UCSF Tops US News Global University Rankings in 7 Specialties

By Kathleen Masterson

UCSF School of Medicine students take in the Sept. 5 white coat ceremony, an annual welcoming event for incoming students. Photo by Elisabeth Fall

UC San Francisco is among the top universities in the world yet again, ranking among the top five in seven subject areas, according to the inaugural U.S. News & World Report Best Global Universities report released this week. 

UCSF in US News Global University Rankings

2nd - Pharmacology & Toxicology

3rd - Clinical Medicine

3rd - Immunology

3rd - Molecular Biology & Genetics

3rd - Neuroscience & Behavior

5th - Microbiology

5th - Biology and Biochemistry

16th - Social Sciences & Public Health

24th - Psychiatry & Psychology

UCSF ranked second in the world for pharmacology and toxicology, and ranked third in the fields of clinical medicine, biology and biochemistry, immunology, molecular biology and genetics, neuroscience and behavior. The microbiology department came in strong at fifth, and social sciences and public health rated 16th; psychiatry and psychology ranked 34th.

The U.S. News & World Report global rankings for 2015 encompass the top 500 institutions across 40 countries. Individual departments were ranked according to a series of indicators including the number of highly cited papers produced, the level of international collaboration, and its global and regional reputation. 

U.S. News cited an increasing number of students applying to universities outside the United States as the impetus to begin ranking universities and departments based on their global standing.

Overall, UCSF was ranked as the 22nd best university in the world, joining five other University of California campuses in the Top 50: UC Berkeley (3rd), UCLA (8th), UC San Diego (18th), UC Santa Barbara (28th) and UC Davis (37th).

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