UMD’s Computer Science Graduate Program Holds Steady as Top 10 Public

The University of Maryland’s computer science graduate program ranks No. 10 among the country’s public institutions in the 2024 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools.” The program ranks 17th overall, the same as last year.

UMD also ranks high in three computer science specialties:

  • Artificial intelligence at No. 15 (No. 9 among publics)
  • Theory at No. 22 (No. 10 among publics)
  • Programming language at No. 23 (No. 13 among publics)


The Department of Computer Science has 450 graduate students in its computer science M.S. and Ph.D. programs and nearly 150 graduate students in its data science and machine learning master’s programs run by the college’s Science Academy.

Because U.S. News doesn’t rank all graduate programs annually, other current honors for the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences include:

  • Physics at No. 17 (No. 6 among public institutions)
    • Atomic/molecular/optical specialty at No. 6
    • Quantum specialty at No. 9
    • Condensed matter specialty at No. 17
  • Mathematics at No. 20 (No. 6 among public institutions)
    • Applied math specialty at No. 15
    • Analysis specialty at No. 24
  • Earth Sciences at No. 27 (No. 16 among public institutions)
  • Chemistry at No. 46 (No. 27 among public institutions)
  • Biological Sciences at No. 68 


The rankings are based on reputational surveys and widely used by prospective students when considering where to apply.

About the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences

The College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences at the University of Maryland educates more than 8,000 future scientific leaders in its undergraduate and graduate programs each year. The college's 10 departments and nine interdisciplinary research centers foster scientific discovery with annual sponsored research funding exceeding $250 million.