Momentum Moves SDSU up the Ranks

San Diego State University is one of the top “Up-and-Coming Schools” in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report‘s annual  ranking of America’s Best Colleges, having risen higher in the rankings than any other university in the nation over the last three years.

SDSU’s rise is the result of the university’s commitment to transformational educational experiences, such as students studying abroad and undergraduate research, as well as its continued improvement in such areas as increased graduation and retention rates and ethnic diversity.

“I am extremely pleased to see that U.S. News and World Report has ranked us as one of our nation’s top up-and-coming universities,” said SDSU President Elliot Hirshman. “I am deeply grateful to our faculty, staff, students, alumni and community supporters for their dedication and commitment. Their efforts have created the academic and co-curricular excellence these rankings recognize.”

Up-and-Coming

SDSU is ranked No. 14 on the list of Up-and-Coming Schools for “making the most promising and innovative changes in the areas of academics, faculty and student life.”

Overall, SDSU moved up 31 spots from No. 183 in 2011 to No. 152 in this year’s list of national universities. SDSU’s International Business program ranked among the most elite in the country at No. 8.

Another important criterion U.S. News & World Report looks at when calculating rankings is alumni support. SDSU has surpassed $420 million of its $500 million fundraising goal in its first-ever comprehensive philanthropic campaign, The Campaign for SDSU. More than 42,000 donors have contributed including alumni, faculty and staff.

Points of pride

SDSU was ranked in the top 100 public schools by U.S. News & World Report, moving up nine spots to No. 81.

Several SDSU academic programs also ranked nationally, Rehabilitation Counseling (No. 9), Audiology (No. 27), Clinical Psychology (No. 26), Public Health (No. 30) and Speech Language Pathology (No. 25).  

The university was also ranked in the top 20 schools in the nation for ethnic diversity — a point of pride for SDSU, where students from all backgrounds are achieving academic excellence.

U.S. News & World Report also named SDSU as one of the top 20 schools for students graduating with the least amount of debt. Fully 44 percent of SDSU students graduate with no debt at all and the average debt for SDSU students is just $17,600.

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