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2023 Most Popular Master’s Degree Colleges for Public Policy in the Southeast Region

17 Ranked Colleges
434 Degrees Awarded
$58,647 Avg Salary
Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master's

Students have lots of options to chooose from today when trying to decide which college to attend. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2020-2021, 6,430 people earned their degree in public policy, making the major the 113th most popular in the United States. In 2019-2020, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $49,451 and had an average of $21,866 in loans still to pay off.

Across the Southeast region, there were 1,260 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $50,417 and $21,515 respectively. At the master’s degree level specifically, there were 434 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $55,213 and $0 respectively.

For this year’s “Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s” ranking, we looked at 17 colleges that offer a degree in public policy. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have one of the most popular public policy programs in the United States.

See our ranking methodology to learn more.

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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 “Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s” list to help you make the college decision.

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. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s

The colleges and universities below are the best for southeast region master’s degree public policy students.

1
University of Virginia crest
University of Virginia - Main Campus
Charlottesville, Virginia

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. The school came in at #1 for the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s. Located in Charlottesville, Virginia, this large public school handed out 89 diplomas to qualified masters’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%.

Full University of Virginia Public Policy Report

2
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, Virginia

Out of the 17 schools in the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, Liberty University landed the #2 spot on the list. Liberty University is a large school located in Lynchburg, Virginia that handed out 81 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Read full report on Public Policy at Liberty University

3
Duke crest
Duke University
Durham, North Carolina

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Duke University. The school came in at #3 for the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s. Duke University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Durham, North Carolina. It awarded 76 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 0.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. Since the school has a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 6 to 1, those pursuing a degree will have more opportunities to interact with their professors.

Read more about Public Policy at Duke University

4
GMU crest
George Mason University
Fairfax, Virginia

Out of the 17 schools in the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s that were part of this year’s ranking, George Mason University landed the #4 spot on the list. GMU is located in Fairfax, Virginia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 74 masters’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 2.5% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Public Policy at GMU

5
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tennessee

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Vanderbilt University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s list. Vanderbilt University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Nashville, Tennessee. It awarded 24 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.

Read more about Public Policy at Vanderbilt University

6

Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. Georgia Tech is located in Atlanta, Georgia and, has a large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 18 masters’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.9% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Public Policy at Georgia Institute of Technology - Main Campus

7
American Military University crest
American Public University System
Charles Town, West Virginia

American Public University System came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. American Public University System is a large school located in Charles Town, West Virginia that handed out 17 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 98%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read full report on Public Policy at American Military University

7

The University of Tennessee - Knoxville did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #7. UT Knoxville is a large public school situated in Knoxville, Tennessee. It awarded 17 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Public Policy at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

9
JU crest
Jacksonville University
Jacksonville, Florida

Jacksonville University landed the #9 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. JU is a private not-for-profit institution located in Jacksonville, Florida. The school has a small population, and it awarded 13 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Jacksonville University Public Policy Report

10
UK crest
University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky

University of Kentucky landed the #10 spot on the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. Lexington, Kentucky is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out masters’s public policy degrees to 9 students in 2020-2021.

With a freshman retention rate of 86%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Public Policy at UK

11
Tuskegee crest
Tuskegee University
Tuskegee, Alabama

Tuskegee University did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #11. Tuskegee University is a small school located in Tuskegee, Alabama that handed out 7 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Read more about Public Policy at Tuskegee

12
Marshall University crest
Marshall University
Huntington, West Virginia

Marshall University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. Marshall University is a fairly large school located in Huntington, West Virginia that handed out 6 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Marshall University Public Policy Report

13
William & Mary crest
William & Mary
Williamsburg, Virginia

William & Mary ranked #13 on this year’s Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s list. William & Mary is a medium-sized school located in Williamsburg, Virginia that handed out 3 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 93%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 0.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read more about Public Policy at William & Mary

14
UNO crest
University of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana

University of New Orleans ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s list. UNO is located in New Orleans, Louisiana and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 0 masters’s public policy degrees to qualified students.

Read more about Public Policy at University of New Orleans

14
Regent crest
Regent University
Virginia Beach, Virginia

Regent University ranked #14 on this year’s Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s list. Regent University is a fairly large school located in Virginia Beach, Virginia that handed out 37 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Full Regent Public Policy Report

14

University of Central Florida came in at #14 in this year’s edition of the Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking. UCF is a public institution located in Orlando, Florida. The school has a large population, and it awarded 0 masters’s degrees in 2020-2021.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 92%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Public Policy at UCF

14

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill did quite well in the 2023 Most Well Attended Public Policy Major in the Southeast Region for a Master’s ranking, coming in at #14. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a large public school situated in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It awarded 190 masters’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%. The low undergrad student loan default rate of 1.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Full UNC Chapel Hill Public Policy Report

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