U.S. News Ranks UCSB Grad Programs Among the Top

In its annual ranking of leading graduate and professional programs at American universities, U.S. News & World Report magazine has rated two of UC Santa Barbara’s programs among the top 10 in the nation.

UCSB’s materials program is ranked No. 3 overall in the 2018 U.S. News list of “Best Graduate Schools,” and, once again, No. 1 among public institutions. The spots above UCSB are held by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Northwestern University, both private research institutions.

In addition, UCSB’s College of Engineering jumped four places to No.19 overall and No. 10 among public universities.

In U.S. News & World Report graduate rankings in the social sciences and humanities, UCSB’s sociology program ranks No. 18 among public universities; its sex and gender specialty ranks No. 4 overall and No. 2 among public universities.

Also among public universities, the campus’s graduate program in English ranks among the top 20, coming in at No. 14.

U.S. News does not compile rankings in all fields every year and this year did not update the rankings for graduate programs in the biological and physical sciences, including chemistry; mathematics; physics and statistics.

In addition to the current graduate program rankings, the magazine’s 2017 listing of the “Top 30 Public National Universities” places UCSB at No. 8. Among the “Best National Universities,” which includes both public and private institutions, UCSB came in at No. 37.

“I am pleased that UC Santa Barbara’s graduate programs have once again been recognized as among the best in the world,” said Carol Genetti, dean of UCSB’s Graduate Division. “The research conducted by our graduate students across disciplines in the sciences, social sciences and humanities is both inspirational and impactful.”

Noted Rod Alferness, dean of the university’s College of Engineering: “We’re delighted at these latest U.S. News rankings for the UCSB College of Engineering, and especially for our widely recognized Materials program. Rankings always include some level of subjectivity and can only tell part of the story, and I’m extremely pleased about the entire story of UCSB engineering, where strong faculty, highly motivated students, and unwavering support for cutting-edge research combine to ensure that breakthroughs occur in every department and our graduates become thriving professionals.”

The U.S. News rankings are based on a weighted average of various measures, some specific to the particular program. The rankings generally include an assessment by peers, with measures of faculty quality and resources, student selectivity, research activity and several other factors.

Highlights of the graduate school rankings are included in the current issue of U.S. News & World Report and in the 2018 edition of its America’s Best Graduate Schools as well as on the magazine’s website http://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools.