LPS Online Bachelor’s Program in Top 5

NC State’s Leadership in the Public Sector (LPS) program is No. 4 in the nation in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Online Programs rankings. That is a jump of 14 spots from No. 18 last year!

U.S. News scores online programs by evaluating student engagement opportunities, faculty credentials and training, peer assessments, services and technologies, and student excellence. The complete list of U.S. News rankings of NC State’s online programs for 2024 is available on their website.

Housed in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences’ School of Public and International Affairs, the LPS program provides students with a high-quality online bachelor’s degree while also giving them on-campus experiences. Students are admitted under the same admissions standards, taught by the same faculty and are enrolled in many of the same courses as all NC State students. Quality Matters certified, the LPS program also hosts on-campus and online events with alumni and faculty.

Traciel V. Reid, director for the LPS program, was excited to share the ranking announcement.

“This ranking gives the LPS program national recognition so its recruiting reach can extend beyond North Carolina to attract prospective students across the country,” Reid said. “Furthermore, its Quality Matters program certification, which was instrumental in achieving this impressive ranking, increases the LPS program’s appeal to a wide-ranging student demographic.”

Students who take QM-certified courses can trust that their experience is backed by research and held to nationally recognized standards of excellence.

QM is both a rubric and a process that is specific to higher education, backed by research, and is nationally recognized as a means to improve course design. DELTA offers a Course Improvement Grant where a cohort works together to design a course that meets the nationally-recognized standards of QM.

Reid added that achieving this goal was definitely a team effort.

“This impressive achievement results from the unwavering commitment of the LPS team, the willingness of the faculty who teach our LPS courses to pursue QM course certification for their courses, the nationally recognized advisor who helps our non-traditional students navigate the complexities of college, and our alumni who volunteer their time to provide that ‘on campus feel’ and community for our students.”