Penn State ranks No. 30 among public universities in 2025 US News ‘Best Colleges’ | Penn State University

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State ranks No. 30 among national public universities and No. 63 overall out of 436 national universities listed in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 “Best Colleges” ranking, released Sept. 24. Penn State also remains No. 23 among Association of American Universities public institutions and is once again the top-ranked public university in Pennsylvania. 

U.S. News defines the category of “National Universities” as schools that offer a full range of undergraduate majors as well as master’s and doctoral degrees; in many cases they place strong emphasis on research.  

“Strong placements in rankings such as U.S. News reflect our ongoing commitment to excellence in our threefold mission of teaching, research and service,” said Tracy Langkilde, Penn State interim executive vice president and provost. “Every day our faculty and students are making a difference in the world, creating and sharing new knowledge and discoveries through our $1.2 billion research enterprise that further enhance the experiences of our undergraduates by incorporating research into student learning. A Penn State degree is both valuable and life-changing. A vital part of our mission as Pennsylvania’s flagship public university is to provide opportunities for first-generation students and talented individuals from diverse and low-income backgrounds to gain a college education and use it to improve their lives and the lives of others.” 

Undergraduate program rankings released by U.S. News for Penn State remain strong, including 12 top-25 ratings, with three in the top 10, for select programs in engineering and business, among others. According to U.S. News’ methodology, these program rankings are based solely on the judgments of the academic leadership and senior faculty in such programs who participated in a peer assessment survey. 

• Penn State ranked No. 20 out of 209 schools in “Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs,” at schools whose highest degree is a doctorate. The University also ranked well in a number of engineering specialties, including petroleum (4); materials (10); industrial/manufacturing (11); biological/agricultural (11); civil (14); mechanical (14); aerospace/aeronautical/astronautical (16); and chemical (23).  

• Penn State ranked No. 23 out of 532 programs in “Best Undergraduate Business Programs.” The University also ranked well in several business specialty programs, including supply chain management/logistics (10); production/operations management (13); and management (28).  

• Penn State’s rankings also include No. 34 out of 681 institutions for “Best Undergraduate Psychology Programs,” No. 40 out of 584 institutions ranked for “Best Undergraduate Computer Science Programs,” No. 43 out of 319 institutions for “Best Undergraduate Economics Programs,” and No. 54 out of 686 institutions for “Bachelor of Science in Nursing Programs.” 

Penn State also ranked at No. 37 out of 166 programs among national universities in “Best Colleges for Veterans,” a rating that includes top-ranked schools that make pursuing a college education more affordable for veterans and active-duty service members. Penn State has a large network of students, staff and faculty who have military ties as either service members, veterans or military dependents across 24 campuses and the World Campus. The Office of Veterans Affairs and Services supports military-connected students by enabling their access to all aspects of higher education and empowering them to succeed while at Penn State and as they transition to post-education endeavors. The University’s World Campus also scored well in the 2024 U.S. News “Best Online Programs for Veterans.” 

Penn State continues to place highly in rankings released by organizations with methodologies that focus on faculty and research excellence. In the 2024 Center for World University Rankings, Penn State ranked No. 56 out of 2,000 institutions internationally for the quality of its education, employability, faculty and research, placing it in the top 2.8% globally. In June, the University ranked No. 89 in the world in the 2025 QS World University Rankings, and came in No. 8 among all public U.S. universities.  

Penn State’s sustainability efforts also were recognized by Times Higher Education’s Impact Rankings, where the University ranked No. 4 in the U.S. and No. 51 worldwide, and last fall the QS sustainability rankings placed Penn State No. 4 nationally and No. 37 in the world.  

To learn more, visit Penn State’s Facts & Rankings page.