Two UC Merced graduate programs rank among the best

Two of UC Merced’s graduate programs recently ranked among the top in the country in U.S. News & World Report – a first for the 10-year-old university.

The magazine ranked UC Merced’s engineering graduate program at No. 140 on the list of best engineering schools. The university tied for this spot with seven other schools, including Ohio University, Oklahoma State, San Diego State University and the University of Texas.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology placed first.

UC Merced’s psychological sciences graduate program was ranked at No. 158. Stanford University has the No. 1 psychological sciences program, according to the U.S. News & World Report list.

The rankings were put together by surveying the top 200 schools that grant doctoral degrees in the programs that were ranked.

According to university officials, the rankings were based on various criteria. For engineering, these included student-to-faculty ratio, acceptance rates and research activity. The psychology program rankings were based on peer-assessment surveys.

Marjorie Zatz, vice provost and dean of graduate education at UC Merced, said crossing the threshold into the rankings is a tremendous achievement for the university. She believes the rankings UC Merced receives will improve rapidly over the years as the school builds its reputation.

“With the quality of our faculty, we can rank even better,” Zatz said.

For a new campus, to be recognized as a major research university is a big deal, Zatz said. She believes the quality of academics at UC Merced and the major awards it has already garnered are indicative of a top-notch institution.

She expects that when the Carnegie Foundation Classification – an award for community involvement and engagement – becomes official in the fall, the recognition will boost the university’s results in future rankings.

Zatz said the psychology and engineering graduate programs are strong and deserving of this achievement, but believes other programs, such as the mathematics, sociology and environmental systems programs, also compare favorably.

UC Merced’s School of Engineering Interim Dean Erik Rolland said the next goal is to break into the top 100 – a goal he believes can be reached quickly at the rate the university is growing.

Rolland compared the university’s growth status to hitting its “adolescent years” because it’s entering a phase with new challenges.

“When you’re a teen, you realize there are certain things you have to do and change to be successful – that’s where we are right now,” he said.

The engineering school is interdisciplinary, meaning students and faculty not only focus on engineering, but on other areas such as sciences and human behavior, Rolland explained.

“That may be one of the things that sets us apart,” he said.

He also said there is no particular significance to the engineering school’s No. 140 position, but simply being included in the rankings and being talked about by peer universities shows the good work of faculty and administration in building an institution of national excellence.

This story was originally published March 24, 2015 at 6:44 PM with the headline "Two UC Merced graduate programs rank among the best."