University of California San Diego
University of California San Diego logo

University of California San Diego

(UCSD)

Part of University of California System

🇺🇸 United States / California / San Diego
Public AAU Land Grant R1 Est. 1960
Website Ranking Overview
Official Website ucsd.edu Wikipedia Apply Financial Aid

About

The University of California, San Diego is a public land-grant research university in the La Jolla neighborhood of San Diego, California, United States. Established in 1960, it is the southernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California. It occupies 2,178 acres (881 ha) near the Pacific coast.

Ranking Overview

Ranking Snapshot

Ranked Top 50 worldwide across 4 major ranking systems

ARWU #20 (2025)
US News #21 (2026)

Ranked in 116 subject rankings

QS QS World University Rankings
# 81
15
73.3
2027
THE Times Higher Education World University Rankings
# 47
13
76.6
2026
ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities
# 20
2
45.3
2025
US News U.S. News Best Global Universities Rankings
# =21
—
83.2
2026

Key Facts

Students
40,586
Student-Staff Ratio
9.8 : 1
Int'l Students
23%
Female : Male
51 : 49
Staff
16,266

Historical Trend

Longitudinal View
QS QS
THE THE
ARWU ARWU
US News US News
1 26 51 76 100 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 Rank
:
Score:

Top Subjects

Best-performing areas
1
Gastroenterology and Hepatology
Top 10
US News 1
1
Oceanography
Top 10
ARWU 1
5
Microbiology
Top 10
US News 5
6
Pharmacy & Pharmacology
Top 10
ARWU 6 QS 14
7
Biology and Biochemistry
Top 10
US News 7
8
Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology
Top 10
US News 8
9
Politics
Top 10
ARWU 9
=9
Biological Sciences
Top 10
QS =9 ARWU 15
10
Molecular Biology and Genetics
Top 10
US News 10
10
Biotechnology
Top 10
ARWU 10
10
Anatomy & Physiology
Top 10
QS 10
11
Cell Biology
Top 50
US News 11
11
Human Biological Sciences
Top 50
ARWU 11
12
Neuroscience and Behavior
Top 50
US News 12
13
Biomedical Engineering
Top 50
ARWU 13

Subject Rankings

Detailed breakdown

US News

41 subjects
Subject
Rank
Score
Year
Gastroenterology and Hepatology 1 83.2 2026
Microbiology 5 83.2 2026
Biology and Biochemistry 7 83.2 2026
Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology 8 83.2 2026
Molecular Biology and Genetics 10 83.2 2026
Cell Biology 11 83.2 2026
Neuroscience and Behavior 12 83.2 2026
Immunology 15 83.2 2026
Pharmacology and Toxicology =16 83.2 2026
Marine and Freshwater Biology 17 83.2 2026
Clinical Medicine =18 83.2 2026
Psychiatry/Psychology 19 83.2 2026
Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences 21 83.2 2026
Endocrinology and Metabolism 28 83.2 2026
Geosciences 29 83.2 2026
Oncology =37 83.2 2026
Infectious Diseases 42 83.2 2026
Computer Science 47 83.2 2026
Plant and Animal Science =53 83.2 2026
Social Sciences and Public Health 59 83.2 2026
Arts and Humanities 59 83.2 2026
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging =61 83.2 2026
Materials Science 67 83.2 2026
Physics & Astronomy 68 83.2 2026
Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems =69 83.2 2026
Public, Environmental and Occupational Health =70 83.2 2026
Chemistry 77 83.2 2026
Space Science 78 83.2 2026
Energy and Fuels =85 83.2 2026
Environment/Ecology 98 83.2 2026
Surgery 100 83.2 2026
Condensed Matter Physics =101 83.2 2026
Physical Chemistry 101 83.2 2026
Mathematics 106 83.2 2026
Nanoscience and Nanotechnology 108 83.2 2026
Artificial Intelligence 109 83.2 2026
Economics & Econometrics 115 83.2 2026
Optics 118 83.2 2026
Engineering =120 83.2 2026
Ecology =185 83.2 2026
Electrical and Electronic Engineering =199 83.2 2026

ARWU

49 subjects
Subject
Rank
Score
Year
Oceanography 1 309.8 2025
Pharmacy & Pharmacology 6 206.4 2025
Politics 9 242.2 2025
Biotechnology 10 180.1 2025
Human Biological Sciences 11 212.0 2025
Biomedical Engineering 13 154.9 2025
Earth & Marine Sciences 14 234.8 2025
Mechanical Engineering 14 184.7 2025
Biological Sciences 15 243.5 2025
Economics & Econometrics 16 207.5 2025
Atmospheric Science 22 203.7 2025
Materials Science 24 254.8 2025
Clinical Medicine 26 217.5 2025
Robotic Science & Engineering 33 145.0 2025
Sociology 35 138.9 2025
Automation & Control 36 167.0 2025
Statistics & Operational Research 41 127.0 2025
Mathematics 42 183.0 2025
Telecommunication Engineering 42 158.5 2025
Metallurgical Engineering 43 182.6 2023
Marine/Ocean Engineering 47 137.2 2020
Computer Science 50 164.4 2025
Medical Technology 50 151.4 2025
Chemistry 51-75 - 2025
Aerospace Engineering 51-75 - 2025
Public Health 51-75 - 2025
Psychology 51-75 - 2025
Finance 51-75 - 2025
Physics & Astronomy 76-100 - 2025
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology 76-100 - 2025
Energy Science & Engineering 76-100 - 2025
Education & Training 76-100 - 2025
Library & Information Science 76-100 - 2023
Electrical & Electronic Engineering 101-150 - 2025
Artificial Intelligence 101-150 - 2025
Agricultural Sciences 101-150 - 2022
Law & Legal Studies 151-200 - 2025
Management 151-200 - 2025
Public Administration 151-200 - 2022
Geography 201-300 - 2024
Ecology 201-300 - 2025
Instruments Science & Technology 201-300 - 2025
Environmental Sciences 201-300 - 2025
Veterinary Science 201-300 - 2020
Nursing 201-300 - 2021
Communication & Media Studies 201-300 - 2023
Business Administration 201-300 - 2022
Civil Engineering 301-400 - 2025
Chemical Engineering 401-500 - 2024

QS

44 subjects
Subject
Rank
Score
Year
Biological Sciences =9 86.3 2026
Anatomy & Physiology 10 89.8 2026
Life Sciences & Medicine =14 85.5 2026
Pharmacy & Pharmacology 14 82.1 2026
Geophysics 14 83.1 2026
Geology =15 83.2 2026
Earth & Marine Sciences =18 82.7 2026
Medicine 24 79.5 2026
Economics & Econometrics 24 82.0 2026
Politics =25 77.1 2026
Electrical & Electronic Engineering 32 79.1 2026
Chemistry 32 79.0 2026
Data Science 33 80.2 2026
Linguistics 35 76.0 2026
Physics & Astronomy 37 79.9 2026
Natural Sciences =39 82.1 2026
Computer Science 42 74.5 2026
Performing Arts 51-100 - 2026
Philosophy 51-100 - 2026
Civil & Structural Engineering 51-100 - 2026
Materials Science =51 77.3 2026
Anthropology 51-100 - 2026
Communication & Media Studies 51-100 - 2026
Statistics & Operational Research 51-100 - 2026
Engineering & Technology =56 78.6 2026
Mathematics =62 73.7 2026
Psychology =68 72.2 2026
Chemical Engineering =85 72.6 2026
Mechanical, Aeronautical & Manufacturing Engineering 86 72.5 2026
Art & Design 101-150 - 2026
History 101-150 - 2026
Accounting & Finance 101-150 - 2026
Education & Training 101-150 - 2026
Social Policy & Administration 101-120 - 2021
Environmental Sciences 107 75.7 2026
Arts & Humanities =131 72.1 2026
Social Sciences & Management =141 70.3 2026
English Language & Literature 151-200 - 2026
Modern Languages 151-200 - 2026
Archaeology 201-260 - 2026
Architecture 201-260 - 2026
Geography 201-250 - 2026
Law & Legal Studies 201-250 - 2026
Business & Management Studies 301-350 - 2026

THE

10 subjects
Subject
Rank
Score
Year
Life Sciences 27 83.7 2026
Computer Science 36 83.4 2026
Clinical & Health 39 75.5 2026
Psychology 40 69.0 2026
Business & Economics 45 66.5 2026
Physical Sciences 47 73.5 2026
Engineering & Technology =52 72.7 2026
Social Sciences 58 63.9 2026
Education & Training 87 57.0 2026
Arts & Humanities =89 53.8 2026
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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the ranking of University of California San Diego?

University of California San Diego's performance in the latest university rankings: QS Rank 81, THE Rank 47, ARWU Rank 20, US News Rank =21.

When was University of California San Diego founded?

University of California San Diego was founded in 1960.

What are the top subjects at University of California San Diego?

Top subjects at University of California San Diego include: Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Oceanography, Microbiology, Pharmacy & Pharmacology, Biology and Biochemistry.

Where is University of California San Diego located?

University of California San Diego is located in San Diego, United States.