UF rises to No. 8 on US News list of best public universities

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The University of Florida has strengthened its ranking among the nation’s top-10 public universities, rising to the No. 8 spot in the latest U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges list released Monday, September 10.

UF remains the highest-ranked school in Florida and the only university in the state in the top 10. UF was tied for the No. 9 spot last year with the University of California, Irvine, and the University of California, San Diego.

“Once again we have much to be grateful for,” UF President Kent Fuchs said. “Our faculty and staff have moved mountains to make this happen, and to them I extend my most heartfelt thanks. The Legislature, Gov. Rick Scott, our Florida congressional delegation, and the Board of Governors have provided unparalleled support, and our Board of Trustees continues to provide outstanding leadership. As our momentum continues to build, we must remain focused on our goal of reaching top-five stature and, above all, ensuring that our students receive the very best educational experience possible.”

The Heavener School of Business and the Fisher School of Accounting at the Warrington College of Business also received top ranks from U.S. News & World Report.

The Heavener School ranked in the top 20, coming in at No. 19, and the Fisher School in the top 10, at No. 6 among U.S. public institutions.

The Heavener School continues to be the highest-ranked undergraduate business program in the state of Florida, coming in at the No. 30 spot among all undergraduate business schools in the U.S.

“Once again, we are honored to be recognized by U.S. News and our peers as one to the nation’s top business schools,” said Dr. Alex Sevilla, Associate Dean and Director of the Heavener School of Business. “These rankings highlight the excellence that we look to achieve every day at the Heavener School. We’re able to deliver these results because of the effort our world-class faculty, talented staff and outstanding students put in everything they do.”

The Fisher School retained its position among the top 10, a signal of the School’s academic distinction.

“Our robust programs, quality students and award-winning faculty are a great source of pride for the Fisher School and the reason we continue to be one of the top accounting programs,” said Dr. Gary McGill, Associate Dean and Director of the Fisher School of Accounting and J. Roy Duggan Professor. “I’m pleased to see these rankings reflect the excellence that we strive for every day.”

Each of these rankings reinforce the University and each School’s drive to continue to be institutions the state, nation and world can look to for leadership.

“The newest rankings are confirmation that we are making good choices and investing in the right places,” Fuchs said. “For Florida, having a top-ranked university means more and better jobs, economic growth and national stature that is befitting of the country’s third-most-populous state. Clearly, we are moving in the right direction.”