In its last ranking (1995), the National Research Council rated the UCSB Department of Geography Number 4 in the nation, the highest NRC ranking of any department at UCSB. This year, we’re Number 2 in the NRC ratings and have the second highest ranking of any department on campus (our Materials Department in the College of Engineering was Number 1 in the nation).
The top 10 list of Departments of Geography includes (in descending order) Boston University; UCSB; the University of Maryland, College Park; UCLA; the University of Colorado, Boulder; the University of Wisconsin, Madison; Penn State University; the University of Oregon; Clark University; and the University of South Carolina, Columbia. Congratulations to BU geographers, including some of our distinguished alumni, for their success: Curtis E. Woodcock (PhD 1986, Chair: David Simonett), Suchi Gopal (PhD 1988, Chair: Terry Smith), and Mark Friedl (PhD 1993, Chair: Frank Davis). For more details about the NRC rankings in general and results for UCSB in particular, check out the UCSB Overall Ranking and the Overall Program Rankings for Geography.
“UC Santa Barbara is very proud that among our 31 doctoral programs assessed by the NRC, 10 programs, or nearly a third, have a range of rankings reaching into the top five in the country; 14, or 45%, are in the range of the top 10; and 20, or nearly two-thirds, are in the range of the top 20,” said Chancellor Henry T. Yang. “These new rankings reflect UC Santa Barbara’s rapid rise in our world-class stature over the decades, and serve as a resounding affirmation of the quality and diversity of our doctoral programs, which form the fundamental basis of a strong research university. Our top-notch faculty, outstanding students, and dedicated staff are all to be credited and thanked for this highly interdisciplinary and collaborative achievement” (Ibid.).
Editor’s note: Thanks to Indy Hurt for providing the Graduate Division link, to Joe McFadden for noting our alumnae at BU, and to Dar Roberts for editing this article.
