AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas at Austin rose in U.S. News & World Report’s latest undergraduate ranking, climbing six spots to No. 42 among national universities — the highest UT has ranked since 1985.
Among public universities, UT now ranks No. 13 nationally, up one spot from last year, and remains the top public university in Texas.
The U.S. News ranking is one of the most widely referenced measurements of undergraduate programs and is based on 12 weighted factors. Contributing to UT’s higher ranking this year were increases in six-year graduation rates, graduation rates for Pell Grant-eligible students and the university’s reputation among peer institutions. From 2014 to 2019, the university’s six-year graduation rate rose 2.8 percentage points to reach a new high of 85.6%.
“These rankings are an acknowledgment of the hard work and brilliance of so many members of Longhorn Nation — students, faculty and staff — and they are also a product of the profound investments the university has made in recent years in academic excellence,” said UT Austin interim President Jay Hartzell. “I’m proud to see the progress we’ve made, but I also know that this extraordinary university has the potential to climb even higher and accomplish even more — as far as I’m concerned, we’re just getting started.”
The ranking lists UT Austin as the top university in Texas for veterans, marking the second time the university has received that recognition this year. UT also earned top-25 rankings in three specialty categories for national universities, placing No. 15 among the country’s Most Innovative Schools, No. 18 for undergraduate research and No. 25 for first-year student experience.
This year, U.S. News ranked three undergraduate disciplines individually: business, computer science and engineering. Within these three fields, 11 of UT’s specialty programs earned top-five placements.
The McCombs School of Business overall ranked No. 5 in the country, earning six top-five specialty rankings:
- No. 1 in accounting
- No. 3 in marketing
- No. 4 in management
- No. 5 in analytics
- No. 5 in finance
- No. 5 in management information systems
UT Computer Science ranked No. 11 nationally, with two top-five specialty rankings:
- No. 5 in artificial intelligence
- No. 5 in software engineering
The Cockrell School of Engineering ranked No. 11 nationally, with three top-five specialties:
- No. 2 in petroleum engineering
- No. 4 in environmental engineering
- No. 5 in civil engineering
This ranking is just the latest to recognize excellence at UT Austin. Earlier this year, U.S. News ranked 48 of UT’s graduate programs among the top 10 in the nation, five of which ranked No. 1. UT ranks No. 33 globally, No. 21 in the U.S. and No. 7 among public universities, according to the Center for World University Rankings (2020-21). Business First ranked UT No. 7 on its list of Top 50 Public Colleges, and Kiplinger ranked UT No. 8 among the 10 Best Values in Public Colleges.
