Universities on the Central Coast have earned top spots on the 2025 U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges rating list.
California State University, San Luis Obispo
Cal Poly was ranked regionally. This category is reserved for universities that offer a full range of undergraduate programs, some master's programs and a few doctoral programs.
The Regional Universities category is split into four sections: North, South, Midwest and West.
Cal Poly is one of 118 universities in the West.
The university earned the No. 1 ranking among public and private universities that fall under this classification.
Cal Poly also received the following rankings under the Best Regional Universities West category:
- #1 in Regional Universities West
- #1 in Top Public Schools
- #7 in Best Value Schools
- #8 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (tie)
- #1 in Best Colleges for Veterans
- #1 in Most Innovative Schools
- #69 in Top Performers on Social Mobility
University of California, Santa Barbara
UCSB was ranked nationally along with 435 other schools that offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and doctoral programs.
These colleges are also committed to producing groundbreaking research, according to the U.S. News website.
Here is how UCSB fared in this category:
- #39 in National Universities (tie)
- #13 in Top Public Schools (tie)
- #200 in Best Value Schools
- #35 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs (tie)
- #43 in Economics (tie)
- #20 in Best Colleges for Veterans (tie)
- #20 in Top Performers on Social Mobility
For a full list of rankings, click here.
