The UC Santa Barbara College of Engineering and its graduate programs continue to rank among the upper echelon of universities in the nation, according to U.S. News and World Report’s 2024 Best Graduate Engineering Schools Rankings. The annual report, released June 18, 2024, evaluated 199 engineering schools that granted doctoral degrees. The UCSB College of Engineering ranked No. 16 among public universities and No. 30 overall.  All five UCSB engineering programs evaluated this year ranked in the top 16 among public universities, including one in the top 2 and three in the top 13. 
 
The materials graduate program ranked second among public universities and fifth overall out of 119 institutions that offered doctorate degrees in materials, marking a bump of one slot in both categories. The chemical engineering program ranked ninth among public universities and No. 13 overall out of 134 private and public institutions.  Out of 199 electrical engineering graduate programs, UCSB’s ranked No. 30 overall and No. 16 among public institutions. The mechanical engineering graduate program climbed three slots to No. 16 among public universities and six spots to No. 27 out of 184 private and public institutions. Out of 210 schools with computer science programs, UCSB ranked No. 27 overall and No. 13 among public universities. The program has climbed 10 spots overall and seven among public universities since the 2018 rankings.

Information used to compile the report included surveys submitted by engineering school deans and recruiters, as well as statistical data that included metrics such as acceptance rate, doctoral degrees awarded, research activity, and student-to-faculty ratio. UCSB ranked fourth among public universities and tenth overall in the highest percentage of faculty in the National Academy of Engineering (9.9 percent). 

Specialty rankings, such as chemical engineering and materials, were based solely on peer assessments by department heads in each specialty area. U.S. News conducted peer assessment surveys in fall 2023 and early 2024 for specialty rankings.