By JACQUI NEBER
Johns Hopkins University is now among the top ten universities in the country, according to the 2016 U.S. News & World Report ranking released on Tuesday. This marks the first time Hopkins has ranked in the top ten in 15 years.
Hopkins has consistently been ranked in the Top 20 National Universities for the last few decades, holding the 12th or 13th spot for the past five years.
This year, Hopkins moved up two spots to tie with the California Institute of Technology for no. 10.
University President Ronald J. Daniels has been focused on improving the Hopkins undergraduate experience since launching his “Ten by Twenty” campaign in 2013, which aimed to see Hopkins ascend into the top ten on the U.S. News & World Report best national universities list by 2020. With this new ranking, Daniels’ goal has been achieved four years early.
In a HUB article, Daniels explained his continuing plan for Johns Hopkins to reach even higher.
“At Johns Hopkins, we are committed to nurturing the best young minds in an environment that prizes intellectual creativity, discovery, and service to our world,” Daniels said. “This commitment in all its forms—curricular innovation, student support, and unparalleled opportunities for undergraduate research—is a testament to the dynamism of this place and its exceptional faculty and students.”
Chair of the Board of Trustees Jeffrey H. Aronson said that this new ranking is a testament to the achievements of everyone at Hopkins.
“What a great moment for our University. It reflects the collective accomplishments and spirit of our entire community—faculty, students, alumni, staff, and leadership,” Aronson said.
This new ranking represents a variety of improvements that have been made to the University across all areas of undergraduate study. Increased undergraduate research opportunities, increasingly smaller class sizes, the creation of new minors and the arrival of more than a dozen Bloomberg Scholars to help teach students are all improvements that that have been cited as making a difference in the academic success of undergraduates.
Admissions also plays a role in how U.S. News & World Report calculates their National University ranking, and this year Hopkins experienced its most competitive undergraduate admissions cycle in the history of the University. More than 24,500 applicants applied to the University, with approximately 1,300 students enrolling for Fall 2015, a record for the University.
Hopkins has annually scored well on high school counselors’ top colleges lists, this year tying for third with Columbia, Princeton, Stanford and Yale, behind Harvard and MIT. This represents a four-place jump from 7th in 2014. Other compiled lists also represent Hopkins as a best value school (#20), best college for veterans (#9), and as having one of the best undergraduate engineering schools where the highest degree is a doctorate (#15). Hopkins is ranked first in biomedical engineering.
David Philips, vice provost for admissions and financial aid, spoke to the success of Hopkins students and what it means for the University going forward.
"Top students from across the country and around the world see themselves at Johns Hopkins," he said.
Correction: The article previously stated that this was the first year since 1995 that Hopkins has appeared in the top 10 of the U.S. News rankings. In 1999-2000, Hopkins was ranked was no. 7. However, the methodology of the rankings was changed that year before being readjusted the next.
