Find Grad Schools

Study Area & Zipcode

Best Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in California

Find Schools Near

2023 Best Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in California

9 Colleges
$57,597 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Policy Master's Degree School for You

Public Policy is the #46 most popular major in California with 546 degrees and certificates awarded in 2020-2021.

It's not easy to decide which program to enroll in when you have so many options available. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.

The Best Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in California ranking is one of many tools that Grad Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 9 schools in California to see which ones offered the best master's degree programs for students. Factors related to overall quality of the school, post-graduation earnings, average student debt, and more accumulated were considered when coming up with this list.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California

Check out the public policy master's degree programs at these schools if you want to get the best education that money can buy.

Top California Schools for a Master's in Public Policy

Our 2023 rankings named University of California - Berkeley the best school in California for public policy students working on their master’s degree. UC Berkeley is a very large public school located in the medium-sized city of Berkeley.

Read More…

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means University of California - Los Angeles is a great place for public policy students working on their master’s degree. UCLA is a fairly large public school located in the city of Los Angeles.

Read full report on Public Policy at University of California - Los Angeles

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means University of California - San Francisco is a great place for public policy students working on their master’s degree. Located in the large city of San Francisco, UCSF is a public school with a small student population.

Full Public Policy at University of California - San Francisco Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Southern California. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the large city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Full Public Policy at University of Southern California Report

#5

California Lutheran University

Thousand Oaks, CA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend California Lutheran University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California list. Located in the midsize city of Thousand Oaks, CLU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Read More…

University of California - Irvine ranked #6 on this year’s Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California list. UC Irvine is a fairly large public school located in the city of Irvine.

Read More…

#7

Pepperdine University

Malibu, CA

Pepperdine University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Located in the large suburb of Malibu, Pepperdine is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

Read full report on Public Policy at Pepperdine University

University of California - Riverside landed the #8 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best master’s degree public policy programs. UCR is a fairly large public school located in the city of Riverside.

Read full report on Public Policy at University of California - Riverside

#9

Mills College

Oakland, CA

Mills College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in California ranking. Mills is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Oakland.

Read full report on Public Policy at Mills College

Best Public Policy Colleges in the Far Western US Region

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

State Degrees Awarded
Washington 22
Oregon 47
Nevada 12
Alaska 0

Public Policy is one of 5 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Public Policy

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 33,631
Public Administration 13,571
Human Services 1,277
Community Organization & Advocacy 741
Other Public Administration 295

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 9 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to The Official CTBTO Photostream.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

Featured Schools

Find Graduate Schools Near You

Our free school finder matches students with accredited graduate schools across the U.S.