The campus chemistry and computer science departments ranked number one in the country in the U.S. News & World Report 2023-24 graduate school rankings, joining previous first place finishes in English, history, psychology and sociology.

The Berkeley Haas Evening & Weekend MBA Program, or EWMBA, ranked in the top spot, said Jamie Breen, assistant dean of MBA Programs at the Haas School of Business, in an email.

She noted that the program returned to the top spot, ahead of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, after ranking either first or second over the past 10+ years.

“The EWMBA ranking reflects the strength of the students who choose to come here to Haas and their strong academic and leadership potential,” Breen said in the email. “We do appreciate having the quality of our students and our school recognized in the rankings.”

Breen noted that rankings provide useful information about the program and detail its perceived value to prospective students and to the business world. She added that she keeps ranking methods in perspective, as they differ between rankings.

Other campus graduate programs that placed in the top spot this year include inorganic, physical and theoretical chemistry; civil and environmental engineering; public policy analysis and social policy, according to the U.S. News & World Report.

Rigel Robinson, city council member and graduate student at the Goldman School of Public Policy, noted that he is “pretty critical” of college rankings.

However, he added that his criticisms didn’t stop him from celebrating strong placements, sharing his excitement for UC Berkeley’s top spot ranking for public policy analysis.

“I’m proud to be graduating from Goldman with my masters degree this semester,” Robinson said in an email. “I am so grateful for the incredible faculty and change-making students I have had the privilege of learning from during my program.”

Some 60 UC Berkeley graduate programs were ranked in the top 10 spots in the recent U.S. News list, according to Berkeley News.

In previous years, the U.S. News reported that UC Berkeley had top-ranked graduate programs in areas including history, English, psychology and sociology.

Tsu-Jae King Liu, dean of Berkeley Engineering, noted in an email the value these rankings hold in reflecting the nature of these graduate programs. However, she also recognizes that rankings are not the only measure of a program’s quality, nor are they necessarily the most significant.

“The rankings reflect the consistent excellence of Berkeley’s programs, not just in engineering, but across multiple disciplines on campus,” Liu said in the email. “I’m proud of the renowned faculty, stellar students and dedicated staff we have in our community, as well as the amazing alumni who have gone on to have a positive impact on our society.”