Five University of Colorado at Boulder graduate specialty programs were rated in the top 20 nationally in a new but limited U.S. News & World Report graduate school rankings report scheduled for release April 1.
CU-Boulder and other universities and colleges with doctoral programs in law, engineering, business, education, economics, psychology, history, English, political science, sociology, criminology, medicine and several health fields were ranked in 2005. Not ranked by the magazine this year were disciplines that include chemistry, biology, physics, music, journalism and public affairs.
The University of Colorado School of Law's environmental law program was ranked fourth best in the country in 2005, up from seventh last year and trailing only Oregon's Lewis and Clark College, the Vermont School of Law and New York's Pace University. Overall, the CU law school was ranked 48th in the nation, among all public and private law schools.
CU-Boulder's College of Engineering and Applied Science, which ranked 33rd overall, garnered three specialty rankings in the top 20. They include aerospace engineering (tied for 13th), chemical engineering (tied for 19th) and civil engineering (tied for 20th).
In addition, CU-Boulder's electrical engineering program tied for 29th, computer engineering tied for 35th and mechanical engineering tied for 41st.
CU-Boulder's Leeds School of Business was tied for 51st in the overall rankings and its entrepreneurship specialty program was ranked 14th best.
Other CU-Boulder graduate program rankings in the top 50 nationally include psychology (tied for 28th), education (tied for 42nd), English (tied for 46th) and economics (tied for 48th).
According to U.S. News, the rankings are based on "expert opinion about program quality and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school's faculty, research and students." Magazine editors said they surveyed nearly 1,300 programs and almost 9,600 academics and professionals for the most recent rankings.
The results will appear in the 2006 edition of U.S. News and World Report's America's Best Graduate Schools, slated to reach newsstands on April 4.
Note to Editors: Contents embargoed until 12:01 a.m. on Friday, April 1.