BestOnlineCollege.org is an advertising-supported website. Many of the school and program listings that appear on this site are from partners who compensate us, and this compensation may affect how, where, and in what order listings appear (such as featured placements). This compensation does not influence our editorial content, evaluations, or rankings, which are determined independently using publicly available data. We do not review or feature every school or program available in the marketplace. Our goal is to provide accurate, unbiased information so you can make informed decisions. Read our full Advertiser Disclosure.
Best Public Policy Schools Near Ashland, OR (2026)
Updated September 5, 2026BLS dataCollege ScorecardOn this page
Ashland, Oregon is home to about 21,343 residents. Median household income is $71,782 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 65.0% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In Oregon, the top-earning public policy-related role is Economists at a median $122,120 annually (BLS, May 2025).
Closest Public Policy Schools to Ashland
The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer public policy programs near Ashland, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Ashland 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:
BOCSCORE
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 Ashland.
Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.
BOC
Ranked by BOC Score — U.S. Dept. of Education outcome data. Advertising never affects rankings.
Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Oregon schools on the Oregon public policy page.
Public Policy Wages Near Ashland
Ashland is part of the Medford, OR metro area (BLS area code 32780). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Oregon statewide.
Occupation
Median Wage
Source
COL-Adjusted (US=100)
Political Scientists
$119,460
OR statewide
$117,811
Management Analysts
$91,560
Medford, OR
$90,296
Economists
$122,120
OR statewide
$120,434
Social and Community Service Managers
$93,220
Medford, OR
$91,933
Survey Researchers
$64,660
OR statewide
$63,767
Compliance Officers
$77,260
Medford, OR
$76,193
General and Operations Managers
$95,630
Medford, OR
$94,310
Financial and Investment Analysts
$108,370
Medford, OR
$106,874
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.
Ashland at a Glance
Metric
Value
Source
Population
21,343
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income
$71,782
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+
65.0%
Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)
101.4 (above U.S. average)
BEA RPP 2024
Other Ashland-Area Cities With Public Policy Programs
What are the highest-paying public policy roles near Ashland?
Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying public policy-related roles near Ashland are: Economists ($122,120), Political Scientists ($119,460), Financial and Investment Analysts ($108,370). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Oregon statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.
Should I look at programs in Medford instead of Ashland?
Medford, OR is 12.9 miles from Ashland and has its own set of local public policy programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.
Is Ashland an affordable place to study public policy?
Ashland’s median household income of $71,782 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Ashland while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Oregon 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.
Data verified: September 5, 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.
