UConn continues to gain acclaim in the U.S. and worldwide for its quality, making strong showings in recent rankings that assess its academic enterprise, research impact, global engagement, and return on investment for students.
In the newest ranking, Time Magazine has named UConn among its top universities in the world, making it one of only two in Connecticut to receive that honor, along with Yale University.
Time’s ranking, compiled in conjunction with Statista, named UConn as No. 111 globally among the 500 institutions ranked. When filtered to compare only U.S. public institutions, UConn was No. 22 – far ahead of many of its direct competitors and peer aspirant universities.
Time’s ranking is the latest in a series of assessments which come from unrelated entities but reach the same positive conclusions about UConn’s research and academic strength and its global reach.
“Families, scholars, and the public view rankings as an important tool to learn more about an institution — especially when considering whether to enroll as a student, partner on research and entrepreneurship, or support it through philanthropy,” President Radenka Maric says.
“UConn’s rankings tell a clear story of student success, scholarly excellence across disciplines, strong return on investment, and meaningful global impact,” she adds.
Time Magazine’s new rankings, released in February, assessed institutions based on academic capacity and performance, innovation and economic impact, and global engagement.
“The ranking places emphasis on the extent to which students achieve extraordinary success, for instance in patenting new inventions or rising to leadership roles in business,” the ranking narrative says.
“These lists help us understand where students are likely to achieve the greatest success and contribute most to society as the world order shifts,” it continues, adding that U.S. and United Kingdom universities continue to lead in academic performance, while China’s universities are catching up in innovation and economic impact.
UConn’s global reputation also was recognized in the recent Best Global Universities ranking by U.S. News & World Report Best Global Universities. That ranking placed UConn at No. 292 among more than 2,500 schools assessed worldwide, up 23 places from the 2025 number.
It also was 75th among 280 public and private institutions in the United States – up nine spots from last year – and 46th among the 201 public U.S. institutions included in the ranking, up five spots.
The rankings assess the research performance of each institution, evaluating factors such as reputation, quantity, quality, and collaborations. UConn’s strong standing is attributed to its global research reputation, publications, books, total citations, publications in prestigious top-tier journals, and conference presentations.
The rankings from Time and U.S. News & World Report are among several that underscore UConn’s academic quality, research strength, economic impact, and return on investment for students and their families.
Some other recent rankings and studies include:
• A Georgetown University study that found that UConn graduates yielded a 10-year ROI of $226,000 to $296,000 depending on their campus – all notably higher than the median of $149,000 at public universities nationwide.
• A positive outcomes rate of 91% – far higher than the national average – for the most recent cohort of UConn graduates, meaning they were employed, pursuing higher education, or in other pursuits of their choosing shortly after graduation. They also earned an average $67,500 starting salary, up 12.5% over just the last two years.
• UI GreenMetric’s ranking of UConn as the eighth most sustainable university in the world, one of only two U.S. institutions to make the top 10.
• Rankings of No. 32 and 40, respectively, and among top public universities as assessed by U.S. News & World Report and the Wall Street Journal.
• High rankings for its online graduate programs, particularly in nursing and business fields, as reported recently by U.S. News & World Report.
• Many kudos for UConn Health and John Dempsey Hospital, including a “World’s Best Hospital” for the fifth consecutive year as assessed by Newsweek; one of Connecticut’s best employers, as determined by Forbes; and an “A” safety grade for the 10th consecutive evaluation period from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog that measures patient safety.
“UConn’s rankings are a testament to the work of our faculty, staff, and students to strive for excellence every day, helping elevate UConn’s status and reputation nationally and globally,” says Pamir Alpay, UConn’s interim provost and executive vice president for academic affairs.
