KNOXVILLE — The University of Tennessee, Knoxville is now ranked 38th among the nation’s 50 top-tier public universities by U.S. News and World Report’s 2006 college and university rankings.
The magazine’s 2006 annual report, released today, marked the third consecutive year that UT has climbed in national standings and the first time in history it had been ranked among the top 40 public universities. This year’s higher education study showed UT as tied for 38th place, up from 44th place last year.
UT also rose to 85th among the “best national universities” list – up from 95th place in 2005. The magazine’s best universities list includes 248 research universities – more specifically, 162 public and 86 private institutions.
“These rankings are yet another sign that UT continues to grow in national prominence and stature,” said UT Knoxville Chancellor Loren Crabtree. “That’s due entirely to the great work of our faculty, both in research and teaching, and the high quality of our students.
“You shouldn’t put too much stock in any ranking. However, this is a sign of the continued upward trajectory of UT in our goal of being counted among the nation’s premier research universities – by any measure,” said Crabtree.
UT’s undergraduate business program tied for 28th place among top-tier, public institutions and 47th place among all national universities. The college’s supply chain management/logistics undergraduate program ranked 7th among public institutions and 10th among all national universities.
The undergraduate engineering program tied for 40th place among top-tier, public institutions and 67th place among all national universities.
Another sign of UT’s momentum, Crabtree said, is the growth of its joint institutes in science in conjunction with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory – including the newly announced Joint Institute for Materials Science to be built at UT and funded through a $20 million federal earmark. The UT-Battelle partnership will continue to position the university as a national leader for emerging science, said Crabtree.
UT continues to excel in several other key national rankings. The Lombardi Program ranked UT 44th among public universities last year. The National Science Foundation released in July its annual report in which UT is 63rd among 630 colleges and universities for federal research and development awards – up from 65th out of 599 institutions in the foundation-s 2004 report.
U.S. News and World Report rankings are based on peer assessments of student quality, retention, graduation rates, student-to-faculty ratio, financial resources and alumni support, among other factors.
The rankings are available online at the U.S. News and World Report Web site.
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Contact: Tom Milligan (865-974-3265)