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Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia

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2023 Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia

18 Colleges
$41,798 Avg Salary
$27,601 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Public Administration & Social Service School for You

In 2020-2021, public administration and social service students earned 1,152 degrees and certificates from a Virginia school, making the subject the 9th in the state.

Today's students have lots of options to pick from when considering higher education opportunities. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Grad Degree Search has developed this Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia ranking. This report analyzed 18 schools in Virginia to see which ones were the most popular programs for students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Public Administration & Social Service program at each school on the list.

The colleges and universities below are the most popular for public administration and social service majors pursuing a .

#1

Liberty University

Lynchburg, VA

Our 2023 rankings named Liberty University the most popular school in Virginia for public administration and social service students. Located in the small city of Lynchburg, Liberty University is a private not-for-profit school with a very large student population.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Liberty University Report

#2

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA

A rank of #2 on this year’s list means George Mason University is a great place for public administration and social service students. Located in the large suburb of Fairfax, GMU is a public college with a fairly large student population.

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Out of the 18 schools in Virginia that were part of this year’s ranking, Virginia Commonwealth University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the medium-sized city of Richmond, VCU is a public college with a very large student population.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Virginia Commonwealth University

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Virginia - Main Campus. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia list. Located in the suburb of Charlottesville, University of Virginia is a public school with a fairly large student population.

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#5

Radford University

Radford, VA

A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Radford University is a great place for public administration and social service students. Radford is a medium-sized public school located in the small suburb of Radford.

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Norfolk State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia ranking. Norfolk State is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Norfolk.

Read full report on Public Administration & Social Service at Norfolk State University

#7

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, VA

With a ranking of #7, Virginia Tech did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for public administration and social service students. Located in the small city of Blacksburg, Virginia Tech is a public college with a fairly large student population.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Virginia Tech Report

#7

Old Dominion University

Norfolk, VA

With a ranking of #7, Old Dominion University did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for public administration and social service students. Located in the midsize city of Norfolk, Old Dominion is a public school with a fairly large student population.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Old Dominion University Report

#9

Regent University

Virginia Beach, VA

Regent University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Public & Social Service Schools in Virginia ranking. Regent is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in the city of Virginia Beach.

Full Public Administration & Social Service at Regent University Report

#10

James Madison University

Harrisonburg, VA

James Madison University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular public administration and social service programs. JMU is a very large public school located in the city of Harrisonburg.

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Best Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Most Popular Public Administration & Social Service Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Mississippi 244
Florida 1,526
North Carolina 1,324
Tennessee 853
Georgia 885
South Carolina 308
Louisiana 842
West Virginia 317
Kentucky 1,040
Arkansas 372
Alabama 1,018

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

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 18 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 University of the Fraser Valley.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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