UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering Ranks 11th in annual U.S. News & World Report Survey of America's Best Graduate Schools
4.4.2003 -- In the annual survey of graduate schools and programs released today by U.S. News & World Report, the UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering was ranked 11th in the nation and 7th among public engineering schools.
The rankings appear in the 2004 America’s Best Graduate Schools guidebook and in the April 14 edition of the U.S. News & World Report weekly magazine, both of which will be available on newsstands April 7. The survey results appear on-line at www.usnews.com.
Since the U.S. News comprehensive rankings of graduate programs began in 1990, the School has moved up 27 slots, making it the fastest rising engineering school in the country. With $130 million in annual research expenditures, the Jacobs School also ranks 2nd in the nation for research expenditures per faculty member.
All of the Jacobs School departments had graduate programs ranked in the top 20 including Bioengineering (4th in biomedical engineering), Computer Science and Engineering (17th in computer engineering), Electrical and Computer Engineering (14th in electrical/electronics), Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (19th in mechanical engineering) and Structural Engineering (20th in civil engineering). In addition, the UCSD Materials Science and Engineering program was ranked 18th.
“It is wonderful to be recognized for the excellent quality of our faculty, students, and programs. The ranking is another indication of the Jacobs School’s national leadership in engineering education and research, and it will enhance our ability to attract the best and brightest students to San Diego,” said Frieder Seible, dean of the Jacobs School.
The Jacobs School was also selected as the only engineering school in the nation to be featured in the photo layout of the U.S. News guidebook. From large-scale earthquake engineering testing, to students surfing at La Jolla Shores, the photos depict the unique flavor of graduate student life at UCSD.
UCSD graduate schools and programs across the campus were also ranked among the nation’s best. The UCSD School of Medicine was ranked 16th in the nation among medical schools with a research focus and 5th among public schools in that category. The medical school also ranked 6th in the nation among schools with a primary care focus.
UCSD School of Medicine’s 16th ranking this year represents a move up from 20th in last year's ranking. In addition, UCSD's Drug and Alcohol Abuse program ranks 7th, the AIDS program ranks 8th, and the Internal Medicine program was ranked 17th.
For the first time, US News rankings include Master of Fine Arts programs. UCSD's programs in multimedia/visual communications were ranked 6th in the nation, reflecting the university's strength in the Arts.
The current U.S. News & World Report ranking includes surveys from past years for graduate programs in the sciences and social sciences. In those repeat rankings, UCSD ranked 14th in the biological sciences. Other highly ranked science programs included computer systems (16), computer science (20), physics (16), mathematics (21), chemistry (22), and applied mathematics (31).
Within the Division of Social Sciences, the graduate program in political science was ranked 7th in the nation. Specialty programs in the department also were rated high, including comparative politics (2), American politics (6), international politics (9) and political theory (16). Other specialty programs ranked among the best in the survey include sociology of culture (4), cognitive psychology (7), Latin American history (8), microeconomics (15), economics (17), and psychology (17). In the area of Geology, UCSD was ranked 11th in the nation and 6th in the specialty of geophysics.
The magazine's rankings of graduate schools and programs are based on surveys among deans and faculty members in specific fields who judged each institution's reputation; surveys from professionals in the field outside of academe; and objective criteria, such as research activity, faculty resources and an institution's student selectivity. The magazine's rankings for engineering, medicine, health disciplines, and the arts were based on new surveys conducted in 2002; the sciences rankings were derived from a 2001 survey; and the social sciences rankings were based on a 2000 survey.