SDSU Continues Rise in U.S. News Rankings

“We are very proud of the progress that SDSU has made over the years in moving up in these rankings.”

San Diego State University vaulted in U.S. News & World Report’s new rankings of the nation’s best colleges, rising to No. 60 from last year’s No. 68 among public universities, and to No. 127 from No. 140 among national universities overall.

SDSU’s place in the 2019 Best Colleges rankings, released today, is the university’s highest ever and maintains the momentum of a particularly steep rise over the past six years. 

On the public universities list, SDSU is up 30 spots from its position in 2012. Among national universities, the new ranking is up from No. 165 in 2012.

“We are very proud of the progress SDSU has made over the years in moving up in these rankings,” said SDSU President Adela de la Torre. “Though the numbers tell only part of a larger story, I believe they reflect SDSU’s commitment to providing our students with a truly transformational college experience, led by faculty and staff who are deeply invested in creating the social mobility pathways and resources needed to graduate the future global citizens, compassionate leaders, and ethical innovators who will impact the world.”

De la Torre added, “This improvement has been the result of a shift away from piecemeal change to an ‘all in’ approach to transformation, with a focus that begins and ends with our students.”

U.S. News notes its overall “best colleges” rankings are based on 16 measures of academic quality in categories of outcomes, faculty resources, expert opinion, financial resources, student excellence and alumni giving.

In the category of outcomes, SDSU’s six-year graduation rate of 75.3 percent stands out from the national average of about 57 percent. U.S. News said the figure is important “because degree completion is necessary to receive the full benefits of undergraduate study from employers and graduate schools.”

During the past two years, SDSU completed an $815 million fundraising campaign, and expanded teaching and research space with a new Engineering and Interdisciplinary Sciences Complex. In 2017-18, SDSU researchers drew more than $135 million in grant funding.

SDSU is placed No. 45 nationally among “most innovative schools” in the U.S. News rankings, a measure of improvements in terms of curriculum, faculty, students, campus life, technology or facilities.

In other lists in the U.S. News publication:

• The SDSU undergraduate business program is No. 87, up from No. 91 last year.
• SDSU is No. 86 in “best colleges for veterans,” up from No. 89 last year.
• SDSU is No. 87 in high school counselor rankings, up from last year’s No. 106 ranking. This was derived from a survey of guidance counselors on the universities they think offer the best undergraduate education to their students. 

Also, U.S. News will release its rankings of graduate programs in March 2019. In the 2018 rankings, the College of Education was placed at No. 54 nationally and No. 40 among public universities. The School of Social Work came in at No. 59, and the School of Nursing was No. 78.