Talk about a winning streak.
U.S. News and World Report recently released their rankings of the best public universities in the country for 2025, and for the 8th year running, UCLA tops that list.
The report ranked universities and colleges based on several factors, including graduation rates, peer assessment and faculty resources.
UCLA – whose campus spans nearly 420 acres in L.A.’s Westwood neighborhood – ranked number one in social mobility, a metric that measures the academic success of diverse students, particularly first-generation students and those coming from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds, as about a third of UCLA students come from those groups.
The student body’s diversity is something school officials say they pride themselves on, and students seem to agree that a campus with many cultures is what attracted them to Westwood.
“I grew up in a small, rural town and I didn’t even know what a UC was,” said Damian Ojeda, a second-year student from the Central Valley studying biochemistry and public affairs. “I came to the Latinx Adult Weekend and Bruin Day, and I saw people who looked like me, who spoke like me, who spoke Spanish, who liked the same food as me. And I see people who look like me in class.”
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WESTWOOD, CA – AUGUST 15, 2024 – Students and visitors make their way on the UCLA campus in Westwood on August 15, 2024. (Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) -
In this photo illustration, the UCLA campus as seen from above Ackerman Union, June 2021, in Los Angeles, California. (Photo illustration by Matt Harbicht/Getty Images for UCLA) -
LOS ANGELES, CA – APRIL 23: A student walks near Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA on April 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
“We want to make UCLA the most impactful university. We often talk about being a great research university, and of course U.S. News & World Report has said that we are the best public university,” UCLA Interim Chancellor Darnell Hunt said. “But we really aspire to be the most impactful — to have the greatest positive influence on the real world, to shape society in beneficial ways, to make a difference.”
UCLA was also the top university for military veterans; according to a UCLA press release, 400 veterans and 600 military spouses are enrolled this year.
What’s more, several of UCLA’s academic programs ranked within the top ten nationwide, including psychology, economics, computer science, engineering, teaching and nursing.
The Bruins aren’t the only UC school that finished high up on the U.S. News and World Report list; coming in at number two is UC Berkeley, UC San Diego finished sixth and UC Davis and UC Irvine tied for ninth.
On U.S News and World Report’s ranking of every American university, public or private, UCLA ranked 15th, tied with Dartmouth.
The full 2025 report on public universities can be read here.
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