The University of Texas at Austin has retained its position as the top public university in Texas and is ranked seventh among public universities nationally, according to the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings for 2026. The institution also holds the 30th spot when considering both public and private universities nationwide.
Among the 37 undergraduate programs at UT evaluated by U.S. News, 24 were placed in the top 10 nationally. Six programs are ranked within the top five: Accounting, Finance, and Marketing from the McCombs School of Business; and Petroleum, Chemical, and Civil Engineering from the Cockrell School of Engineering. This year, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science Theory, and Biomedical Engineering returned to the top 10 list. In total, 32 programs were recognized as number one in Texas.
UT has a combined total of 76 undergraduate and graduate programs ranked in the top 10 among both public and private institutions. Graduate program rankings were released earlier this year.
“Our commitment to the people of Texas is to deliver an uncompromising standard of academic excellence,” said UT President Jim Davis. “That excellence is driving the highest demand and student performance in our University’s history, and today’s rankings validate our performance. I am grateful to our faculty and staff for their dedication to our students and their academic success.”
The U.S. News ranking methodology considers factors such as classroom resources for students and faculty, graduation and retention rates, degree completion rates, graduates’ debt levels, and starting salaries.
During the academic year ending August 2025, UT achieved new records with a four-year graduation rate of 75.7% and a first-year retention rate of 97.1%. The university also awarded a record number of degrees: 15,963.
In addition to program-specific accolades, UT continues to be recognized as the leading university in Texas for veterans. It ranks seventh nationally among public universities for veterans’ education. Other notable rankings include ninth place for innovation among public universities nationally and fourth place for its study abroad program.
UT’s McCombs School of Business saw its Accounting program rank second nationally (first in Texas), Marketing third (first in Texas), Finance fifth (first in Texas), with several other business disciplines making it into national top ten lists. The College of Natural Sciences’ Department of Computer Science had its Artificial Intelligence program ranked seventh nationally (first in Texas) while Computer Science Programs overall placed ninth nationally (first in Texas). In engineering fields evaluated under Cockrell School of Engineering, Petroleum Engineering was second nationwide (second in Texas), Chemical Engineering fifth (first in Texas), Civil Engineering fifth (first in Texas), along with multiple other engineering disciplines included among national leaders.
