Despite dropping two spots compared to last year, USF was ranked No. 46 in U.S. News and World Report’s (U.S. News) 2021 Best Colleges rankings released Monday.

The university was ranked No. 103 under national universities, one spot higher compared to the 2020 ranking. Out of the 146 nation’s best public schools, USF ranked No. 46, two spots lower than last year.

With today’s ranking, USF is among the top 50 public universities in the nation and named the “fastest-rising university in America” for the second consecutive year. The university was also ranked No. 68 in best colleges for veterans and No. 71 in best value schools.

The university was also ranked  No. 8 for best value colleges among public universities and ranked the highest in Florida this year, No. 17, for social mobility, which reviews retention and graduation rates for Pell Grant recipients.

“USF is proud to maintain its position as the fastest-rising university in national rankings among institutions both public and private over the last decade. As USF continues to be recognized for the exceptionally talented students and faculty it attracts, both the university and our surrounding region, as well of the state of Florida, benefit,” USF President Steven Currall said. 

“We will continue our strategic focus on initiatives that will help propel USF to even greater heights in the future.”

In the ranking, universities across the country are divided under the basis of national universities, national liberal arts, regional universities and regional colleges. U.S. News then evaluates institutions on 10 categories based on their “academic missions” and 17 indicators of “academic quality” to determine an institutions’ overall score and rank.

Among the ranking factors, institutions are evaluated on their graduation and retention rates, social mobility, financial resources per student and faculty resources for the 2019-2020 academic year.

Out of 100, USF scored 60 on the U.S. News Overall Score. Last year, USF’s overall score was rated at 51.

“This further reinforces USF’s remarkable ascent in national rankings over the past decade,” Currall said in a universitywide email. “While we are mindful that rankings are not the sole driver of our decisions at USF, they are, in this case, a well-deserved source of pride as well as a reflection of your hard work and dedication to support USF’s commitment to academic excellence and student success.”