UCLA ties with UC Berkeley for first in US News & World Report ranking
UCLA topped a ranking for public universities for the second time in the last week. (Daily Bruin file photo)
By Madeleine Pauker
Sept. 12, 2017 7:25 a.m.
This post was updated Sept. 12 at 4:25 p.m.
UCLA tied with UC Berkeley for the No. 1 spot in the 2018 U.S. News & World Report’s list of top public universities nationwide released Monday night.
U.S. News’ overall university ranking, including both public and private schools, ranked UCLA No. 21, three places higher than last year, tied with UC Berkeley, the University of Southern California and Emory University. In the 2017 rankings, UC Berkeley and USC were ranked No. 20 and No. 23, respectively.
The rankings are determined by graduation and retention rates, undergraduate academic reputation, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources and alumni giving rate.
U.S. News also ranked UCLA No. 1 in economic diversity in its list of top 25 universities because 37 percent of UCLA students receive Pell Grants, and the top public university for veterans. In addition, UCLA tied at No. 8 among public universities for ethnic diversity and took the No. 10 spot among public universities in the ranking of engineering schools whose highest degree offered is a doctorate.
Last week, Times Higher Education ranked UCLA as the country’s top public university, one spot ahead of UC Berkeley.
Chancellor Gene Block said in a statement he is grateful that U.S. News and World Report ranking recognized the achievements of UCLA faculty and students.
“As a top-ranked public research university, UCLA embraces our academic mission as well as our responsibility to reflect the ethnic and economic diversity of California, which is why we strive to perform well across a variety of rankings, including those that measure best-value, socio-economic diversity and research competence,” Block said.
