Eight doctoral research programs at the University rank among the top 25 of similar academic programs nationwide, according to National Research Council study released Sept. 28.
Using a number of performance statistics and faculty input, the study rated 23 University disciplines based on “indicators of program quality,” including faculty research activity, student support and outcomes, as well as faculty and student demographics.
The NRC survey rated 4,838 doctoral programs at 212 universities nationwide in 62 different fields of study, placing several of the University’s basic and social science programs in the top tier.
Geography seized the most impressive ranking of 6th out of the 49 programs offered at other high-caliber schools, while biology (17th out of 120 programs) and psychology (25th out of 236 programs) also ranked well.
One evaluation criterion examined citations per publication and ranked geography, psychology and biology third, sixth and 18th, respectively, demonstrating how extensively the academic community relies on University research findings. In other top 10 rankings, geography took third place in publications per faculty member, while biology secured 10th place for awards received per faculty member. University administration is optimistic that such high scores will help to distinguish the school’s research programs and cast them further into the national academic spotlight.
“It reaffirms the UO’s standing as a leading research university that delivers a broad range of doctoral research programs of high quality in life and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities,” said Richard Linton, the University’s vice president for research and graduate studies.
Scott Coltrane, dean of the University’s College of Arts and Sciences, said the half-dozen prestigious rankings will attract more potential doctoral students to the University’s well-received Ph.D. programs.
“I think we did remarkably well,” Coltrane said, “and I think we will see greater enrollment due to these results.”
Coltrane also said that graduate students looking to further their education can use the NRC data as a more in-depth resource for deciding which schools cater best to their fields of study.
“Student applicants will likely be helped by these results,” he said. “(The data) is more trustworthy than magazines and guides to colleges.”
Since the study was based on data collected during the 2005-06 academic year, some critics have dismissed its implications based on the fact that conditions in specific departments may have changed during the last five years.
Following this logic, Coltrane thinks the University’s doctoral programs are even stronger than the survey suggests because of the recent acquisition of experienced faculty members and research grant money.
“Since then, we have added some excellent faculty,” Coltrane said. “Our research funding has gone up immensely.”
Brian Clark, a doctoral student who came from the University from North Carolina to research social personality psychology with a focus on moral hypocrisy, thinks the ranking system accurately sizes up similar nation-wide research programs.
“I think it is useful to know where we stand relatively speaking against other, more well-known institutions, and if (this study) helps us to do that, then it’s a good thing,” Clark said. “It feels good to be towards the top of the pile.”
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