L&S Earns Highest Marks Our Rankings, Honors and Achievements
The College of Letters & Science at UC Davis unites students from around the world with cutting-edge education, research, and innovation.
U.S. News & World Report Rankings
Overall Rankings for UC Davis
"America's Best Graduate Schools"
Several College of Letters and Science programs rank among the top in the nation:
- 8th Earth Sciences: Environmental Sciences (2022)
- 9th History: U.S. Colonial History (2014)
- 9th Psychology: Developmental Psychology (2022)
- 10th Sociology: Sex & Gender (2014)
- 11th Psychology: Cognitive Psychology (2022)
- 12th Psychology (2022)
- 13th Communications (2024) (9th in US)
- 13th Statistics (2022)
- 13th Mathematics: Discrete Mathematics and Combinatorics (2023)
- 14th Earth Sciences (2023)
- 15th Fine Arts: Studio Art, Design, Dramatic Arts and Creative Writing (2020)
- 15th Political Science: Comparative Politics (2014)
- 15th Political Science: Political Methodology (2014)
- 16th Earth Sciences: Geology (2023)
- 16th Economics: International Economics (2022)
- 24th History (2021)
- 24th Statistics: Biostatistics (2022)
- 25th Earth Sciences: Geochemistry (2022)
- 25th Political Science (2021)
- 26th Economics (2022)
- 26th English (2021)
- 30th Mathematics (2023)
- 31st Sociology (2021)
- 38th Chemistry (2023)
- 38th Physics (2023)
- 41st Computer Science (2023)
Other Rankings
Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022
UC Davis overall: 30th among U.S. universities
QS World University Rankings 2024 (1,499 ranked)
UC Davis overall: 132
QS World University Rankings-Sustainability 2024
Among U.S. universities: 5
Among world universities: 16
QS World University Rankings: USA 2023
Among U.S. universities: 28
Among public universities: 11
Shanghai Academic Ranking of World Universities 2021
Top 25: Communication, Psychology, Statistics
Top 50: Economics
UC Davis overall: 91
QS World University Rankings 2023 by College of Letters and Science Programs
(Top 25 among U.S. universities)
- 20: Earth and Marine Sciences
- 21: Economics and Econometrics
- 21: Geophysics
- 21: Geology
- 22: Statistics and Operational Research
U.S. News & World Report Global Rankings 2023
(200 schools ranked in the U.S. and in more than 95 other countries)
- Top 50: Psychology
- Top 100: Geosciences, Mathematics, Space Science
- Top 200: Arts and Humanities, Computer Science, Economics and Business
UC Davis overall: 73
Did You Know?
Faculty Honors and Awards Nationally Recognized Leaders in a Wide Array of Disciplines.
Our College boasts over 900 distinguished faculty who inspire cross-disciplinary collaboration across creative, historical, and philosophical fields. They drive scientific discovery and tackle the world’s biggest questions, earning top awards for exceptional scholarship, teaching, mentoring, and community engagement.