UCI Samueli School’s Undergraduate Engineering Program Climbs Four Spots in U.S. News & World Report Rankings

Sept. 12, 2017 — U.S. News & World Report has ranked UC Irvine’s undergraduate engineering program 23rd among public universities nationwide in its 2018 Best Colleges report, released today. Last year, it was ranked 27th among publics.

U.S. News rankings of undergraduate engineering programs accredited by ABET are based solely on assessments from deans and senior faculty at peer institutions.

“We are proud of this recognition. Our undergraduate program is becoming one of the most dynamic in the nation,” said Gregory Washington, the Stacey Nicholas Dean of Engineering. “The school’s emphasis on hands-on learning is attracting high achieving students who want more than a classroom experience.”

This fall, the Samueli School of engineering’s incoming freshman class is among the largest and smartest group of students in its 52-year history.

For the third consecutive year, UCI claimed the No. 9 spot among national public universities. Among all American universities -- public and private – it ranks 42nd. The ranking is derived from 15 measures of academic excellence, weighted by relevance to high-quality education. Evaluators considered 1,611 institutions this year. The report also placed UCI 16th for best college for veterans and 18th for the least amount of student debt at graduation, among all national universities.

“Once again, we are delighted that UCI is deservedly recognized as one of the finest public universities in the U.S.,” said Chancellor Howard Gillman. “We are especially proud that UCI provides world-class opportunities to those who traditionally have not had access to higher education, as more than half of our undergraduates are first-generation students.”

These rankings – available online at www.usnews.com/colleges – come on the heels of the third annual New York Times College Access Index, which names UCI the No. 1 university in the U.S. “doing the most for the American dream” via its commitment to economic diversity. It’s the second time UCI has topped the index.

This year, UCI also became the only U.S. News top 50 university eligible for U.S. Department of Education designation as both a Hispanic-serving institution and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution, demonstrating its dedication to providing a world-class education to every qualified student.