Editor’s note: This article was updated March 16, 2017. The earlier version was based on pre-release data, and this includes the full update on the 2018 rankings.

Several University of Delaware graduate programs have made gains in the 2018 U.S. News and World Report’s Best Graduate Schools rankings, with chemical engineering the leader, tied at No. 6 nationally.

The University’s chemical engineering program continues to rank among the nation’s premier graduate programs, and moved up three spots from last year.

The program is tied at No. 6 with the Georgia Institute of Technology, Princeton University, the University of Texas, Austin, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was U.S. News’ top-ranked program.

In addition to chemical engineering, the following engineering graduate programs moved up in the rankings:

• Overall, the College of Engineering was ranked in a tie at No. 48, with the University of Notre Dame, and moved up from 51 last year.

• Biomedical Engineering/Bioengineering was ranked No. 48, up from 54 last year.

• Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering was ranked No. 41, up from 45.

• Materials Engineering was ranked No. 46, up from 48.

Other College of Engineering graduate programs ranked this year are Civil Engineering (60), Computer Engineering (70), Electrical/Electronic/Communications Engineering (65) and Mechanical Engineering (49).

In the College of Education and Human Development, the graduate Education program was ranked in a tie at No. 32, with the University of Indiana, Bloomington, and the University of Maryland, College Park, and moved up from 35 last year. The Online Graduate Education Program was ranked at No. 193, up from 199.

UD’s Lerner College of Business and Economics was ranked No. 107 among graduate Business Schools, up from 112. The Online MBA Program was ranked at No. 65, up from 72, and Economics was ranked at No. 97, up from 99. The Part-time MBA program was tied at No. 108.  

In the College of Arts and Sciences,

• Sociology was ranked in a tie at No. 63, with Syracuse University, the University of Connecticut and the University of Nebraska, and moved up from 64 last year.

• Psychology was ranked in a tie at No. 66, with Northeastern University, Oregon Health and Science University, Texas A&M University, the University of California, Riverside, the University of Nebraska, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and the University of Vermont, and moved up from 67 last year.

• Political Science was ranked in a tie at No. 81, with Brandeis University, Louisiana State University, Northeastern University, the University of Illinois, the University of Kentucky, the University of New Mexico, and Washington State University, and moved up from 94 last year.

Other graduate programs in the College of Arts and Sciences ranked this year are English (77) and History (91).

“We are proud of our excellent graduate programs, and I’m pleased to see this latest recognition of the impressive work of our faculty and students,” said Provost Domenico Grasso. “Our graduate education programs help to advance our research and scholarly excellence, and these latest rankings reflect the impact of our programs at a national level.”

“It’s exciting to see UD’s reputation for excellence in graduate education and research training reinforced in these rankings,” said Ann Ardis, senior vice provost for graduate and professional education. “Our graduate students – and especially our doctoral students – help us attract stellar faculty. They collaborate with faculty on research while also contributing to the education of undergraduates. And they advance the University’s reputation through their career accomplishments across all sectors of society.”

Other recent rankings

The new U.S. News publication highlights several of last year’s rankings, including UD’s graduate physical therapy program that was tied at No. 1 in the nation with the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Southern California and Washington University in St. Louis.

As the top ranking was announced last year, Kathleen Matt, dean of the College of Health Sciences, said, "This recognition by U.S. News and World Report confirms what our students, alumni, faculty and staff and patients have known for some time. UD's Department of Physical Therapy is all about excellence. The Department of Physical Therapy offers students a combination of engaging classwork with world-renowned professors, hands-on clinical experiences and top-flight research opportunities.

“The quality of the program, as exemplified by the students and the faculty, translates to world-class comprehensive care in physical therapy that is offered here at our clinic on the STAR Campus. And we are proud of the students we train; they are the next generation of health care leaders," she said.

Additionally, the new publication includes last year’s 2017 rankings for city management and urban policy (19), clinical psychology (36), fine arts (157), public affairs (45) and public management administration (27), and also includes 2014 rankings for biological sciences (139), chemistry (60), computer science (70), Earth sciences (69), mathematics (73) and physics (77).