39 Best universities for Public Policy / Administration in Australia

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in Australia ranked based on their research performance in Public Policy / Administration. A graph of 560K citations received by 31.3K academic papers made by 39 universities in Australia was used to calculate publications' ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores.

We don't distinguish between undergraduate and graduate programs nor do we adjust for current majors offered. You can find information about granted degrees on a university page but always double-check with the university website.

1. Australian National University

Australia | Canberra

For Public Policy / Administration

#1 in Oceania

#10 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Founded: 1946

2. University of Melbourne

Australia | Melbourne

For Public Policy / Administration

#2 in Oceania

#22 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Enrollment: 77,162
Founded: 1853

3. University of Sydney

Australia | Sydney

For Public Policy / Administration

#3 in Oceania

#39 in the World

Enrollment: 63,602
Founded: 1850

4. University of Queensland

Australia | St Lucia

For Public Policy / Administration

#4 in Oceania

#49 in the World

Enrollment: 48,771
Founded: 1909

5. University of New South Wales

Australia | Sydney

For Public Policy / Administration

#5 in Oceania

#51 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 63,864
Founded: 1949

6. Monash University

Australia | Clayton

For Public Policy / Administration

#6 in Oceania

#68 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 73%
Enrollment: 78,000
Founded: 1958

7. Griffith University

Australia | Brisbane

For Public Policy / Administration

#7 in Oceania

#95 in the World

Founded: 1971

8. University of Canberra

Australia | Canberra

For Public Policy / Administration

#8 in Oceania

#113 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 78%
Enrollment: 17,576
Founded: 1967

9. Queensland University of Technology

Australia | Brisbane

For Public Policy / Administration

#10 in Oceania

#130 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 77%
Founded: 1989

10. Deakin University

Australia | Geelong

For Public Policy / Administration

#12 in Oceania

#146 in the World

Enrollment: 34,616
Founded: 1974

11. University of Adelaide

Australia | Adelaide

For Public Policy / Administration

#13 in Oceania

#183 in the World

Enrollment: 25,000
Founded: 1874

12. RMIT University

Australia | Melbourne

For Public Policy / Administration

#15 in Oceania

#194 in the World

Founded: 1887

13. Macquarie University

Australia | Sydney

For Public Policy / Administration

#16 in Oceania

#208 in the World

Enrollment: 38,747
Founded: 1964

14. La Trobe University

Australia | Melbourne

For Public Policy / Administration

#17 in Oceania

#216 in the World

Enrollment: 7,500
Founded: 1964

15. University of Western Australia

Australia | Crawley

For Public Policy / Administration

#18 in Oceania

#217 in the World

Enrollment: 25,000
Founded: 1911

16. University of Technology Sydney

Australia | Sydney

For Public Policy / Administration

#19 in Oceania

#218 in the World

Founded: 1965

17. Flinders University

Australia | Adelaide

For Public Policy / Administration

#20 in Oceania

#232 in the World

Founded: 1966

18. University of Tasmania

Australia | Hobart

For Public Policy / Administration

#21 in Oceania

#238 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Enrollment: 33,879
Founded: 1890

19. University of South Australia

Australia | Adelaide

For Public Policy / Administration

#23 in Oceania

#285 in the World

Founded: 1991

20. Curtin University

Australia | Perth

For Public Policy / Administration

#24 in Oceania

#290 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 56%
Enrollment: 58,607
Founded: 1966

21. Western Sydney University

Australia | Penrith

For Public Policy / Administration

#25 in Oceania

#300 in the World

Enrollment: 37,426
Founded: 1989

22. University of Wollongong

Australia | Wollongong

For Public Policy / Administration

#26 in Oceania

#307 in the World

Enrollment: 31,313
Founded: 1975

23. University of Newcastle

Australia | Callaghan

For Public Policy / Administration

#28 in Oceania

#349 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 80%
Founded: 1965

24. University of New England, Australia

Australia | Armidale

For Public Policy / Administration

#29 in Oceania

#357 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Founded: 1938

25. Murdoch University

Australia | Murdoch

For Public Policy / Administration

#30 in Oceania

#389 in the World

Enrollment: 22,475
Founded: 1975

26. Charles Sturt University

Australia | Bathurst

For Public Policy / Administration

#32 in Oceania

#460 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 71%
Founded: 1989

27. Swinburne University of Technology

Australia | Hawthorn

For Public Policy / Administration

#33 in Oceania

#477 in the World

Founded: 1908

28. Southern Cross University

Australia | Lismore

For Public Policy / Administration

#34 in Oceania

#571 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Founded: 1994

29. James Cook University

Australia | Townsville

For Public Policy / Administration

#35 in Oceania

#625 in the World

Founded: 1970

30. Australian Catholic University

Australia | North Sydney

For Public Policy / Administration

#36 in Oceania

#629 in the World

Founded: 1991

31. Victoria University

Australia | Melbourne

For Public Policy / Administration

#37 in Oceania

#671 in the World

Founded: 1990

32. Edith Cowan University

Australia | Joondalup

For Public Policy / Administration

#39 in Oceania

#753 in the World

Founded: 1991

33. University of Southern Queensland

Australia | Toowoomba

For Public Policy / Administration

#40 in Oceania

#779 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 70%
Founded: 1967

34. Central Queensland University

Australia | North Rockhampton

For Public Policy / Administration

#41 in Oceania

#862 in the World

Founded: 1967

35. Charles Darwin University

Australia | Darwin

For Public Policy / Administration

#42 in Oceania

#950 in the World

Founded: 1989

36. Federation University Australia

Australia | Ballarat

For Public Policy / Administration

#44 in Oceania

#993 in the World

Founded: 1870

37. University of the Sunshine Coast

Australia | Sippy Downs

For Public Policy / Administration

#45 in Oceania

#1025 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 82%
Founded: 1994

38. Bond University

Australia | Gold Coast

For Public Policy / Administration

#46 in Oceania

#1098 in the World

Founded: 1987

39. University of Notre Dame Australia

Australia | Fremantle

For Public Policy / Administration

#48 in Oceania

#1502 in the World

Enrollment: 11,579
Founded: 1989

The best cities to study Public Policy / Administration in Australia based on the number of universities and their ranks are Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney, and St Lucia.