21 Best universities for Public Policy / Administration in South Africa

Updated: March 15, 2026

Ranking by academic field

Below is a list of best universities in South Africa ranked based on their research performance in Public Policy / Administration. A graph of 108K citations received by 9.55K academic papers made by 21 universities in South Africa 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. University of the Witwatersrand

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Public Policy / Administration

#1 in Africa

#134 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 34%
Founded: 1922

2. University of Cape Town

South Africa | Cape Town

For Public Policy / Administration

#2 in Africa

#140 in the World

Founded: 1874

3. University of KwaZulu-Natal

South Africa | Durban

For Public Policy / Administration

#3 in Africa

#204 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 63%
Founded: 2004

4. University of Johannesburg

South Africa | Johannesburg

For Public Policy / Administration

#4 in Africa

#221 in the World

Enrollment: 49,910
Founded: 2005

5. University of South Africa

South Africa | Pretoria

For Public Policy / Administration

#5 in Africa

#236 in the World

Enrollment: 420,000
Founded: 1873

6. University of Pretoria

South Africa | Pretoria

For Public Policy / Administration

#7 in Africa

#243 in the World

Enrollment: 48,174
Founded: 1908

7. University of Stellenbosch

South Africa | Stellenbosch

For Public Policy / Administration

#8 in Africa

#280 in the World

Founded: 1918

8. North-West University

South Africa | Potchefstroom

For Public Policy / Administration

#9 in Africa

#313 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 83%
Founded: 2004

9. University of the Western Cape

South Africa | Bellville

For Public Policy / Administration

#14 in Africa

#382 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 60%
Enrollment: 24,754
Founded: 1959

10. University of the Free State

South Africa | Bloemfontein

For Public Policy / Administration

#16 in Africa

#427 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 25%
Enrollment: 37,000
Founded: 1904

11. Rhodes University

South Africa | Makhanda

For Public Policy / Administration

#27 in Africa

#615 in the World

Enrollment: 8,200
Founded: 1904

12. University of Limpopo

South Africa | Mankweng

For Public Policy / Administration

#28 in Africa

#640 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1959

13. University of Fort Hare

South Africa | Alice

For Public Policy / Administration

#30 in Africa

#652 in the World

Enrollment: 11,074
Founded: 1916

14. Tshwane University of Technology

South Africa | Pretoria

For Public Policy / Administration

#36 in Africa

#769 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 89%
Founded: 2003

15. Nelson Mandela University

South Africa | Port Elizabeth

For Public Policy / Administration

#41 in Africa

#871 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 57%
Founded: 2005

16. Durban University of Technology

South Africa | Durban

For Public Policy / Administration

#47 in Africa

#909 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 75%
Founded: 2002

17. University of Zululand

South Africa | Kwadlangezwa

For Public Policy / Administration

#56 in Africa

#1045 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 45%
Founded: 1960

18. Cape Peninsula University of Technology

South Africa | Cape Town

For Public Policy / Administration

#73 in Africa

#1293 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 91%
Enrollment: 35,047
Founded: 2005

19. University of Venda

South Africa | Thohoyandou

For Public Policy / Administration

#78 in Africa

#1364 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 72%
Founded: 1982

20. Vaal University of Technology

South Africa | Vanderbijlpark

For Public Policy / Administration

#108 in Africa

#1745 in the World

Acceptance Rate: 90%
Founded: 1966

21. Walter Sisulu University

South Africa | Mthatha

For Public Policy / Administration

#114 in Africa

#1788 in the World

Founded: 2005

The best cities to study Public Policy / Administration in South Africa based on the number of universities and their ranks are Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, and Pretoria.