AUSTIN, Texas — The University of Texas at Austin is one of the top public universities in the country, according to the latest edition of “Best Graduate Schools” from U.S. News & World Report.
U.S. News ranks 55 of the university’s graduate programs and specialties among the top 10 in the nation. UT Austin is one of only four public universities with 50 or more specialties ranked so highly.
UT Austin has five specialty programs ranked No. 1.
“With strength in so many disciplines, UT Austin is without a doubt one of the best places in the world to pursue graduate studies,” said President Jay Hartzell. “Few institutions can match our combination of excellence and breadth, and we are especially strong in some of the fastest-growing fields that draw from multiple disciplines, where scholars are tackling society’s biggest challenges, expanding the frontiers of knowledge, and making an impact.”
The university has top-10 specialties in a dozen of its colleges and schools. Five of UT Austin’s graduate colleges rank in the top 10: the Cockrell School of Engineering (No. 6), the LBJ School of Public Affairs (No. 10), the Steve Hicks School of Social Work (No. 7), Jackson School of Geosciences (No. 6, ranked under Earth sciences) and the School of Information (No. 5, ranked under library and information sciences). Public Universities With Most Graduate Schools and Specialties Ranked in the Top 10 Rank University 2023 1 University of California, Berkeley 122 2 University of Michigan 118 3 University of California, Los Angeles 61 4 The University of Texas at Austin 55 5 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 41 5 University of Wisconsin 41 7 University of Washington 40 7 University of Illinois 40 9 Indiana University 26 10 Ohio State University 22 10 Pennsylvania State University 22 12 Georgia Institute of Technology 20 12 University of Minnesota 20 14 University of Virginia 17 15 Purdue University 16 The five specialties ranked No. 1 in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report, are: accounting in the McCombs School of Business, petroleum engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering, geology in the Jackson School of Geosciences, and Latin American history and sociology of population, both in the College of Liberal Arts.
Of particular note this year:
- The Cockrell School of Engineering rose six places to No. 6 overall.
- The Jackson School of Geosciences rose in all areas where it is ranked except geology, where it was already No. 1.
- The College of Natural Sciences had 11 programs and specialties ranked among the top 10, the most of any college or school at UT Austin.
- Computer Science (No. 9) scored top 10 rankings in all four of the discipline’s specialties.
- The McCombs School of Business (No. 18) rose in six areas and has eight specialties ranked in the top 10.
- The College of Education (No. 18) has five specialties in the top 10.
U.S. News & World Report’s graduate rankings, which are published separately from the magazine’s yearly ranking of undergraduate programs, are considered the gold standard of graduate and professional rankings. They are based on surveys of academic leaders and, for select programs, additional quantitative measures including placement test scores, student/faculty ratios, research expenditures and job placement success.
The publication updates some of its specialty rankings each year and republishes the most recent rankings in other areas. Areas updated this year were business, economics, education, engineering, law, nursing, psychology, public affairs, the sciences and social work.
UT Austin graduate schools, programs and specialties that U.S. News & World Report ranked in the top 30 are listed below.
Business – 18
- Accounting – 1
- Business Analytics – 7
- Entrepreneurship – 8
- Finance – 15
- Information Systems – 6
- International – 23
- Management – 12
- Marketing – 9
- Production/Operations – 11
- Project Management – 7
- Real Estate – 7
- Supply Chain/Logistics – 20
- Executive MBA – 17
- Part-Time MBA – 8
Education – 18
- Curriculum/Instruction – 9
- Education Policy – 11
- Educational Administration/Supervision – 5
- Educational Psychology – 9
- Elementary Teacher Education – 13
- Higher Education Administration – 19
- Secondary Teacher Education – 6
- Special Education – 9
Engineering – 6
- Aerospace/Aeronautical/Astronautical – 8
- Biomedical/Bioengineering – 22
- Chemical – 5
- Civil – 6
- Computer – 9
- Electrical/Electronic/Communications – 9
- Environmental/Environmental Health – 3
- Industrial/Manufacturing/Systems – 19
- Materials – 14
- Mechanical – 10
- Nuclear – 17
- Petroleum Engineering – 1
Health Disciplines (other than Nursing)
- Audiology – 14*
- Clinical Psychology – 10*
- Pharmacy (UT Austin’s College of Pharmacy) – 7*
- Social Work (UT Austin’s Steve Hicks School of Social Work) – 7
- Speech-Language Pathology – 10*
Law – 17
- Business/Corporate Law – 17
- Constitutional Law – 11
- Contracts/Commercial Law – 12
- Criminal Law – 14
- Dispute Resolution – 22
- Intellectual Property Law – 19
- International Law – 21
- Tax Law – 15
Library and Information Studies Schools (UT Austin’s School of Information) – 5*
- Archives and Preservation – 4*
- Digital Librarianship – 7*
- Information Systems – 8*
Nursing
- Master’s – 23
- Doctor of Nursing Practice – 24
Public Affairs – 10
- Environmental Policy – 9
- International/Global Policy – 9
- Nonprofit Management – 23
- Public Management and Leadership – 21
- Public Policy Analysis – 15
- Social Policy – 18
The Sciences
Biological Sciences – 25
- Ecology/Evolutionary Biology – 8
Chemistry – 17
- Analytical – 3
- Inorganic – 16
- Organic – 18
- Physical – 15
Computer Science – 9
- Artificial Intelligence – 10
- Programming Language – 9
- Systems – 10
- Theory – 7
Earth Sciences (UT Austin’s Jackson School of Geosciences) – 6
- Geochemistry – 17
- Geology – 1
- Geophysics and Seismology – 4
- Paleontology – 4
Mathematics – 14
- Analysis – 7
- Applied Math – 9
- Topology – 10
Physics – 15
- Cosmology/Relativity/Gravity – 7
- Elementary Particles – 15
Statistics — 27
Social Sciences and Humanities
Economics – 22
English – 17*
- American Literature After 1865 – 18*
History – 11*
- African American History – 10*
- Latin American History – 1*
- Modern U.S. History – 16*
Political Science – 19*
- American Politics – 20*
- Comparative Politics –18*
Psychology – 23
- Behavioral Neuroscience – 8
- Social Psychology – 9
Sociology – 11*
- Sociology of Population – 1*
- Sex and Gender – 6*
- Social Stratification — 13*
Fine Arts – 23*
- Sculpture – 6*
*Ranking not revised for 2023. Based on latest ranking available.
