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2025 Best Public Administration Schools in North Carolina

9 Colleges in North Carolina
473 Public Admin Degrees Awarded
If you pursue a degree in public administration, you won't be alone. The field of study is the #49 most popular program in the country. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 9 schools in North Carolina to determine which ones were the best for public administration students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 473 degrees in public administration annually.

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

Choosing a Great Public Administration School

Best Public Administration Schools in North Carolina 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. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for public administration schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

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 North Carolina list, to help you choose the best school for you. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

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. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Public Administration in North Carolina

The schools below may not offer all types of public admin degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

Top North Carolina Schools in Public Admin

1
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
2nd Most Popular In NC
62 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Any student who is interested in public administration needs to take a look at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Located in the small city of Chapel Hill, UNC Chapel Hill is a public university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #38 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UNC Chapel Hill is a great university overall.

There were approximately 62 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UNC Chapel Hill in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
7th Most Popular In NC
51 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Every student pursuing a degree in public administration has to look into North Carolina State University. Located in the large city of Raleigh, NC State is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #122 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means NC State is a great university overall.

There were approximately 51 public administration students who graduated with this degree at NC State in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from North Carolina State University

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
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
1st Most Popular In NC
98 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Western Carolina University is one of the best schools in the United States for getting a degree in public administration. Located in the distant town of Cullowhee, WCU is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 36th out of 93 schools for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were roughly 98 public administration students who graduated with this degree at WCU in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from Western Carolina University

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

It's difficult to beat University of North Carolina at Charlotte if you wish to pursue a degree in public administration. UNC Charlotte is a very large public university located in the large city of Charlotte. A Best Colleges rank of #367 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means UNC Charlotte is a great university overall.

There were about 32 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UNC Charlotte in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of North Carolina at Charlotte

5
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
4th Most Popular In NC

Appalachian State is a very large public university located in the distant town of Boone. A Best Colleges rank of #401 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Appalachian State is a great university overall.

There were about 28 public administration students who graduated with this degree at Appalachian State in the most recent year we have data available.

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

6
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In NC
37 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

Located in the city of Greensboro, UNC Greensboro is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 17th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were about 37 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UNC Greensboro in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of North Carolina at Greensboro

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
9th Most Popular In NC

UNCW is a fairly large public university located in the medium-sized city of Wilmington. This university ranks 12th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were roughly 21 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UNCW in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of North Carolina at Wilmington

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
3rd Most Popular In NC
58 Public Admin Degrees Awarded

North Carolina Central University is a medium-sized public university located in the city of Durham. This university ranks 59th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were about 58 public administration students who graduated with this degree at North Carolina Central University in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from North Carolina Central University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
5th Most Popular In NC

Located in the town of Pembroke, UNC Pembroke is a public university with a medium-sized student population. This university ranks 48th out of 93 colleges for overall quality in the state of North Carolina.

There were about 14 public administration students who graduated with this degree at UNC Pembroke in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration from University of North Carolina at Pembroke

Best Public Administration Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Florida 715 926
Georgia 690 399
Virginia 630 523
Tennessee 624 81
South Carolina 530 83
Kentucky 518 118
Mississippi 501 80
Alabama 500 358
Louisiana 489 121
Arkansas 466 179
West Virginia 410 132

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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