Thirty UCF graduate programs and areas have been recognized among the nation’s best, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 Best Graduate Schools Rankings.
UCF’s Master of Emergency and Crisis Management program placed No. 2 in the nation for the second consecutive year. The program is the only one in Florida to rank in the top 10 in that category, and placed ahead of several Ivy League institutions, including Harvard and Columbia University. It has also been the university’s top-ranked graduate program each of the last three years, placing among the top 10 schools for four straight years.
“This past year, perhaps more than any other in recent history, has been a testament to the need for highly skilled, ethical emergency management professionals capable of guiding our nation through times of crises,” says Claire Connolly Knox, coordinator of the program. “Whether it be a worldwide pandemic or the various natural and human-induced disasters that our nation faces all too frequently, UCF will continue to be an innovator in the education and training of individuals to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate these threats to our homeland and abroad.”
In addition to Emergency and Crisis Management, five other areas within UCF’s School of Public Administration were ranked within the top 50 of their respective fields.
2022 UCF public administration rankings
- No. 9 – Nonprofit Management (No. 6 amongst only public universities)
- No. 17 – Local Government Management (No. 14)
- No. 20 – Public Finance and Budgeting (No. 16)
- No. 25 – Public Management and Leadership (No. 17)
- No. 38 – Best Public Administration School (No. 25)
“Our programs address some of society’s most pressing concerns by consistently producing well-trained professionals who serve and lead in careers in nonprofit management, urban and regional planning, research administration, emergency management, public administration and public policy,” says Doug Goodman, director of the school, which is within the College of Community Innovation and Education. “U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 Best Graduate Schools rankings is the latest acknowledgement that UCF is among the best in the nation at providing professionals with invaluable skillsets in these vital areas.”
2022 UCF engineering rankings
Nine programs within UCF’s College of Engineering and Computer Science were ranked within the nation’s top 100. Computer Engineering — which placed No. 51 — made UCF’s largest one-year leap, up 10 spots from last year’s No. 61 ranking. Computer Engineering placed No. 28 amongst only public universities.
The College of Engineering and Computer Science ranked No. 41 among U.S. public universities. Overall, UCF engineering and computer science programs were ranked No. 71 in the nation, ahead of many other Florida institutions – public and private – including the University of South Florida, University of Miami, and the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.
- No. 40 – Industrial/Manufacturing/Systems Engineering (No. 29 amongst only public universities)
- No. 51 – Aerospace Engineering (No. 35)
- No. 58 – Electrical / Electronic/ Communications Engineering (No. 33)
- No. 59 – Materials Science and Engineering (No. 39)
- No. 65 – Civil Engineering (No. 44)
- No. 65 – Environmental Engineering (No. 41)
- No. 71 – Mechanical Engineering (No. 41)
- No. 82 – Computer Science (No. 59)
Other ranked UCF areas and programs
- No. 12 – Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics and CREOL, the College of Optics and Photonics
- No. 22 – Criminal Justice (No. 20 among only public universities)
- No. 28 – Medical Schools – Most Graduates Practicing in Medically Underserved Areas
- No. 46 – Health Care Management
- No. 55 – Speech-Language Pathology
- No. 57 – Physical Therapy
- No. 61 – Physics
- No. 65 – Nursing, Doctor of Practice (No. 45)
- No. 70 – Education
- No. 70 – Social Work
- No. 86 – Medical Schools-Research
- No. 106 – Part-time MBA (No. 64)
- No. 106 – Sociology (No. 75)
- No. 122 – English (No. 79)
U.S. News and World Report’s annual Best Graduate Schools rankings are drafted each year to help professionals identify the best programs for continuing their educations and advancing their careers. The annual rankings are based on in-depth reputational and statistical surveys of more than 800 institutions.
The 2022 Best Graduate Schools rankings are the latest acknowledgement by U.S. News & World Reports of UCF’s commitment to academic excellence in a diverse range of disciplines, such as aerospace and defense, healthcare, transportation science and space. Last fall, the publication recognized UCF as one of the most innovative schools in the nation, and it ranked the university’s online undergraduate programs among the nation’s top 20 earlier this year.
