College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

2024 Best Public Administration Schools in Illinois

9 Colleges in Illinois
446 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
$51,622 Avg Early-Career Salary
If you plan on majoring in public administration, you won't be alone since the degree program is ranked #60 in the country in terms of popularity. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

In 2024, College Factual analyzed 9 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Public Administration Schools in Illinois ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 446 degrees in public administration during the 2020-2021 academic year.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Public Administration School

Best Public Administration Schools in Illinois Your choice of public administration school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. We derive our Best Overall Public Administration School rankings by rolling up our degree-level rankings after weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each school.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Pick Your Public Administration Degree Level

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

When choosing the right school for you, it's important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we've created a number of major-specific rankings, including this Best Public Administration Schools in Illinois list to help you make the college decision. More interested in schools in a specific area of the country? Filter this list by region or state.

To further help you make the college decision, we've developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. Go ahead and give it a try, or bookmark the link so you can check it out later.

Read more about College Factual's methodology.


 

Best Schools for Public Administration in Illinois

If you aren't interested in a particular degree level and want to know which schools are the overall best at delivering an education for the public admin degrees they offer, see the list below.

10 Top Illinois Schools in Public Admin

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
$66,011 Median Starting Salary

Northwestern University is a wonderful option for students pursuing a degree in public administration. Northwestern is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Evanston. A Best Colleges rank of #5 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Northwestern is a great university overall.

There were roughly 75 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Northwestern in the most recent data year. Those public administration students who get their degree from Northwestern University receive $14,389 more than the typical public admin graduate.

More information about a degree in public administration from Northwestern University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
71 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
$48,642 Median Starting Salary

It is difficult to beat University of Illinois at Springfield if you want to pursue a degree in public administration. Located in the city of Springfield, UIS is a public university with a small student population. This university ranks 55th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were roughly 71 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UIS in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the public admin program earn an average of $48,642 for their early career.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of Illinois at Springfield

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
55 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
$52,003 Median Starting Salary

It is hard to beat University of Illinois at Chicago if you want to pursue a degree in public administration. UIC is a fairly large public university located in the city of Chicago. A Best Colleges rank of #192 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UIC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 55 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UIC in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, public admin degree recipients usually earn about $52,003 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of Illinois at Chicago

4
DePaul crest
DePaul University
Chicago, IL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
50 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
16.0% Growth in Graduates

It's difficult to beat DePaul University if you wish to pursue a degree in public administration. Located in the large city of Chicago, DePaul is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #203 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means DePaul is a great university overall.

There were about 50 public administration students who graduated with this degree at DePaul in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, public admin degree recipients typically earn an average of $53,383 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in public administration from DePaul University

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
37 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
21.6% Growth in Graduates

Located in the suburb of Edwardsville, SIUE is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 31st out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 37 public administration students who graduated with this degree at SIUE in the most recent data year. After graduation, public admin degree recipients usually make about $40,957 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in public administration from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

6
Aurora crest
Aurora University
Aurora, IL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
8th Most Popular In IL
51.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large suburb of Aurora, Aurora is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #354 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means Aurora is a great university overall.

There were approximately 29 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Aurora in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Aurora University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
35 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
8.6% Growth in Graduates

NIU is a fairly large public university located in the small suburb of Dekalb. This university ranks 24th out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were roughly 35 public administration students who graduated with this degree at NIU in the most recent data year. Public Administration degree recipients from Northern Illinois University earn a boost of around $7,978 over the average income of public administration majors.

More information about a degree in public administration from Northern Illinois University

8
GSU crest
Governors State University
University Park, IL
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In IL
68.4% Growth in Graduates

GSU is a small public university located in the rural area of University Park. This university ranks 66th out of 85 colleges for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were approximately 19 public administration students who graduated with this degree at GSU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from Governors State University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
10th Most Popular In IL
20.0% Growth in Graduates

Located in the city of Chicago, NLU is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #393 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means NLU is a great university overall.

There were about 15 public administration students who graduated with this degree at NLU in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from National Louis University

9

Located in the city of Carbondale, SIUC is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 23rd out of 85 schools for overall quality in the state of Illinois.

There were roughly 10 public administration students who graduated with this degree at SIUC in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the public admin program earn around $40,759 in the first couple years of their career.

More information about a degree in public administration from Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Best Public Administration Colleges in the Great Lakes Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Michigan 322 380
Ohio 314 438
Indiana 294 1,185
Wisconsin 273 91

View All Rankings >

One of 4 majors within the Public Administration & Social Service area of study, Public Administration has other similar majors worth exploring.

Public Admin Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration 446

View All Public Admin Concentrations >

Related Major Annual Graduates
Public Policy 536
Community Organization & Advocacy 122
Human Services 96
Other Public Administration 39

View All Public Admin Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Popular Reports

College Rankings
Best by Location
Degree Guides by Major
Graduate Programs

Compare Your School Options