U.S. News Media Group Ranks UC
San Diego Among Best Graduate Schools

March 15, 2011

By Christine Clark

The university's School of Medicine is ranked 15th in research-intensive programs among 126 medical schools.

Graduate programs at the University of California, San Diego continue to be highly ranked as noted in America’s Best Graduate Schools, 2012 Edition released today by U.S. News Media Group, publishers of U.S. News & World Report. Each year, U.S. News ranks professional-school programs in business, education, engineering, law and medicine.

UC San Diego’s Jacobs School of Engineering is ranked 14th out of 198 engineering schools; the biomedical/bioengineering program within the engineering school is ranked 2nd in the nation; computer engineering is 15th; electrical engineering is 17th; and civil engineering is 18th.  The university’s School of Medicine is ranked 15th in research-intensive programs among 126 medical schools; its AIDS program in the primary care category is ranked 8th.

"Year after year, UC San Diego's graduate programs place in the top 25 nationwide," said Chancellor Marye Anne Fox. "The 2012 Best Graduate Schools rankings reaffirm the university's academic distinction as we continue our commitment to excellence established by our founders 50 years ago."     

Kim Barrett, dean of graduate studies at UC San Diego, added “UC San Diego has achieved the extraordinary in education, research and innovation in just 50 years. While the university faces significant state budget cuts, our outstanding graduate programs continue to play a major role in supporting the expansion of the skilled workforce in California.”

UC San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering is ranked 14th out of 198 engineering schools.

The U.S. News Media Group’s annual nationwide ranking of college and university graduate programs recognizes excellence across a broad range of disciplines including business, education, engineering, law and medicine. The 2012 Best Graduate Schools rankings are based on two types of data: expert opinions about program excellence and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students.  The data comes from surveys of administrators at more than 1,200 programs and some 13,000 academics and professionals, conducted during the fall of 2010 and early 2011.

In addition to the five professional disciplines ranked annually, U.S. News also periodically ranks programs in the sciences, social sciences and humanities, the health arena and many other areas. Although not newly ranked this year, UC San Diego’s other graduate programs ranked in the top 25  in the 2012 edition of America’s Best Graduate Schools include:

• The Sciences: physics specialties/plasma (5), discrete mathematics and combinations (6), neuroscience/neurobiology (7), biochemistry (10), physics (14), computer science (14), biological sciences (15), earth sciences (17), mathematics (20), chemistry (21)
• Social Sciences and Humanities: Political Science (7), behavioral neuroscience (3), cognitive psychology (3), econometrics (6), American politics (6), comparative politics (6), international politics (6), sociology of culture (6), experimental psychology (7), political methodology (8), economics (14), psychology (17)
• Health Disciplines: San Diego State-University of California, San Diego joint clinical psychology doctorate (25)
• Arts and Sciences: master of fine arts in art and design (15)
  
  

Media Contact: Christine Clark, 858-534-7618, or ceclark@ucsd.edu