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Best Value Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in Virginia

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2023 Best Value Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in Virginia

Highlighting Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

4 Colleges
$15,632 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$57,597 Avg Salary

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

With 278 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, public policy is the #32 most popular major in Virginia.

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.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Grad Degree Search has created its Best Value Public Policy Master's Degree Schools in Virginia ranking. Our analysis looked at 4 schools in Virginia to see which master's degree programs offered the best value experiences for public policy students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. Specifically, our score for quality is discounted by the published tuition and fees charged by the given college. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The more quality your dollar buys, the better the value.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. For statewide rankings, we use average in-state tuition and fees.

2023 Best Value Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia

The colleges and universities below are the best value schools for public policy majors pursuing a master's degree.

Best Virginia Schools for Affordable Quality for a Master's in Public Policy

#1

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

Our analysis found George Mason University to be the best value school for public policy students who want to pursue a master’s degree in Virginia. Located in the suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public school with a fairly large student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at GMU are $16,644 a year.

Read More…

#2

William & Mary

Williamsburg, VA

Out of the 4 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, William & Mary landed the # 2 spot on the list. Located in the small suburb of Williamsburg, William & Mary is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at William & Mary are $16,618 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, William & Mary is ranked #3 for overall quality for public policy in Virginia.

Full Public Policy at William & Mary Report

Out of the 4 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Virginia - Main Campus landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public school with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at University of Virginia are $20,906 per year.

University of Virginia did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our Best Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list.

Full Public Policy at University of Virginia - Main Campus Report

#4

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Liberty University. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Public Policy Master’s Degree Schools in Virginia list. Located in the city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Liberty University graduate students pay an average of $8,360 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Full Public Policy at Liberty University Report

Best Value Public Policy Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Public Policy Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Florida 13
Georgia 28
North Carolina 87
Tennessee 66
Kentucky 22
Louisiana 8
Alabama 7
South Carolina 2
Arkansas 8
West Virginia 23

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 4 schools only.

  • 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.

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