Rankings
U.S. News rankings
Many of our graduate programs are highly ranked by U.S. News & World Report. Following are the most recent rankings available of top-30 graduate programs in the College of Arts & Sciences. (Visit U.S. News for a complete list of rankings, including undergraduate, global and other category rankings, and read about rankings of other schools at UNC-Chapel Hill.
- Biology
- Overall, tied for 25th
- Cell biology, tied for 18th
- Ecology, tied for 12th (This ranking is shared with the College’s Ecology, Environment and Energy Program.)
- Chemistry
- Overall, tied for 16th
- Analytical, 2nd
- Inorganic, 12th
- Organic, 18th
- Physical, 21st
- Computer Science
- Overall, tied for 27th
- Economics
- Overall, tied for 30th
- English
- Overall, tied for 20th
- American Literature after 1865, 13th (tie)
- History
- Overall, tied for 11th
- African American History – 10th (tie)
- European History – 12th (tie)
- Latin American History – 10th (tie)
- Modern U.S. History – 7th (tie)
- S. Colonial History – 8th (tie)
- Women’s History – 9th (tie)
- Mathematics
- Overall, tied for 30th
- Applied Math, 12th
- Political Science
- Overall, tied for 12th
- American Politics – 11th (tie)
- Comparative Politics – 15th
- International Politics – 24th (tie)
- Political Methodology – 18th (tie)
- Psychology
- Overall, tied for 12th
- Clinical psychology, 2nd
- Public Affairs
- Overall, tied for 19th*
As part of the public affairs category, U.S. News ranked Carolina programs and specialty areas based in the School of Government and the College of Arts & Sciences’ department of public policy. The following apply to the College’s offerings:-
- Environmental Policy and Management, tied for 14th
- Public Policy Analysis, 29th
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- Overall, tied for 19th*
- Sociology
- Overall, 7th
- Sociology of Population – 6th
- Social Stratification – 12th
- Statistics
- Overall, tied for 11th
Other rankings
Some of our College departments and programs have been highly ranked by other organizations. Here are some recent rankings.
- Biomedical Engineering (joint with NC State and UNC School of Medicine), 34th worldwide, 7th in U.S., ShanghaiRanking 2023 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.
- City and Regional Planning – 5th, Planetizen
- Exercise and Sport Science
- PhD in Human Movement Science – 2nd, National Academy of Kinesiology
- Master’s in Sport Administration – No. 3 globally (Sept. 2023), SportBusiness.
- Philosophy – Tied for 1st overall in Overall Program Rating, Academic Philosophy Data & Analysis (APDA); Tied for 12th in Ranking of U.S. Faculties, Philosophical Gourmet Report
- Statistics — 9th; biological sciences — 15th; biomedical engineering — 16th; sociology — 17th; and computer science and engineering — 20th in the 2021 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) released by the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy.