UC Merced, which just celebrated the 15th anniversary of its opening in 2005, is already recognized as one of the top universities for both its academic quality and its ability to transform the lives of its graduates.
The university is highly ranked by several prestigious publications such as U.S. News & World Report, Washington Monthly, The Princeton Review, Money and others. It is increasingly being recognized for its outstanding academic programs and for its commitment to environmental sustainability.
In its 2021 rankings, U.S. News & World Report named UC Merced No. 1 among public universities in outperforming expected graduation rates and No. 5 among all universities in supporting social mobility.
Here is a selection of UC Merced’s top rankings:
Recent Rankings
Social Mobility
Top Academic Programs
School of Engineering
- No. 129 in the nation among graduate schools (US News Best Graduate Schools 2021)
- No. 145 among Ph.D.-granting schools for undergraduate engineering (US News Best Colleges 2021)
- Bioengineering
- Computer Engineering
- Electrical Engineering
- Environmental Engineering
- Materials Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
Biology
Chemistry
Mathematics
Physics
Psychology
Sustainability
- Only university in the nation to have all buildings LEED certified
- Highest marks on “Green Rating” (Princeton Review’s Best Colleges Guide, 2021)
- No. 1 in the nation for sustainable buildings (AASHE, 2020)
- Tied for No. 1 in the nation for sustainable research (AASHE, 2020)
- Tied for No. 5 in nation for sustainability investment and finance (AASHE, 2020)
- No. 10 in the nation in sustainable waste operations (AASHE, 2020)
- No. 6 overall among doctoral institutions (AASHE, 2020)
- No. 6 in the nation for sustainability (Sierra Club’s Cool Schools, 2020)
