in public administration has to look into Virginia Tech. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Blacksburg. A Best Colleges rank of #62 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Virginia Tech is a great school overall.

There were approximately 44 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Virginia Tech in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from Virginia Tech

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In VA
118 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

It is difficult to beat George Mason University if you want to pursue a degree in public administration. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #117 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means GMU is a great university overall.

There were approximately 118 public administration students who graduated with this degree at GMU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from George Mason University

3
JMU crest
James Madison University
Harrisonburg, VA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In VA
79 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

It's hard to beat James Madison University if you wish to pursue a degree in public administration. Located in the small city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #169 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means JMU is a great university overall.

There were about 79 public administration students who graduated with this degree at JMU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from James Madison University

4
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, VA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In VA
196 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

It is difficult to beat Liberty University if you want to pursue a degree in public administration. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Lynchburg. This university ranks 12th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Virginia.

There were about 196 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Liberty University in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Liberty University

5
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In VA
41 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

VCU is a fairly large public university located in the midsize city of Richmond. A Best Colleges rank of #240 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means VCU is a great university overall.

There were about 41 public administration students who graduated with this degree at VCU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Virginia Commonwealth University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In VA
44 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Old Dominion is a fairly large public university located in the city of Norfolk. This university ranks 14th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Virginia.

There were roughly 44 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Old Dominion in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Old Dominion University

7
Regent crest
Regent University
Virginia Beach, VA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In VA
32 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Virginia Beach, Regent is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 20th out of 63 colleges for overall quality in the state of Virginia.

There were approximately 32 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Regent in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Regent University

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In VA
25.0% Growth in Graduates

Strayer University - Virginia is a small private for-profit university located in the city of Arlington. This university ranks 28th out of 63 schools for overall quality in the state of Virginia.

There were approximately 20 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Strayer University - Virginia in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Strayer University - Virginia

Best Public Administration Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Public Administration Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Florida 715 926
North Carolina 710 436
Georgia 690 399
Tennessee 624 81
South Carolina 530 83
Kentucky 518 118
Mississippi 501 80
Alabama 500 358
Louisiana 489 121
Arkansas 466 179
West Virginia 410 132

View All Rankings >

One of 3 majors within the Public Administration area of study, Public Administration has other similar majors worth exploring.

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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