October • 2009

inside this issue

UC Extension offers approximately 17,000 continuing education courses each year.
Campus-based extension programs serve more than 500,000 Californians a year.
UC Extension receives no state funding. Class fees and a small number of grants and contracts support the program.

UC values shine in Washington Monthly rankings

University of California campuses took the top three spots in the Washington Monthly's annual college rankings, which use social mobility, research and service as criteria.

Overall, six UC campuses made the magazine's Top 30 national university rankings, with UC Berkeley leading the way at No. 1, followed by UC San Diego and UCLA. UC Davis ranked 10th, UC Riverside 16th and UC Santa Barbara 23rd.

The Top 20 universities in Washington Monthly's national category are public, while on other college rankings, such as those by U.S. News & World Report, private universities tend to rate higher.

UC was cited for enrolling "unusually large numbers of low-income students while maintaining high graduation rates, generating billions of dollars in research funding, and sending a healthy number of students into service programs like the Peace Corps."

Washington Monthly's editors also noted that "steep budget cuts stemming from the current California budget fiasco" are putting UC's accomplishments at risk.

The magazine said it chose its rankings criteria as a way to rate universities based on their contribution to the public good. The magazine's social mobility category measured how well colleges are recruiting and graduating low-income students. The research criteria included the production of cutting-edge scholarship and doctorial degrees. Service is defined as encouraging students to give something back to their country.

UC President Mark Yudof said that while many college rankings are often prone to "manipulation or swayed by factors that do not reflect directly on the quality of education. (Washington Monthly's) rankings are different. They reflect UC's values."

Your University is produced 10 times per year by the Strategic Communications department of the University of California Office of the President. For suggestions or comments about this report, contact: , editor, 1111 Franklin St. 12th Floor, Oakland, Calif. 94607, 510.987.0793.