A West Los Angeles university once again tops the 2025 list of “Best Universities,” with nearly a third of its students completing their bachelor’s degrees.
This is the eighth year that UCLA has earned the No. 1 spot on the U.S. News & World Report list, which bases its rankings on 17 measures of academic quality, including graduation and retention rates, class size and average federal loan debt of graduates. The school’s academic reputation, as assessed by other chancellors, also is factored into the rankings.
The campus ranks first in social mobility among the country’s top 25 universities, a reflection of the academic success of diverse students, particularly first-generation students and students from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds.
At UCLA, these students graduate at a rate comparable to the campus’s overall graduation rate, which is over 90%. A majority of students complete their education debt-free.
The rankings also highlighted research conducted by UCLA faculty members, 40 of whom were recently named the world’s most influential researchers in their fields.
The university has also been named the No. 1 public university for veterans. Approximately 400 veterans and active-duty service members and 600 of their spouses and dependents are enrolled at UCLA, where more than 100 programs and initiatives serve them.
As part of the U.S. News rankings, universities were also evaluated on various academic programs. UCLA was ranked in the top 10 public universities for its bachelor’s programs in psychology, economics, computer science, engineering, education and nursing.
