For 16th Straight Year, Cal Poly Is Best in the West in U.S. News Rankings

SAN LUIS OBISPO - For the 16th year in a row, Cal Poly has been rated the best public-master's university in the West by U.S. News & World Report, in its 2009 America 's Best Colleges guidebook.

Cal Poly ranked 10th in the magazine's overall list of the West's best universities, including both public and private institutions, that provide "a full range of undergraduate and master's-level programs but few, if any, doctoral programs."

U.S. News ranks colleges that grant doctoral degrees, such as those in the University of California system, in a separate category.

Cal Poly President Warren J. Baker observed, “We are very pleased with Cal Poly’s continued No. 1 ranking. For 16 years Cal Poly’s faculty have been recognized for their outstanding work in educating the best and brightest students and helped them become successful and productive members of California’s workforce. We are also very proud too to be home of the No. 1 undergraduate engineering program in the nation. It is great to be able to start the academic year with another exemplary showing in the US News rankings.”

Cal Poly’s College of Engineering was named the No. 1 public engineering program in the nation in the magazine's Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs - for schools whose highest degree is a bachelor's or master's.

A number of College of Engineering programs also ranked high in the Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs in their individual specialty categories. Cal Poly's industrial/manufacturing program was named the No. 1 program in the nation. The university’s civil, computer electrical and mechanical engineering programs were each ranked as the top program at a public university in their respective specialty categories. Cal Poly’s aerospace program was ranked the third best program at a public university.

The U.S. News rankings will be available at www.usnews.com starting Aug. 22 and will be in the U.S. News & World Report magazine that goes on sale Monday, Aug. 25.

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