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2023 Best Public Policy Colleges for Veterans in the Southwest Region

10 Ranked Colleges
585 Degrees Awarded
$36,200 Avg Cost*
Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy

With all of the options veterans have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual has developed its “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.

Public Policy is the 113th most popular major in the country with 6,430 degrees awarded in 2020-2021. 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 Southwest region, there were 585 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $39,714 and $21,641 respectively.

For this year’s “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy” ranking, we looked at 10 colleges that offer a degree in public policy. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality public policy programs as well as strong veteran support.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the public policy program at the school, veteran affordability, and veteran satisfaction. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

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Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

One of our other unique offerings is College Combat. This tool lets you build your own customized comparisons utilizing the factors that are most important to you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don’t forget it.

Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy

The following schools top our list of the Best “Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy”.

Top 10 Best Public Policy Colleges for Veterans in the Southwest Region

1

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Texas A&M University - College Station. The school came in at #1 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy. College Station, Texas is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s public policy degrees to 15 students in 2020-2021.

Texas A&M College Station also took the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Of the 70,418 students enrolled at Texas A&M University - College Station, 5 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 4 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average tuition and fees award for the Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients was $4,925. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

With a freshman retention rate of 94%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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%.

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2

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Oklahoma Norman Campus. The school came in at #2 for the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy. This large school is located in Norman, Oklahoma, and it awarded 27 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

In addition to being on our southwest region vets studying public policy list, University of Oklahoma has also earned the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] rank in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Of the 27,772 students enrolled at University of Oklahoma, 12 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 10 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $3,720. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. University of Oklahoma offers credit for military training for eligible students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 87%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Oklahoma Norman Campus]](/colleges/university-of-oklahoma-norman-campus/student-life/veterans/)

3

Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Texas at Austin landed the #3 spot on the list. Located in Austin, Texas, this large public school awarded 115 diplomas to qualified ’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

UT Austin did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Among the 50,476 students enrolled at The University of Texas at Austin, 7 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $2,893. To help with additional expenses, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 97%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at UT Austin]](/colleges/the-university-of-texas-at-austin/student-life/veterans/)

4
UH crest
University of Houston
Houston, Texas

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Houston. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy list. University of Houston is a large school located in Houston, Texas that handed out 21 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

UH did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Our most recent data shows that 1,382 of the 47,090 students enrolled at UH were GI Bill® students, of which 730 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,264. During this same period, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. UH does offer credit for military training for eligible students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 86%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

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5
University of Arizona crest
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona

Out of the 10 schools in the Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Arizona landed the #5 spot on the list. University of Arizona is a large public school situated in Tucson, Arizona. It awarded 8 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

University of Arizona also took the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, University of Arizona supports 45,601 students, and 2,131 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 1,478 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,880. During this same period, 31 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. University of Arizona offers credit for military training for eligible students.

With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

[Read full report on veteran student life at University of Arizona]](/colleges/university-of-arizona/student-life/veterans/)

6

The University of Texas at Dallas landed the #6 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy ranking. Located in Richardson, Texas, this large public school awarded 52 diplomas to qualified ’s public policy students in 2020-2021.

UT Dallas did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Among the 28,669 students enrolled at UT Dallas, 752 are GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 458 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $8,706. On top of their other funding sources, 0 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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 90%.

[Read full report on veteran student life at UT Dallas]](/colleges/the-university-of-texas-at-dallas/student-life/veterans/)

7

With a ranking of #7, Southern Methodist University did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy list. Southern Methodist University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Dallas, Texas. The school has a fairly large population, and it awarded 49 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

SMU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.According to our most recent data, SMU supports 12,373 students, and 327 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 215 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $15,612. To help with additional expenses, 103 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 90%. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read More…

8

University of New Mexico - Main Campus landed the #8 spot on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy ranking. This large school is located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and it awarded 7 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UNM, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.Our most recent data shows that 1 of the 22,311 students enrolled at University of New Mexico - Main Campus were GI Bill® students, of which 0 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $0. To help with additional expenses, 0 students qualified for the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

[Read full report on veteran student life at University of New Mexico - Main Campus]](/colleges/university-of-new-mexico-main-campus/student-life/veterans/)

9

With a ranking of #9, The University of Texas at Arlington did quite well on the 2023 Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy list. This large school is located in Arlington, Texas, and it awarded 1 ’s public policy degrees in 2020-2021.

UT Arlington did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] on our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” list.Of the 48,072 students enrolled at The University of Texas at Arlington, 2,109 were GI Bill® students, according to our most recent data. Out of that number, 1,211 were Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $5,630. In addition to receiving other benefits, 0 students received funds through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Eligible students may be able to receive credit for their military training.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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…

10

Baylor University ranked #10 on this year’s Most Veteran Friendly in the Southwest Region for Public Policy list. Baylor is a private not-for-profit institution located in Waco, Texas. The school has a large population, and it awarded 1 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Baylor, the school also landed the #[COLLEGE_QUALITY_RANK_ALL_LEVELS] spot in our “[COLLEGE_QUALITY_NAME_ALL_LEVELS]” ranking.According to our most recent data, Baylor University supports 19,297 students, and 876 of those are GI Bill® students, of which 593 are Post-9/11 GI Bill® recipients. The average Post-9/11 GI Bill® award for tuition and fees at the school was $17,744. On top of their other funding sources, 263 students received scholarships through the Yellow Ribbon Program. Students may be able to receive credit for their military training, depending on their background.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 91%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low undergrad student loan default rate of [DEFAULT_RATE_STRING]% 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…

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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