Best Public Administration Schools Near Richmond, VA (2026)

Updated August 11, 2026 BLS data College Scorecard On this page

Richmond, Virginia has 18 accredited schools offering public administration programs, with tuition ranging from $12,750 to $59,512 per year for indexed programs. Richmond has a population of about 227,595. Median household income is $62,671 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 44.1% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Richmond, VA metro area, the top-earning public administration-related role is General and Operations Manager at a median $108,670 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Closest Public Administration Schools to Richmond

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer public administration programs near Richmond, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Richmond city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Richmond. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

Fairfax University of America

Fairfax, VA 91.4 miles from Richmond
  • 4 year
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 9

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Virginia schools on the Virginia public administration page.

Public Administration Wages Near Richmond

Richmond is part of the Richmond, VA metro area (BLS area code 40060). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Virginia statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Social and Community Service Manager$104,070Richmond, VA$106,302
Urban and Regional Planner$77,340Richmond, VA$78,999
General and Operations Manager$108,670Richmond, VA$111,001
Management Analyst$95,660Richmond, VA$97,712

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.

Richmond at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population227,595Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$62,671Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+44.1%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)97.9 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024

Other Richmond-Area Cities With Public Administration Programs

Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited public administration schools are near Richmond, VA?

Our directory has 18 accredited schools offering public administration programs near Richmond. The closest is Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA (1.9 miles), and the farthest of the schools shown is Strayer University-Maryland (94.7 miles). 9 of the highlighted schools are flagged as offering distance education.

What are the highest-paying public administration roles near Richmond?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying public administration-related roles near Richmond are: General and Operations Manager ($108,670), Social and Community Service Manager ($104,070), Management Analyst ($95,660). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Virginia statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Hopewell instead of Richmond?

Hopewell, VA is 19.1 miles from Richmond and has its own set of local public administration programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Richmond an affordable place to study public administration?

Richmond’s median household income of $62,671 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Richmond while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Virginia public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.

Learn More About Public Administration Programs

Other Programs Available in Richmond

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Richmond:

Data verified: August 11, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024–2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.

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