News Release

Three Jacobs School undergraduate programs ranked in nation's top 10

Sept. 14, 2021-- Three undergraduate academic programs at the Jacobs School of Engineering were ranked in the top 10 programs for undergraduates in rankings released Sept. 13, 2021 by U.S. News and World Report. 

The biocomputing, bioinformatics and biotechnology program, a multidisciplinary undergraduate offering supported by three UC San Diego divisions, including the Jacobs School of Engineering, was ranked first in the nation. 

The mobile and web applications undergraduate program housed in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, was ranked number 7. The bioengineering and biomedical undergraduate program was number 8 (the graduate program is ranked third in the nation, according to rankings released in spring 2021).

"These top-ten rankings for our undergraduate programs reflect a much larger trend at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering. Top-tier research from all six departments at the Jacobs School is continually vitalizing and revitalizing our undergraduate curricula," said Albert P. Pisano, dean of the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering. "This is part of the magic of the Jacobs School."

UC San Diego as a whole ranks as the 8th best public university for undergraduates in the United States. The school also ranks 13th among best colleges for veterans, moving up two spots from last year. Overall, UC San Diego was ranked 34th in the complete list of over 300 private and public undergraduate universities in the nation, jumping one spot from the previous year.

In the undergraduate U.S. News national ranking, the Jacobs School was ranked as the 11th best public engineering school and 19th best overall. The school is also ranked 9th best engineering school in the nation in U.S. News graduate rankings released earlier this year. 

The bioinformatics undergraduate program climbed from second to first place this year. The program is designed to provide career opportunities for bachelor’s graduates. Students graduating from this program are in great demand at top graduate schools, medical schools, and industry. The major is offered in the departments of bioengineering, biology, chemistry and biochemistry, and computer science. The program offers a wide range of opportunities for undergraduate research in many laboratories on campus. 

Ranked 8th in the nation, the undergraduate bioengineering and biomedical program prepares students for a variety of careers in the biomedical device industry and for further education in graduate school. The program addresses the bioengineering topics of biomechanics, biotransport, bioinstrumentation, bioelectricity, biosystems, and biomaterials, and the complementary fields of systems and organ physiology. Education in these areas allows application of bioengineering and scientific principles to benefit human health by advancing methods for effective diagnosis and treatment of disease through development of medical devices and technologies. 

"We in the Department of Bioengineering have a tradition of pushing boundaries in terms of research and educational innovation. Now we have four degree programs (Bioengineering, Biotechnology, Biosystems, Bioinformatics) at the top of our rankings,” said bioengineering department chair Kun Zhang. “We owe our success to the continuous efforts by our faculty, staff and students since 1966, and the strong support by the campus leadership."

In addition to the university’s excellent academic reputation, U.S. News lauded UC San Diego as the No. 26 college in the nation for social mobility for undergraduates. The university has a strong track record of promoting upward social mobility and has committed to remaining accessible to students of all backgrounds. For fall 2021, more than one-third of first-year students and over half of transfer students admitted to UC San Diego will be the first in their family to attend a university. 

Now in its 37th year, the latest edition of the Best Colleges list assesses U.S. bachelor's degree-granting institutions based on 17 measures of academic quality. Ranking factors include graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, social mobility and undergraduate academic reputation, among other measures.

In addition to this latest ranking from U.S. News, UC San Diego is consistently recognized as a leader within various national and global university ranking lists. According to the 2021-2022 U.S. News & World Report survey, UC San Diego Health ranked first in San Diego, placing it among the nation’s best hospitals. Earlier this month, UC San Diego was also named the nation’s third best public university as part of Forbes’ 2021 ranking of top colleges. Additionally, the university ranked eighth among U.S. public universities in the 2021-22 edition of the “Global 2000 List by the Center for World University Rankings.”

To read the complete U.S. News & World Report 2022 Best Colleges rankings, visit the publication’s website. For a complete listing of UC San Diego rankings and accolades, visit the Campus Profile.

Media Contacts

Ioana Patringenaru
Jacobs School of Engineering
858-822-0899
ipatrin@ucsd.edu