The University of Louisville School of Medicine and School of Nursing both jumped in U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings for 2018, with the medical school rising to its highest ranking in one category in three years.

The rankings were released March 14 and are available at www.usnews.com/grad.

In the category of “Best Medical Schools-Research,” the UofL medical school ranks 73^rd, five points better than 2017 and 10 points better than 2016.

In the category of “Best Medical Schools-Primary Care,” UofL ranks 88^th, a four-point drop from last year but still nine points higher than 2016’s ranking of 97^th.

The UofL School of Nursing’s “Best Nursing Schools-Master’s” ranking saw a significant increase — 12 points — rising to 76^th this year from 88^th in 2017. The school ranked 68^th in 2016.

Both schools’ leaders attribute the success to hard work by students, faculty and staff, and a shared commitment to improving standards and quality even as the university faces budget cutbacks.

“I am so gratified by this recognition of the effort put forth by everyone at the UofL School of Medicine,” said Toni M. Ganzel, M.D., M.B.A., dean of the medical school. “For the past four years, we have made significant investments in upgrading our instructional facilities, enhancing and modernizing our curriculum and strengthening wherever possible our research enterprise. This ranking is a symbol that shows we continue to be on the right track in meeting the medical needs of our state, nation and world.”

“We are thrilled our graduate program is recognized for excellence and rigor,” said School of Nursing Dean Marcia J. Hern, Ed.D., C.N.S., R.N. “Our graduates become nurse leaders who meet evolving health care demands by using evidence-based advanced practice knowledge to improve outcomes of diverse patient populations.”

In addition to medicine and nursing, U.S. News ranks graduate education programs annually in business, education, engineering and law. The magazine also periodically ranks programs in the sciences, social sciences, humanities, the health arena and other areas as identified by academic experts.

The rankings are based on two types of data, according to the magazine’s statement of methodology: expert opinions about program excellence and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students.

The chart below shows the U.S. News & World Report “Best Graduate Schools” rankings for UofL HSC schools over the past three years:

Prepared by the UofL  Office of Institutional Research & Planning