April 20, 2004

GW Programs Pulling Rank

Schools and Graduate Programs Garner Accolades in Latest US News Survey

GW’s School of Public Policy and Public Administration (SPPPA), Law School, Graduate School of Education and Human Development (GSEHD), and graduate programs in law, public affairs, health and business were ranked among the top 25 in the latest “America’s Best Graduate Schools” issue of US News & World Report.

SPPPA is ranked 10th in the nation in the magazine’s survey of 253 master’s programs in public affairs. The school, housed in the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, has moved up nine spots from its position in 2001, the last year public affairs master’s programs were ranked. The school has five specialty programs ranked in the top 20, including health policy and management at sixth and public management administration at 11th.

The Law School is 20th on this year’s list of 177 accredited law schools — moving up from a ranking of 22nd last year. Among law specialties, GW’s intellectual property law program is again named the country’s second best program. The environmental law program is ranked seventh, while the international law program is ranked eighth in the country.

GSEHD maintains its position among the elite education schools in the country, tying with the University of Georgia and the University of Florida for 24th out of the 189 schools surveyed for the list — and ninth best among private institutions. The school’s rehabilitation counseling program is listed the fifth best in the country (based on 2003 rankings).

Other specialty programs at GW also receive high marks from US News. In the health disciplines, GW’s physician assistant program is listed third in the nation (based on 2003 rankings), while the updated rankings place the University’s speech-language pathology program 39th. The international business program, available through the School of Business, is ranked 20th in the nation.

US News has been publishing America’s Best Graduate Schools on an annual basis since 1990. According to the magazine, schools are measured using objective data (obtained by US News from colleges and universities) and reputational ratings from experts.

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