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2025 Best Public Administration & Social Service Schools in Tennessee

13 Colleges in Tennessee
1,577 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
$47,851 Avg Early-Career Salary
A degree in public administration & social service is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #14 out of 38 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. This means you won't have too much trouble finding schools that offer the degree.

For its 2025 ranking, College Factual looked at 13 schools in Tennessee to determine which ones were the best for public administration & social service students pursuing a degree. When you put them all together, these colleges and universities awarded 1,577 degrees in public administration & social service annually.

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

Choosing a Great Public Administration & Social Service School

Best Public Administration & Social Service Schools in Tennessee Your choice of public administration & social service school matters, so we have put together these rankings to help you make your decision. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for public administration & social service 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.

Pick Your Public Administration & Social Service Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Public Administration & Social Service
Master's Degrees in Public Administration & Social Service
Doctor's Degrees in Public Administration & Social Service

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 Best Public Administration & Social Service Schools in Tennessee list to help you make the college decision. You can also filter this list by location to find schools closer to you.

In addition to College Factual's rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. When you have some time, check it out - you may want to bookmark the link so you don't forget it.

More information on how we come up with our rankings can be found here: College Factual's Data Methodology.

Best Schools for Public Administration & Social Service in Tennessee

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

10 Top Tennessee Schools in Public Administration & Social Service

1
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
458 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
3.9% Growth in Graduates

The University of Tennessee - Knoxville is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in public administration & social service. UT Knoxville is a very large public university located in the midsize city of Knoxville. A Best Colleges rank of #226 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means UT Knoxville is a great university overall.

There were approximately 458 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at UT Knoxville in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduating, public administration & social service degree recipients usually make an average of $45,362 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

2
Vanderbilt crest
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
75 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
4.0% Growth in Graduates

Vanderbilt University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in public administration & social service. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #18 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Vanderbilt is a great university overall.

There were approximately 75 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Vanderbilt in the most recent data year. Those public administration & social service students who get their degree from Vanderbilt University receive $9,829 more than the standard public administration & social service graduate.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Vanderbilt University

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

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
40 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
$47,542 Median Starting Salary

Southern Adventist University is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in public administration & social service. Located in the large suburb of Collegedale, Southern Adventist is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #244 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Southern Adventist is a great university overall.

There were approximately 40 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Southern Adventist in the most recent year we have data available. Soon after graduation, public administration & social service degree recipients typically earn about $47,542 at the beginning of their careers.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Southern Adventist University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
144 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
2.8% Growth in Graduates

University of Memphis is one of the finest schools in the country for getting a degree in public administration & social service. Located in the city of Memphis, UofM is a public university with a fairly large student population. This university ranks 12th out of 41 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were approximately 144 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at UofM in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the public administration & social service program state that they receive average early career income of $42,535.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from University of Memphis

5
Union crest
Union University
Jackson, TN
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
102 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
$42,829 Median Starting Salary

Located in the city of Jackson, Union is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. A Best Colleges rank of #538 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means Union is a great university overall.

There were approximately 102 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Union in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the public administration & social service program report average early career wages of $42,829.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Union University

6
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
73 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
$39,282 Median Starting Salary

Located in the large city of Nashville, Tennessee State University is a public university with a moderately-sized student population. This university ranks 29th out of 41 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were approximately 73 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Tennessee State University in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the public administration & social service program state that they receive average early career earnings of $39,282.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Tennessee State University

7
Belmont crest
Belmont University
Nashville, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
15th Most Popular In TN
38.5% Growth in Graduates

Located in the large city of Nashville, Belmont is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population. A Best Colleges rank of #237 out of 2,152 colleges nationwide means Belmont is a great university overall.

There were roughly 26 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Belmont in the most recent data year.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Belmont University

Sponsored
Bachelors Degree Type
BA in Human Services Program Name

Improve the lives of individuals, families and communities with the human service tools gained from this online bachelor's from Southern New Hampshire University.

More information about a degree in BA in Human Services from Southern New Hampshire University

Related Programs

8
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
182 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
$36,528 Median Starting Salary

ETSU is a large public university located in the city of Johnson City. A Best Colleges rank of #802 out of 2,152 schools nationwide means ETSU is a great university overall.

There were about 182 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at ETSU in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the public administration & social service program report average early career income of $36,528.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from East Tennessee State University

9
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
101 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
8.9% Growth in Graduates

Located in the midsize city of Murfreesboro, Middle Tennessee State University is a public university with a very large student population. This university ranks 18th out of 41 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were roughly 101 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at Middle Tennessee State University in the most recent data year. Students who graduate with their degree from the public administration & social service program state that they receive average early career wages of $41,190.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from Middle Tennessee State University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
82 Public Administration & Social Service Degrees Awarded
20.7% Growth in Graduates

UT Chattanooga is a large public university located in the midsize city of Chattanooga. This university ranks 16th out of 41 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were about 82 public administration & social service students who graduated with this degree at UT Chattanooga in the most recent data year. After graduating, public administration & social service degree recipients generally make around $27,923 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in public administration & social service from The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga

Best Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Southeast Region

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

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 38 2,788
West Virginia 38 497
Mississippi 38 748
South Carolina 38 695
Florida 38 4,051
Virginia 38 2,056
Arkansas 38 671
Alabama 37 1,608
Kentucky 37 1,970
Georgia 37 1,470
Louisiana 37 1,118

View All Rankings >

Public Administration & Social Service Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Public Administration 125
Public Policy 93
Human Services 62
Community Organization & Advocacy 20
Other Public Administration 5

View All Public Administration & Social Service Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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