Graduate level programs at Ohio State among nation’s best

COLUMBUS – Graduate programs at The Ohio State University are ranked among the nation’s best, as well as Ohio’s best public in every category, according to the U.S. News & World Report’s annual ranking of America’s Best Graduate Schools released today.

Among the ratings, the College of Education is recognized for producing some of the nation’s best-qualified teachers, counselors and administrators in the nation. The Fisher College of Business is ranked 19 in the nation, up from 24th last year. The College of Medicine and Public Health demonstrated the most marked improvement in the university’s graduate programs ranked this year, rising to number 37 from 44th place last year.

The ratings show that Ohio State offers Ohio’s best public higher education. They also show that when compared to other public universities nationally, graduate education at Ohio State is a tremendous value: The Fisher College of Business ranks sixth among all public universities; the College of Education is rated 10; the Moritz College of Law ranks 15th , the College of Medicine and Public Health ranks 15th and the College of the Arts is 13th among all public universities.

Ironically, the rankings come as state lawmakers consider proposals to reduce the state subsidy for graduate students.

Ohio State President Karen Holbrook says the high marks “are a clear indication of the quality of our graduate programs at this university, hence the quality of our faculty and our academic programs as recognized by peers. Top graduate students join a university because of its academic reputation. We can be genuinely proud of this national recognition.

“Ohio State’s research and graduate programs also play an important role in enhancing the state’s economy,” said Holbrook. “In addition to the jobs created from research revenue, graduate students bring millions of dollars into the state through research grants and contracts from government, industry, foundations and donors.”

Holbrook said there is a strong relationship between the academic reputation of graduate programs and the ability of a university to attract research support, which in turn feeds the state’s economy.

“For every dollar that the state invests in graduate education, Ohio State students generate more than $2 in external support,” she said. “Last year, more than 2,000 Ohio State graduate students were employed in cutting-edge research that brought in almost one-third of all external research funding. And, our students make very important contributions to our academic programs and to the community while they study.”

Programs in eight Ohio State colleges are rated in this year’s publication: Arts, Business, Education, Engineering, Medicine and Public Health, Nursing, and Veterinary Medicine. Graduate programs in every single category received the highest marks among Ohio public colleges and universities.

The College of Education is recognized for elementary and secondary teacher education programs that are among the nation’s top three. The curriculum ranked 17th overall, with programs in six specialty areas named in the top four nationally. The vocational/technical program is first in the nation for the eighth year in a row.

The U.S. News rankings are based on a formula that weighs several criteria, including how selective a program is in admitting applicants, faculty resources, institutional reputation and research activity. A ranking in the top tier can mean more success for institutions as they recruit graduate students in a highly competitive environment.

Rankings of graduate schools and doctoral programs released for 2003-04 cover only a small portion of the programs offered at Ohio State. Five programs are ranked each year; others are ranked every three or four years. In addition to annual rankings in business, education, engineering, law and medicine, the magazine offers new rankings for programs in fine arts and health sciences. However, the magazine reprints earlier years’ ratings in some fields that note previous high marks to Ohio State’s graduate programs in audiology, clinical psychology and speech/language pathology. Here are Graduate Program rankings (information on the number of programs in comparison pool is included where provided by U.S. News):

·College of the Arts: ranked best in Ohio and 28th in the nation among 213 institutions with master of fine arts programs in art and design. The sculpture program is rated seventh and the ceramics program is eighth in the nation.

·Fisher College of Business: ranked best in Ohio and 19th in the nation out of 365 institutions with MBA programs, climbing from number 24 last year. The supply chain/logistics program is rated eighth best in the nation.

·College of Education: Overall, the college is best in Ohio and 17th nationally among 188 graduate programs surveyed. Specialty programs in vocational/technical program ranked first; elementary education, administration/supervision, and counseling/ personnel services ranked second; secondary education ranked third, and the curriculum/instruction program is fourth.

·College of Engineering: ranked best in Ohio and 24th nationally, out of 185 graduate engineering programs surveyed.

·Moritz College of Law: ranked best in Ohio and 38th in the nation out of 177 ABA-accredited law schools. The College of Law program in dispute resolution ranked 4th.

·College of Medicine and Public Health: ranked best among Ohio public institutions and 37th nationally among 125 accredited medical schools. The program in Health Services Administration was ranked 14th in the nation.

·College of Nursing: ranked best among public universities in Ohio and 19th overall.

·College of Veterinary Medicine: ranked best in Ohio and 6th in the nation.