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2025 Best Public Administration Schools in California

19 Colleges in California
1,612 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
Public Administration is of the hottest degree programs in the United States, coming in as the #49 most popular major in the country. So, there are lots of possibilities to explore when you're trying to determine where you want to get your degree.

College Factual looked at 19 colleges and universities when compiling its 2025 Best Public Administration Schools in California ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,612 degrees in public administration annually.

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

Choosing a Great Public Administration School

Best Public Administration Schools in California 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. 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.

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 California list, to help you choose the best school for you. 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 California

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 California Schools in Public Admin

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
3rd Most Popular In CA
111 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

University of Southern California is a good option for students pursuing a degree in public administration. Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #13 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means USC is a great university overall.

There were roughly 111 public administration students who graduated with this degree at USC in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of Southern California

2
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In CA
265 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Every student who is interested in public administration needs to look into California State University - Northridge. CSUN is a fairly large public university located in the large city of Northridge. This university ranks 48th out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were roughly 265 public administration students who graduated with this degree at CSUN in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from California State University - Northridge

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BS in Business Administration - Public Administration Program Name

Prepare yourself to make the decisions that best serve a community, its constituents and its economic growth with this specialized business degree from Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in BS in Business Administration - Public Administration from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

3
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
12th Most Popular In CA
70 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Every student who is interested in public administration has to check out California Baptist University. Cal Baptist is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Riverside. This university ranks 66th out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were about 70 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Cal Baptist in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from California Baptist University

4
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
6th Most Popular In CA
124 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

California State University - Long Beach is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in public administration. Located in the city of Long Beach, CSULB is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #246 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means CSULB is a great university overall.

There were roughly 124 public administration students who graduated with this degree at CSULB in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from California State University - Long Beach

5
National University crest
National University
San Diego, CA
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In CA
113 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

National University is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of San Diego. A Best Colleges rank of #249 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means National University is a great university overall.

There were approximately 113 public administration students who graduated with this degree at National University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from National University

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In CA
94 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Located in the large city of San Diego, SDSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #185 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SDSU is a great university overall.

There were roughly 94 public administration students who graduated with this degree at SDSU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from San Diego State University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In CA
67 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Cal State Fullerton is a fairly large public university located in the suburb of Fullerton. A Best Colleges rank of #271 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Cal State Fullerton is a great university overall.

There were about 67 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Cal State Fullerton in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from California State University - Fullerton

Sponsored
Masters Degree Type
MBA in Public Administration Program Name

Fit new strategic skills into your public service passion and goals when you earn an MBA in Public Administration from Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in MBA in Public Administration from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In CA
105 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Located in the small city of Carson, CSUDH is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 91st out of 161 colleges for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 105 public administration students who graduated with this degree at CSUDH in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from California State University - Dominguez Hills

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In CA
78 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

CSUSB is a large public university located in the medium-sized city of San Bernardino. This university ranks 82nd out of 161 schools for overall quality in the state of California.

There were approximately 78 public administration students who graduated with this degree at CSUSB in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from California State University - San Bernardino

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
16th Most Popular In CA

Located in the city of San Francisco, SFSU is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #225 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means SFSU is a great university overall.

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

More information about a degree in public administration from San Francisco State University

Best Public Administration Colleges in the Far Western US Region

Explore all the Best Public Administration Schools in the Far Western US Area or other specific states within that region.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Washington 831 290
Oregon 587 112
Nevada 354 68
Hawaii 267 186
Alaska 167 34

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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