A master's degree in public policy is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #52 out of 326 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.
College Factual looked at 115 colleges and universities when compiling its 2022 Most Popular Master's Degree Colleges for Public Policy ranking. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 3,160 master's degrees in public policy during the 2019-2020 academic year.
Choosing a Great Public Policy School for Your Master's Degree
The public policy master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future.
One of the reasons we created our Most Popular Master's Degree Colleges for Public Policy ranking is to help you make that choice.
While being high in popularity does not always mean a school has a quality public policy program, it is a sign that a large number of students choose the school. Sometimes this is because the school offers a great educational experience, it is a good value, or it is highly focused on the program.
This ranking is just one of the many we have created.
First of all, if you are interested in other degree levels, you may want to take a look at one of the rankings highlighted above.
Also, if you are interested in attending school in a specific part of the country, see our rankings by location.
On top of that, you can visit our other rankings for public policy.
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Featured Public Policy Programs
Learn about start dates, transferring credits, availability of financial aid, and more by contacting the universities below.
Fit new strategic skills into your public service passion and goals when you earn an MBA in Public Administration from Southern New Hampshire University.
Most Popular Schools for Master’s Students to Study Public Policy in the United States
Learn about the most popular colleges and universities for public policy students seeking a a master's degree. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
17 Most Well Attended Schools for Public Policy Students Working on Their Master's
University of Chicago is a popular decision for students pursuing a master's degree in public policy. Located in the city of Chicago, UChicago is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Illinois.
There were roughly 337 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at UChicago in the most recent year we have data available.
Public Policy master's degree recipients from University of Chicago get an earnings boost of approximately $9,373 above the typical income of public policy graduates.
Every student who is interested in a master's degree in public policy needs to take a look at Harvard University. Harvard is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the midsize city of Cambridge. Potential students might also be interested to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Massachusetts.
There were roughly 228 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at Harvard in the most recent data year.
Public Policy master's degree recipients from Harvard University earn a boost of about $17,373 above the average earnings of public policy graduates.
Any student pursuing a degree in a master's degree in public policy has to take a look at Georgetown University. Located in the city of Washington, Georgetown is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in District of Columbia.
There were approximately 177 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at Georgetown in the most recent data year.
Master's recipients from the public policy program at Georgetown University make $13,173 above the standard graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
University of California - Berkeley is a popular choice for students interested in a master's degree in public policy. UC Berkeley is a very large public university located in the city of Berkeley. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in California.
There were approximately 126 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at UC Berkeley in the most recent year we have data available.
Public Policy master's degree recipients from University of California - Berkeley receive an earnings boost of around $17,473 over the average income of public policy majors.
Located in the large city of Austin, UT Austin is a public university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Texas.
There were approximately 117 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at UT Austin in the most recent data year.
Master's graduates who receive their degree from the public policy program earn an average of $53,400 in the first couple years of working.
Located in the city of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Pennsylvania.
There were roughly 111 public policy students who graduated with this degree at Carnegie Mellon in the most recent data year.
Master's recipients from the public policy program at Carnegie Mellon University make $7,773 above the typical college grad with the same degree shortly after graduation.
There were approximately 105 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at U-M in the most recent data year.
Those public policy students who get their master's degree from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor earn $3,373 more than the average public policy graduate.
Located in the small city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. This isn't the only ranking where the school placed. It's also #4 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Virginia.
There were about 92 public policy students who graduated with this degree at Liberty University in the most recent data year.
After graduation, public policy master's recipients generally earn around $47,700 in their early careers.
There were roughly 86 public policy students who graduated with this degree at GWU in the most recent data year.
Master's recipients from the public policy major at George Washington University earn $5,673 above the average graduate in this field shortly after graduation.
Located in the city of Minneapolis, UMN Twin Cities is a public university with a fairly large student population. You also may be intersted to know that the school ranks #1 in quality for master's degrees in public policy in Minnesota.
There were about 81 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at UMN Twin Cities in the most recent data year.
There were roughly 75 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at University of Virginia in the most recent year we have data available.
Those public policy students who get their master's degree from University of Virginia - Main Campus receive $7,673 more than the typical public policy student.
There were roughly 72 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at UMCP in the most recent data year.
Those public policy students who get their master's degree from University of Maryland - College Park make $2,273 more than the average public policy graduate.
There were approximately 69 public policy students who graduated with this degree at GMU in the most recent year we have data available.
Master's recipients from the public policy degree program at George Mason University get $6,373 above the typical college graduate with the same degree when they enter the workforce.
There were roughly 67 public policy individuals who graduated with this degree at Duke in the most recent data year.
Master's recipients from the public policy major at Duke University make $7,273 more than the average college graduate in this field when they enter the workforce.
Here are some additional great schools for Public Policy students that almost earned our Most Popular Master's Degree Colleges for Public Policy award.
The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
The public policy master's degree program you select can have a big impact on your future.
One of the reasons we created our Most Popular Master's Degree Colleges for Public Policy ranking is to help you make that choice.
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