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College Factual  by our College Data Analytics Team
       Unbiased Factual Guarantee

Most Popular Public Policy Schools

188 Ranked Colleges
5,434 Public Policy Graduations

Public Policy is a popular field of study at colleges across the country. This ranking identifies the schools that graduate the most public policy students each year.

For its ranking, College Factual looked at how many students completed a degree in public policy at each of the 188 schools in the United States that offer the program.

What’s on this page:

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Public Policy Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Public Policy
Master's Degrees in Public Policy

Looking for a specific degree level? Filter the most popular Public Policy schools by degree below. Want schools in a particular part of the country? Narrow the list by region or state.

See how we build our rankings

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The colleges and universities below are the most popular for public policy majors in the United States, ranked by the number of degrees they award each year.

1
Duke University crest
Duke University
Durham, NC

Duke University tops our list of the most popular public policy schools. Duke University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Durham. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 258 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. See more about public policy at Duke University

2

A rank of #2 makes University Of Michigan Ann Arbor one of the most popular schools for public policy. Set in the city of Ann Arbor, University Of Michigan Ann Arbor is a public institution. University Of Michigan Ann Arbor graduated around 235 public policy students in the most recent data year. Get the full public policy details for University Of Michigan Ann Arbor

3
Princeton University crest
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ

Princeton University ranks #3 for public policy by yearly graduations. Princeton University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Princeton. This school awarded about 227 public policy degrees in the most recent year. Read the full public policy report for Princeton University

4

University Of Maryland College Park is one of the most popular public policy schools, landing the #4 spot this year. Set in the suburb of College Park, University Of Maryland College Park is a public institution. University Of Maryland College Park graduated around 216 public policy students in the most recent data year. Read the full public policy report for University Of Maryland College Park

5

University Of Southern California ranks #5 for public policy by yearly graduations. University Of Southern California is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Los Angeles. University Of Southern California graduated around 191 public policy students in the most recent data year. See more about public policy at University Of Southern California

6

University Of Virginia Main Campus landed the #6 spot among the most popular public policy schools. University Of Virginia Main Campus is a public school located in the suburb of Charlottesville. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 189 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. Get the full public policy details for University Of Virginia Main Campus

7

University Of Wisconsin Madison landed the #7 spot among the most popular public policy schools. University Of Wisconsin Madison is a public school located in the city of Madison. University Of Wisconsin Madison graduated around 188 public policy students in the most recent data year. Get the full public policy details for University Of Wisconsin Madison

8

University Of California Los Angeles landed the #8 spot among the most popular public policy schools. Located in the city of Los Angeles, University Of California Los Angeles is a public university. University Of California Los Angeles graduated around 175 public policy students in the most recent data year. Read the full public policy report for University Of California Los Angeles

9
Harvard University crest
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA

Harvard University placed #9 for public policy by yearly graduations. Harvard University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Cambridge. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 170 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. See more about public policy at Harvard University

10

Brandeis University landed the #10 spot among the most popular public policy schools. Brandeis University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Waltham. Brandeis University graduated around 136 public policy students in the most recent data year. Get the full public policy details for Brandeis University

11

University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill landed the #11 spot among the most popular public policy schools. Located in the city of Chapel Hill, University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill is a public university. University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill graduated around 126 public policy students in the most recent data year. Get the full public policy details for University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill

12

The University Of Texas At Austin landed the #12 spot among the most popular public policy schools. The University Of Texas At Austin is a public school located in the city of Austin. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 123 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. Get the full public policy details for The University Of Texas At Austin

13

University Of California Berkeley ranked #13 on our list of the most popular public policy schools. Located in the city of Berkeley, University Of California Berkeley is a public university. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 123 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. Get the full public policy details for University Of California Berkeley

14

Arizona State University Skysong ranked #14 on our list of the most popular public policy schools. Set in the city of Scottsdale, Arizona State University Skysong is a public institution. This school awarded about 119 public policy degrees in the most recent year. Get the full public policy details for Arizona State University Skysong

15
Liberty University crest
Liberty University
Lynchburg, VA

Liberty University placed #15 for public policy by yearly graduations. Liberty University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Lynchburg. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 118 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. See more about public policy at Liberty University

16

Arizona State University placed #16 for public policy by yearly graduations. Arizona State University is a public school located in the city of Tempe. Arizona State University graduated around 113 public policy students in the most recent data year. See more about public policy at Arizona State University

17

University Of Chicago comes in at #17 for public policy this year. University Of Chicago is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Chicago. This school awarded about 108 public policy degrees in the most recent year. Get the full public policy details for University Of Chicago

18

University Of California Riverside ranked #18 on our list of the most popular public policy schools. Located in the city of Riverside, University Of California Riverside is a public university. University Of California Riverside graduated around 103 public policy students in the most recent data year. Read the full public policy report for University Of California Riverside

19
American University crest
American University
Washington, DC

American University ranked #19 on our list of the most popular public policy schools. American University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Washington. This school awarded about 98 public policy degrees in the most recent year. Read the full public policy report for American University

20

George Mason University landed the #20 spot among the most popular public policy schools. George Mason University is a public school located in the suburb of Fairfax. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 89 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. Read the full public policy report for George Mason University

21
Georgetown University crest
Georgetown University
Washington, DC

Georgetown University comes in at #21 for public policy this year. Located in the city of Washington, Georgetown University is a private not-for-profit university. Georgetown University graduated around 86 public policy students in the most recent data year. See more about public policy at Georgetown University

22

Cornell University landed the #22 spot among the most popular public policy schools. Cornell University is a private not-for-profit school located in the city of Ithaca. This school awarded about 79 public policy degrees in the most recent year. Get the full public policy details for Cornell University

23

George Washington University ranked #23 on our list of the most popular public policy schools. Located in the city of Washington, George Washington University is a private not-for-profit university. During the most recent year for which we have data, roughly 71 students earned a degree in public policy from this school. Get the full public policy details for George Washington University

24

University Of California San Diego comes in at #24 for public policy this year. Set in the city of La Jolla, University Of California San Diego is a public institution. This school awarded about 67 public policy degrees in the most recent year. See more about public policy at University Of California San Diego

25

Georgia Institute Of Technology Main Campus comes in at #25 for public policy this year. Located in the city of Atlanta, Georgia Institute Of Technology Main Campus is a public university. Georgia Institute Of Technology Main Campus graduated around 64 public policy students in the most recent data year. See more about public policy at Georgia Institute Of Technology Main Campus

These schools rounded out the top of this year’s most popular public policy list:

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Suny Empire State College crest
Suny Empire State College
Saratoga Springs, NY
29
Temple University crest
Temple University
Philadelphia, PA
30
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32
33
34
35
Brown University crest
Brown University
Providence, RI
36
Stanford University crest
Stanford University
Stanford, CA
37
Trinity College crest
Trinity College
Hartford, CT
38
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40
41
42
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50

Additional Noteworthy Schools

Here are more schools that award public policy degrees:

Rank School Location Public Policy Graduations
#51 Pepperdine University Malibu, CA 27
#52 Regent University Virginia Beach, VA 27
#53 Yale University New Haven, CT 27
#54 Teachers College At Columbia University New York, NY 26
#55 University Of Kentucky Lexington, KY 26
#56 Pennsylvania State University Main Campus University Park, PA 25
#57 Rice University Houston, TX 25
#58 Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 24
#59 Ohio State University Main Campus Columbus, OH 23
#60 Suny At Albany Albany, NY 23
#61 University Of Massachusetts Boston Boston, MA 23
#62 Jacksonville University Jacksonville, FL 22
#63 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY 22
#64 University Of Denver Denver, CO 22
#65 Rochester Institute Of Technology Rochester, NY 21
#66 Southern University And A And M College Baton Rouge, LA 21
#67 Portland State University Portland, OR 20
#68 Depaul University Chicago, IL 19
#69 Pomona College Claremont, CA 19
#70 Rutgers University Camden Camden, NJ 19
#71 Texas A And M University College Station College Station, TX 19
#72 University Of Maryland Baltimore County Baltimore, MD 19
#73 Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN 19
#74 Hamilton College Clinton, NY 18
#75 University Of Houston Houston, TX 18
#76 University Of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh Campus Pittsburgh, PA 18
#77 University Of Utah Salt Lake City, UT 18
#78 American Public University System Charles Town, WV 17
#79 University Of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 17
#80 University Of California Hastings College Of Law San Francisco, CA 16
#81 The New School New York, NY 15
#82 University Of California Irvine Irvine, CA 15
#83 Washington University In St Louis St. Louis, MO 15
#84 University Of Alaska Fairbanks Fairbanks, AK 13
#85 California State University Long Beach Long Beach, CA 12
#86 Marshall University Huntington, WV 12
#87 Tennessee State University Nashville, TN 12
#88 University Of Nevada Las Vegas Las Vegas, NV 12
#89 Boise State University Boise, ID 11
#90 Boston University Boston, MA 11
#91 Dallas Baptist University Dallas, TX 11
#92 Duquesne University Pittsburgh, PA 11
#93 University Of New Hampshire Main Campus Durham, NH 11
#94 University Of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, IA 11
#95 California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA 10
#96 Drexel University Philadelphia, PA 10
#97 Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA 10
#98 Michigan Technological University Houghton, MI 10
#99 Rowan University Glassboro, NJ 10
#100 Suffolk University Boston, MA 10

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Public Policy by Region

Explore the most popular public policy schools by region.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

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Notes and References

The ranking above is published by College Factual. The ranking reflects yearly graduations in the major, drawn from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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