WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WISH) — Purdue University once again holds the top spot among Indiana’s public universities in U.S. News & World Report’s annual Best Colleges rankings, maintaining its place as the state’s only public institution in the nation’s top 50.
In the 2026 rankings released Tuesday, Purdue tied for No. 46 overall — unchanged from last year — among more than 400 universities surveyed. The report highlights undergraduate programs and weighs factors such as graduation rates, faculty resources and graduates’ earnings.
Purdue’s growing emphasis on career readiness was reflected in its No. 6 national ranking for co-op and internship opportunities, its highest placement ever in that category and seventh straight year in the top three among public institutions. The university also ranked No. 17 for learning communities, No. 19 in service learning, No. 26 for veterans, No. 23 for full-time faculty, and No. 29 for graduates’ earnings potential.
“Purdue’s strongest programs of research, scholarship and teaching continue to grow even stronger,” Provost Patrick Wolfe said. “Several of our strategic priority areas spanning STEM and business — together encompassing nearly three-quarters of our undergraduate students — made noteworthy climbs in this year’s rankings.”
Purdue had 20 undergraduate programs land in the nation’s top 20. The College of Engineering again placed No. 8 overall, with nine of its schools ranked in the national top 10, including industrial engineering (No. 2), aeronautics and astronautics (No. 3), and civil engineering (No. 3).
The university’s computer science program ranked No. 16 overall, with cybersecurity at No. 4, software engineering at No. 8 and artificial intelligence at No. 18. Purdue’s Daniels School of Business climbed to No. 24 nationally, with operations management ranked No. 4 and supply chain management/logistics at No. 9.
U.S. News uses 17 indicators to evaluate schools, including graduation rates, student debt, and post-graduation outcomes.
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