The high quality and value of the institutions in the University System of Maryland (USM) have been on full display this fall as several national and global rankings have noted their overall excellence in areas that include innovation, social mobility, value, and quality of undergraduate teaching.
The release of U.S. News & World Report’s annual ranking of colleges and universities is only the latest in an impressive stretch of national and international recognitions for USM campuses.
“National publications recognize our excellence a few times a year, but we know that excellence takes hard work every day,” said USM Chancellor Jay A. Perman. “And while we acknowledge that our worth isn’t measured by rankings—that rankings can’t fully represent or reflect our excellence—it is nice when they endorse what we do. And it’s gratifying that our universities are singled out for so many qualities that matter: how affordable they are; how much they value public service; how well they promote social mobility; how effectively they graduate students, and how quickly their graduates find good jobs; how well we serve our active military members and veterans.”
The Princeton Review which formulates its rankings from student input, has three USM schools among its best: Salisbury University; University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC); and University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). In measuring social mobility, public service, and research, Washington Monthly includes every eligible USM school in its best-value list for the Northeast.
The Times Higher Education will reveal its latest “World University Rankings” in October. (The publication’s most recent rankings, from September 2021, are here and recognized UMCP, UMBC, Towson University, and Salisbury University.) Meanwhile, a new report from the National Academy of Inventors ranks the USM No. 20 in the world for patents awarded in 2021—No. 10 among public institutions. Collectively, USM researchers and staff converted their ideas and innovations into 98 patents last year.
Several publications and organizations have announced their rankings since mid-September. The 2023 edition of the comprehensive U.S. News & World Report “Best Colleges” guide recognizes USM institutions for excellence in several classifications.
Each of the USM’s individual institutions has received recognition:
University of Maryland, College Park
U.S. News & World Report ranks the USM flagship, the University of Maryland, College Park, No. 19 overall among public universities and colleges in the U.S.—UMCP placed No. 55 among all national universities, rising from No. 59 last year.
Among individual schools and programs ranked by U.S. News for 2023, the Robert H. Smith School of Business ranked No. 13 among public business schools and No. 23 nationally. It has four specialties in the Top 25: Management; Management Information Systems; Marketing; and Supply Chain Management/Logistics. In computer science, UMCP rose to No. 16 nationally and No. 8 among publics—with four specialties in the Top 25: Artificial Intelligence; Cybersecurity; Game Development; and Software Engineering. The A. James Clark School of Engineering ranked No. 22 overall and No. 11 among public institutions, with five Top 25 specialties: Aerospace; Biomedical Engineering; Computer Engineering; Electrical/Electronic/Communications Engineering; and Mechanical Engineering.
U.S. News also ranked UMCP as the 19th best public university for veterans and the 27th for veterans among all colleges (an improvement of two spots from last year). UMCP is ranked No. 50 in the world for 2022 in the prestigious Academic Ranking of World Universities (Shanghai Jiao Tong University)—measuring the world's top universities based on research activity. UMCP’s national/regional rank on the Shanghai list is No. 28.
Bowie State, Coppin State, and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore
All three of the USM’s historically black institutions are recognized among the Top 35 of the U.S. News & World Report 2023 “Best Colleges” list for Historically Black Colleges. University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) improved one spot to No. 16; Bowie State University advanced six spots to No. 18; and Coppin State University improved one spot to No. 35. Bowie State ranked No. 41 in social mobility, while UMES improved its ranking by one position for the third straight year.
Towson University
In the Regional Universities North category, U.S. News ranked Towson University (TU) at a tie for No. 33 among all universities and No. 9 among public institutions, and No. 14 in Best Colleges for Veterans (No. 7 among the region’s publics). TU ranked No. 72 on the Best Value Schools list (No. 18 among public regional universities).
Among regional public universities, TU ranked No. 42 in social mobility, which considers the number of Pell Grant recipients and compares their graduation rates to those of the university’s non-Pell Grant recipients. TU’s minority and Pell-eligible student populations far exceed the national average for academic success. Meanwhile, Forbes named TU a Top 100 public institution in the U.S. in its recent “Top Colleges” list.
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) jumped 25 spots, to No. 137, on the U.S. News & World Report rankings list of Best National Universities—UMBC ranks No. 64 on the Top Public Universities list and No. 46 for undergraduate research and creative projects. UMBC ranks No. 9 nationally for undergraduate teaching, joined in the Top 10 by such Ivy League institutions as Brown, Princeton, and Dartmouth, and tied with the University of Notre Dame. UMBC also continued its tradition of success on the list of the country’s most innovative universities, tied at No. 10 with Johns Hopkins University.
The university recently celebrated its updated Carnegie Classification as a Research (or R1) institution, which applies to a doctoral university with a highly substantial level of research activity. Only 146 universities in the nation are R1 institutions (107 public universities, 39 private universities).
Salisbury University
Salisbury University (SU) ranked No. 63 in the Regional Universities North tier by U.S. News in the northern region among 175 publics and privates, No. 40 among the north’s “Best Value Schools” and 14th among the region’s “Top Public Schools.” Earlier this year, The Princeton Review again named SU among The Best 388 Colleges and Forbes named SU one of “America’s Top Colleges.”
For the 10th straight year, Washington Monthly named SU to its list of “Best Bang for the Buck Colleges.” The Military Times recently named SU to its “Best for Vets: Colleges” list.
Frostburg State University
U.S. News ranked Frostburg State University No. 40 among public schools in the Regional Universities North tier and No. 59 in the region for its “Top Performers on Social Mobility” list. In July, SmartAsset, a New York-based financial company, named FSU to its top “Best Value Colleges and Universities in Maryland” list—the highest-ranking university in Maryland with fewer than 10,000 students.
University of Baltimore
The University of Baltimore (UBalt) attained national recognition for social mobility and earning performance, two consistent areas of strength. U.S. News ranked UBalt as a top regional performer for social mobility. In its social mobility rankings, Washington Monthly positioned UBalt in the top 25 percent nationally and at No. 4 among Maryland public master's universities. For social mobility, Washington Monthly ranked UBalt No. 1 for earning performance among Maryland public universities, both in the Top Master's Universities category and in the “Best Bang for the Buck-Northeast” category. The university is in the top 5 percent of master's universities in the nation for earning performance 10 years after entering college.
University of Maryland, Baltimore
The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)—Maryland’s only public health, law, and human services university—comprises six professional schools and an interdisciplinary graduate school. U.S. News ranked the UMB School of Nursing Bachelor of Nursing (BSN) program No. 9 in the nation and third among public institutions. The university confers most health care, human services, and law professional degrees in Maryland each year. UMB’s Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Strategic Planning, and Assessment notes that these professional schools are routinely ranked among the nation’s best, with several “Top 10” rankings.
University of Maryland Global Campus
Strong rankings also continue for the University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC). In the recent 2022 Military Times “Best for Vets: Colleges” survey, UMGC ranked No. 1 among all online universities, No. 4 among public universities, and No. 5 among the 300 universities that participated in the rankings.
Original source can be found here.
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