U.S. News & World Report has released its list of 2016 Best Graduate Schools, and once again, two UC Santa Barbara graduate programs are among the cream of the crop, ranking in the Top 10 in the nation. UCSB’s Materials program was ranked No. 2 (after Massachusetts Institute of Technology) on the overall list; and No. 1 among public institutions. Chemical Engineering’s graduate program was listed at No. 9 on the overall list, tied with the University of Delaware and Georgia Institute of Technology. It was ranked No. 5 among public universities.
In addition, UCSB’s College of Engineering was ranked No. 23 in the nation (in a tie with the University of Maryland, College Park).
“We’ve known for many years that our graduate students and faculty are among the best in the world, and the new rankings by U.S. News & World Report are a confirmation of that status,” said Carol Genetti, Dean of the UCSB Graduate Division. “We are proud of all of the UC Santa Barbara graduate programs and the impact they have on our students, our campus, our community, and around the world.”
The Materials Research Lab building. U.S. News & World Report ranked UCSB's Materials Department No. 1 among public institutions. Credit: George FoulshamRod Alferness, Dean of UCSB’s College of Engineering, said: “The consistent top ranking of our Materials Department and our other highly ranked departments demonstrate the success of UCSB’s interdisciplinary approach. Our rankings reflect the impact our engineering graduate programs have on the research community. They are particularly significant given that UCSB has a relatively small but highly selective pool of students and faculty.”
Matthew Gebbie and Gregory Su are among that selective group of exceptional students. Matt and Greg, both fifth-year Materials Ph.D. students, were recently selected to attend the 65th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting this summer. For them, it’s no surprise that their department ranks so highly.
“To me, the biggest benefit of having the UCSB Materials Department do so well in the national rankings is the high level of graduate student talent that this honor enables us to attract,” Matt said. “I am confident that my fellow Materials Department students are among the brightest and most passionate young scientists in the country, and I look forward to seeing future graduate classes carry on this tradition.”
UCSB Materials Ph.D. student Matthew Gebbie traveled to Granada, Spain, in 2014 on a research trip.Matt theorized about why he thinks UC Santa Barbara’s Materials program has continued to rank so well. “I think our consistently high ranking is linked to our graduate students and departmental culture. The graduate student culture rocks! In the Materials Department, my fellow grad students and co-workers are supportive, fun to be around, and have very diverse scientific interests and hobbies. A particular strength of UCSB is our collaborative interdisciplinary environment. On several occasions I have bounced ideas off of friends who are in other focus areas and got unique perspectives that then added a ton of value to my work. With the complex problems that we are studying in modern scientific research, I feel that a collaborative environment like we have in the Materials Department at UCSB is essentially a requirement for producing high impact research.”
Matt also praises Materials’ excellent professors. “In general, the UCSB Materials Department faculty encourage us to pursue a well-rounded education that involves getting out of the research lab to become involved in outreach programs, student organizations, and even just to generally have interests away from work. We also have a ton of professional development activities that give us extra experience with professional skills like public speaking or expose us to career options outside of academia. What this does is enable us to stay excited about our science and generate creative new ideas that we would not produce in a less diverse environment.”
“I think our consistently high ranking is linked to our graduate students and departmental culture. The graduate student culture rocks! In the Materials Department, my fellow grad students and co-workers are supportive, fun to be around, and have very diverse scientific interests and hobbies."
– Materials Ph.D. student Matthew Gebbie
UCSB Materials Ph.D. student Gregory Su“It is very exciting to hear that UCSB Materials is (once again) ranked so highly for its graduate program,” Greg says. “The Materials Department at UCSB undoubtedly deserves such recognition. I have been a graduate student here for several years, and I must say that it is really no surprise that the Materials Department achieves such exemplary ratings. Our department brings together excellent faculty, motivated students, outstanding research facilities, and a very collaborative working environment that promotes creativity and productivity. And as anyone who attends UCSB knows, there is also that added bonus of the sun, beach, and mountains that few other university campuses can compare to! I think all of these aspects allow members of the department to enjoy a good work-life balance while being very successful.”
The six graduate disciplines that U.S. News & World Report ranks each year are evaluated on such factors as standardized test scores of newly enrolled students, employment outcomes for graduates, and acceptance rates. But because each graduate program is different, the rankings methodology varies. Not all fields are ranked each year. This year’s list did not include updated rankings of graduate programs in the humanities; social sciences; biological and physical sciences, including chemistry; mathematics; physics; and statistics.
For more information about the U.S. News rankings, read the Office of Public Affairs and Communications new release. Also, read U.S. News & World Report’s 2016 Best Graduate Schools article and its rankings by category. You may also read last year's GradPost article on the U.S. News rankings.
"Our department brings together excellent faculty, motivated students, outstanding research facilities, and a very collaborative working environment that promotes creativity and productivity. And as anyone who attends UCSB knows, there is also that added bonus of the sun, beach, and mountains that few other university campuses can compare to! I think all of these aspects allow members of the department to enjoy a good work-life balance while being very successful.”
– Materials Ph.D. student Gregory Su