Georgia State’s Graduate Programs in Public Affairs Rank Among Top in Nation

ATLANTA — Rankings released today, April 25, in U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 Best Graduate Schools issue place Georgia State University’s Andrew Young School of Policy Studies (AYSPS) graduate programs in public affairs among the top 8 percent of such programs overall, at No. 22 among the 269 universities ranked.

All six AYSPS specializations named in the rankings placed among the top 8 percent in the nation, with four specialties ranking among the top 10: Urban Policy, Public Finance and Budgeting, Local Government Management, and Nonprofit Management. Public Management and Leadership rose 2 points higher, and Public Policy Analysis ranking rose a dozen points.

AYSPS public affairs program areas and their rankings for 2023-24 are:

• No. 5 – Urban Policy
• No. 5 – Public Finance and Budgeting
• No. 10 – Local Government Management
• No. 10 – Nonprofit Management
• No. 15 – Public Management and Leadership
• No. 21 – Public Policy Analysis

The latest U.S. News & World Report rankings for other programs in the college are No. 18 in Criminology, No. 51 in Social Work and No. 65 in Economics.

“Despite the challenges we all experienced during the last few years, we continue to offer our students a valuable education and experience in one of the most dynamic universities, cities and metropolitan areas in the country,” Interim Dean Ann-Margaret Esnard said. “Our curriculum offerings, quality faculty and staff, top-notch research centers and continued strategic focus on policy analytics prepare our students and graduates with the necessary knowledge and skills. These rankings reflect our innovation, commitment and success.”

U.S. News & World Report bases its annual rankings of public affairs programs solely on results of peer-assessment surveys of deans, directors and department chairs representing nearly 270 master’s programs in public affairs and administration.

“Our newest rankings, both for public affairs in general and for all six of our specializations, demonstrate the continuous commitment and efforts of our faculty, students and alumni toward establishing evidence-based policy solutions to advance effective public and nonprofit management and leadership,” said Cathy Liu, chair of the Department of Public Management and Policy. “It’s a pleasure to see our vision and efforts so recognized.”