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Best Public & Social Service Master's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania

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2023 Best Public & Social Service Master's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania

20 Colleges
$48,536 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Public Administration & Social Service Master's Degree School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, public administration and social service was ranked 6th in Pennsylvania. In fact, 2,116 were awarded in the state in 2020-2021.

With all the programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Best Public & Social Service Master's Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. This report analyzed 20 schools in Pennsylvania 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 Administration & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania

The following schools top our list of the Best Public Administration & Social Service Master's Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Public Administration & Social Service Master's Degree Schools

#1

Elizabethtown College

Elizabethtown, PA

Our 2023 rankings named Elizabethtown College the best school in Pennsylvania for public administration and social service students working on their master’s degree. Located in the suburb of Elizabethtown, Etown is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

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#2

Carnegie Mellon University

Pittsburgh, PA

The excellent master’s degree programs at Carnegie Mellon University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best public administration and social service schools in Pennsylvania. Carnegie Mellon is a large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Pittsburgh.

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#3

University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

Out of the 20 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Pennsylvania landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the city of Philadelphia, UPenn is a private not-for-profit school with a fairly large student population.

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#4

Villanova University

Villanova, PA

Out of the 20 schools in Pennsylvania that were part of this year’s ranking, Villanova University landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the suburb of Villanova, Villanova is a private not-for-profit college with a large student population.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Villanova University

#5

Bryn Mawr College

Bryn Mawr, PA

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Bryn Mawr College. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Public & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania list. Bryn Mawr is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Bryn Mawr.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Bryn Mawr College

#6

Alvernia University

Reading, PA

Alvernia University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for public administration and social service students to get a master’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Alvernia is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Reading.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Alvernia University

#7

Widener University

Chester, PA

Widener University ranked #7 on this year’s Best Public & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania list. Widener is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit school located in the suburb of Chester.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Widener University

West Chester University of Pennsylvania came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Public & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. WCUPA is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of West Chester.

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University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Public & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Located in the large city of Pittsburgh, Pitt is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus

Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Public & Social Service Master’s Degree Schools in Pennsylvania ranking. Ship is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Shippensburg.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania Report

Best Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Region

Explore all the Best Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Middle Atlantic Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
New York 6,455
Maryland 1,050
New Jersey 1,665
District of Columbia 820
Delaware 160

Public Administration & Social Service Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Social Work 33,631
Public Administration 13,571
Public Policy 3,737
Human Services 1,277
Community Organization & Advocacy 741
Other Public Administration 295

Majors Similar to Public Administration & Social Service

Related Major Annual Graduates
Legal Professions 45,189
Homeland Security, Law Enforcement & Firefighting 13,045
Parks, Recreation, Leisure, & Fitness Studies 10,452
Military Technologies & Applied Sciences 1,613

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 20 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 University of the Fraser Valley.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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