2024 Best Public Administration Master's Degree Schools in Virginia
If you pursue a master's degree in
public administration, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #19 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.
College Factual reviewed 8 schools in Virginia to determine which ones were the best for master's degree seekers in the field of public administration. Combined, these schools handed out 394 master's degrees in public administration to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Choosing a Great Public Administration School for Your Master's Degree
The public admin master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future. This section explores some of the factors we include in our ranking and how much they vary depending on the school you select. To make it into this list, a school must excel in the following areas.
A Great Overall School
The overall quality of a master's degree school is important to ensure a quality education, not just how well they do in a particular major. To account for this we include a college's overall Best Colleges for a Master's Degree ranking which itself looks at a combination of various factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
Early-Career Earnings
One measure we use to determine the quality of a school is to look at the average salary of master's graduates during the early years of their career. That is, everyone wants their master's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
Other Factors We Consider
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
- Major Focus - How much a school focuses on public administration students vs. other majors.
- Major Demand - The number of public administration students who choose to seek a master's degree at the school.
- Educational Resources - How many resources are allocated to students. These resources may include educational expenditures per student, number of students per instructor, and graduation rate among other things.
- Student Debt - How much debt public administration students go into to obtain their master's degree and how well they are able to pay back that debt.
- Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized public administration related body.
Our complete ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best schools for public administration students working on their master's degree.
More Ways to Rank Public Administration Schools
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 Master's Degree Schools in Virginia list, to help you choose the best school for you.
Best Schools for Master’s Students to Study Public Administration in Virginia
Learn about the top ranked colleges and universities for public administration students seeking a a master's degree.
Top Virginia Schools for a Master's in Public Admin
Virginia Tech is one of the best schools in the country for getting a master's degree in public administration. Virginia Tech is a fairly large public school located in the city of Blacksburg.
Public Administration master's degree recipients from Virginia Tech receive an earnings boost of around $8,821 over the average earnings of public administration majors.
More information about a master’s in public administration from Virginia Tech
George Mason University is a wonderful choice for individuals pursuing a master's degree in public administration. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public university with a very large student population.
Those public administration students who get their master's degree from George Mason University earn $15,933 more than the standard public admin student.
More information about a master’s in public administration from George Mason University
Liberty University is a good choice for individuals interested in a master's degree in public administration. Liberty University is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Lynchburg.More information about a master’s in public administration from Liberty University
It's hard to beat Virginia Commonwealth University if you wish to pursue a master's degree in public administration. VCU is a very large public university located in the medium-sized city of Richmond.
Soon after graduating, public admin master's recipients typically make an average of $48,484 in their early careers.
More information about a master’s in public administration from Virginia Commonwealth University
Located in the city of Harrisonburg, JMU is a public university with a fairly large student population.
Soon after graduating, public admin master's recipients typically earn an average of $51,074 in the first five years of their career.
More information about a master’s in public administration from James Madison University
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