Department of Public Administration was established in 1956 and it offered a two-year PG Diploma and one-year Certificate course. Public Administration was offered as an optional subject at B.A level in 1958. The PG Diploma course was upgraded as a full-fledged Masters Course in 1961. Ph.D .programme was introduced in 1968 and M.Phil. was introduced in 1970. M.A was started at Nizam College during the academic year 1998-99.

The Department, in collaboration with Central and State Governments, started a P.G. Diploma Course in Local Self- Government and Urban Administration in 1966. In 1970, Southern Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies was started to train municipal personnel to carry out research and to offer consultancy services in urban administration in four southern states.

A two-year P.G. course in Public Personnel Management was introduced as an evening programme in 1984. This was offered as an M.A. (PPM) Course in 1987 and now it is being offered through the Prof. G. Ram Reddy Centre for Distance Education, Osmania University.

The Department had the privilege of having distinguished academicians like Prof. Sudhakar Rao, Prof. Ziauddin Khan, Prof. M.A. Muttalib and Prof. G. Ram Reddy former Chairman, UGC and former Vice-Chancellor of Andhra Pradesh Open University, Osmania University, Prof. K. Seshadri, Former Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, JNU and Prof. V.S. Prasad, Director, NAAC.