Top universities in the US for social sciences 2026

By Joy.Hunter@tim…, 17 February, 2026

Top universities in the US for social science degrees 2026

US Social Science Rank 2026	Global Social Science Rank 2026	University	Overall	Teaching	Research Environment	Research Quality	Industry	International Outlook
1	1	Massachusetts Institute of Technology	94.3	93.7	93.9	96.3	100	88.7
2	3	Stanford University	93.1	94.7	91.8	98.6	100	69.5
3	4	Harvard University	92.4	94.7	96.5	90.4	75.8	80.8
4	5	Princeton University	92.1	94.9	90.9	96	100	67.8
5	6	University of California, Berkeley	90.9	88.9	98	91.7	100	62.4
6	8	Yale University	87.5	92.4	89.9	85.6	67.5	72.6
7	9	University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	86	87.7	95.3	84.2	82.9	47.3
8	11	The University of Chicago	85.5	90.3	91.9	79.4	67.1	68.8
9	12	Columbia University	84.7	88.6	88.7	80.2	72.6	72.6
10	13	University of Pennsylvania	84.4	80.8	93.3	81.5	86.1	70.9
11	14	University of California, Los Angeles	83.3	82.9	93.6	85.6	67.4	43
12	19	Cornell University	80.6	81.6	78.2	86.4	67.5	73.9
13	21	University of Wisconsin-Madison	79.8	75.8	87	82.7	99	46.4
14	23	Johns Hopkins University	78.2	71.7	81.7	78.4	100	78.7
15	25	University of Washington	77.2	73	79.9	85.4	67	62
16	26	New York University	76.6	75.6	80.9	74.2	67.1	75.9
17	27	Duke University	75.1	70.3	77.2	79.3	99.6	59.4
18	28	Northwestern University	74.1	67.9	72.4	89.3	67.2	60.7
19	31	University of Texas at Austin	73.3	70.3	81.2	78.8	71.9	35.9
20	34	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	72.7	69.1	77.9	81.3	68.9	39.4
21	42	University of Southern California	69.2	62.3	69.9	80.9	75.4	52.7
22	54	Ohio State University (Main campus)	65.3	57.7	67.9	77.3	69.9	44.4
23	58	University of California, San Diego	63.9	52.1	57	83.4	99.8	59
24	=60	Penn State (Main campus)	63.5	58.9	58.7	81.3	67.4	41.7
=25	=62	Michigan State University	63.1	52.7	58.3	85.2	64.1	53.7
=25	=62	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign	63.1	62.4	58.8	73.6	69.5	45.6
27	66	Indiana University	62.9	61	60.9	70.6	74.6	47.9
28	71	Brown University	62	67.5	52.4	69.1	46.4	63.5
29	73	University of Minnesota	61.8	54.2	55.2	81.9	95.4	37.1
30	74	Washington University in St Louis	61.5	59.5	53.2	78.4	69.3	44.2
31	79	University of California, Santa Barbara	60.3	45.3	48.8	90.2	79.5	62.6
32	=85	University of Maryland, College Park	59.8	47.6	55.9	84.7	68.9	39.7
33	91	Georgetown University	58.9	54.9	54.4	67.5	71.4	59.4
34	=92	Arizona State University (Tempe)	57.8	47.6	49.1	82.6	75.8	45.8
35	97	University of California, Davis	57.1	48	45.5	77.4	67	71
=36	=98	University of California, Irvine	56.9	39.9	49	87.2	70.6	54.1
=36	=98	University of Florida	56.9	50.6	53.8	72	68.4	40.6
=38	101–125	Emory University	53.3–56.7	47.2	34.9	84.8	64.4	59.8
=38	101–125	Purdue University West Lafayette	53.3–56.7	44.8	44.7	80.5	69.3	45.4
=38	101–125	Syracuse University	53.3–56.7	48.3	51	68.5	67.8	50.1
=38	101–125	University of Arizona	53.3–56.7	41.6	45.6	82.9	72.3	40.7
=38	101–125	University of Massachusetts	53.3–56.7	44.5	46	75.3	80.5	52.1
=38	101–125	Vanderbilt University	53.3–56.7	40.8	37.7	88.3	66.8	59.1
=44	126–150	Boston College	50.8–52.9	40.6	34.8	86.4	66.5	49.3
=44	126–150	Boston University	50.8–52.9	45.5	39.3	76.8	62.8	56.6
=44	126–150	Carnegie Mellon University	50.8–52.9	30.4	35.2	89.2	73.6	83.3
=44	126–150	Dartmouth College	50.8–52.9	59.9	23.6	80.3	64.9	48.1
=44	126–150	University of California, Santa Cruz	50.8–52.9	40.2	33.2	87.2	93.9	51.2
=49	151–175	Drexel University	48.6–50.7	29.9	32.3	86.3	99.9	54.2
=49	151–175	George Washington University	48.6–50.7	37.3	39.4	75.8	66.7	57.8
=49	151–175	Georgia Institute of Technology	48.6–50.7	33.2	33.2	82.3	75.4	72.9
=49	151–175	Rice University	48.6–50.7	44	33.5	72	79	59.3
=49	151–175	Texas A&M University	48.6–50.7	34.6	44.9	75.5	67.9	50
=54	176–200	Florida State University	47.3–48.5	34.7	38.2	75.1	64.3	45.1
=54	176–200	University of Georgia (USA)	47.3–48.5	34.4	41.4	72	59.6	41.5
=54	176–200	University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh campus	47.3–48.5	37.5	38.8	68.5	94.3	34.2
=54	176–200	University of Virginia (Main campus)	47.3–48.5	38.2	35.3	74.2	75.1	44.6
=58	201–250	George Mason University	44.4–47.2	35.8	40.1	62.4	64	49.3
=58	201–250	Northeastern University, US	44.4–47.2	28.4	26.9	84.4	67.5	58.2
=58	201–250	University of Colorado Boulder	44.4–47.2	28.9	32.4	84.2	67.5	45
=58	201–250	University of Illinois Chicago	44.4–47.2	37.9	29.8	69.2	75.5	37.2
=58	201–250	University of Notre Dame	44.4–47.2	42	32.5	63.3	67.4	61.9
=58	201–250	University of Rochester	44.4–47.2	34.7	27.8	76.6	66.8	70.2
=58	201–250	University of South Florida	44.4–47.2	30.6	31.1	76	94.6	49.4
=58	201–250	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	44.4–47.2	30.6	29	76.1	74.7	48.1
=66	251–300	American University	42.1–44.3	36.2	33.4	61.8	47.7	36.1
=66	251–300	North Carolina State University	42.1–44.3	28.8	34.2	69.8	70.2	42.2
=66	251–300	Rutgers University–New Brunswick	42.1–44.3	35.6	23.5	70.6	67.3	39.3
=66	251–300	Tufts University	42.1–44.3	32.9	29.6	63.4	62.2	54.8
=66	251–300	University of California, Riverside	42.1–44.3	27.4	25	75.9	67.5	53.2
=66	251–300	University of Hawai’i at Mānoa	42.1–44.3	28.4	30.2	68	67.2	65.5
=72	301–400	Clark University	37.8–41.9	31.9	22.1	75.7	42.5	53.9
=72	301–400	Georgia State University	37.8–41.9	24.1	29.4	67.9	65.7	40.1
=72	301–400	Iowa State University	37.8–41.9	25.1	25	64.9	84	33.3
=72	301–400	SUNY University at Albany	37.8–41.9	25.3	26.4	73.2	43.9	44.9
=72	301–400	Stony Brook University	37.8–41.9	28.1	17.1	72	60	51.2
=72	301–400	Temple University	37.8–41.9	30.2	24.4	66.5	56.2	31.6
=72	301–400	The New School	37.8–41.9	42.7	21.5	53.3	34.8	63.9
=72	301–400	The University of Tennessee-Knoxville	37.8–41.9	32.7	25.4	64.5	76.1	39.6
=72	301–400	University at Buffalo	37.8–41.9	29.5	19.1	69.6	66.9	52.2
=72	301–400	University of California, Merced	37.8–41.9	24	18.5	80.9	52.6	39.2
=72	301–400	University of Central Florida	37.8–41.9	25.3	21.6	79.5	70.2	31
=72	301–400	University of Colorado Denver/Anschutz Medical Campus	37.8–41.9	16.3	20.8	85.7	63.2	42.9
=72	301–400	University of Connecticut	37.8–41.9	25.1	24	71.6	63.9	60.2
=72	301–400	University of Iowa	37.8–41.9	33.9	22.8	68.6	66.9	31.8
=72	301–400	University of Kentucky	37.8–41.9	37.5	21.9	60.8	58.5	32.5
=72	301–400	University of Miami	37.8–41.9	25	17.5	78	55.5	54
=72	301–400	University of Oregon	37.8–41.9	24.7	27.9	77.5	66.9	34.5
=89	401–500	Brandeis University	34.6–37.7	33.8	19	48.9	61	63.8
=89	401–500	Case Western Reserve University	34.6–37.7	30.7	25.6	50.7	87.2	43.6
=89	401–500	Colorado State University, Fort Collins	34.6–37.7	24.1	21.4	69.3	54.7	35.6
=89	401–500	Florida International University	34.6–37.7	25.5	23.1	61.1	55.2	36.9
=89	401–500	University of Delaware	34.6–37.7	22.4	18.1	68.5	74.8	38.6
=89	401–500	University of Kansas	34.6–37.7	30.3	26.3	55.2	62.1	37.2
=89	401–500	University of South Carolina-Columbia	34.6–37.7	19.9	19.2	73.2	60.8	45.3
=89	401–500	University of Texas at Dallas	34.6–37.7	26	16.6	59.3	73.5	48.7
=89	401–500	University of Utah	34.6–37.7	22.1	23.7	72.4	68	30.1
=89	401–500	Washington State University	34.6–37.7	23.8	22.5	62	81.7	46.8
=89	401–500	Worcester Polytechnic Institute	34.6–37.7	18.3	10.4	75.8	66.6	50.9
=100	501–600	Colorado School of Mines	31.7–34.5	28	13.2	49.2	56.9	67.2
=100	501–600	Mizzou - University of Missouri	31.7–34.5	28.5	15	55.1	56.4	35.2
=100	501–600	Oklahoma State University	31.7–34.5	19.6	13.4	65.9	41.5	45.1
=100	501–600	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	31.7–34.5	29.9	12.5	42.9	72.2	71.6
=100	501–600	Texas Tech University	31.7–34.5	21.9	16.1	58.1	63.6	36.8
=100	501–600	University of Alaska Fairbanks	31.7–34.5	20.9	9.7	73.9	18.9	56.2
=100	501–600	University of Arkansas	31.7–34.5	17	19	65.3	57.8	26.5
=100	501–600	University of Denver	31.7–34.5	23.7	22.8	58	43.4	33.2
=100	501–600	University of Houston	31.7–34.5	16.4	15.3	72.4	54.9	50.3
=100	501–600	University of Maryland, Baltimore County	31.7–34.5	24.2	18.7	52.6	68.3	28.8
=100	501–600	University of Nevada, Las Vegas	31.7–34.5	23.3	16.4	67.3	42.1	31.6
=100	501–600	Virginia Commonwealth University	31.7–34.5	20.8	22.1	64.4	60.5	24.2
=100	501–600	Wake Forest University	31.7–34.5	27.6	13.6	67	55.9	30.5
=100	501–600	William & Mary	31.7–34.5	28.5	19.5	56.8	41.6	27.3
=114	601–800	Auburn University	26.6–31.6	17.9	19.3	49.5	73.6	45.3
=114	601–800	Florida Atlantic University	26.6–31.6	14	15.3	48.8	67.3	39.8
=114	601–800	Kansas State University	26.6–31.6	20.1	19.9	46.2	67	36.2
=114	601–800	Lehigh University	26.6–31.6	17.6	13	55.3	62.8	45.5
=114	601–800	Louisiana State University	26.6–31.6	23.7	14.3	58.6	54.6	34.1
=114	601–800	Mississippi State University	26.6–31.6	17.8	17.9	56.9	71	30.7
=114	601–800	Ohio University (Main campus)	26.6–31.6	21	13.3	48.2	54.7	29.1
=114	601–800	Old Dominion University	26.6–31.6	20.7	18.4	59	48	26.2
=114	601–800	Portland State University	26.6–31.6	17.3	18.6	60.8	51.9	28.2
=114	601–800	Rochester Institute of Technology	26.6–31.6	18.3	17.7	44.9	66.1	50.6
=114	601–800	SUNY Binghamton University	26.6–31.6	26.1	17.5	51.4	53.7	36.3
=114	601–800	Southern Illinois University Carbondale	26.6–31.6	27.5	17.1	39	82.4	27.2
=114	601–800	Texas State University	26.6–31.6	17.9	21.5	52.2	70.3	40.7
=114	601–800	The University of Alabama	26.6–31.6	20.7	16.5	57.2	42.1	31.4
=114	601–800	The University of Texas at San Antonio	26.6–31.6	15	16	65.9	72.9	28.3
=114	601–800	Tulane University	26.6–31.6	32.3	13.5	49.3	37.3	31.8
=114	601–800	University of Memphis	26.6–31.6	19.3	13.4	50.7	59.6	28.7
=114	601–800	University of Missouri-Kansas City	26.6–31.6	19.2	18.5	41.4	64.2	24.2
=114	601–800	University of Nebraska Omaha	26.6–31.6	17.8	16.5	52.2	17.8	29.3
=114	601–800	University of Nebraska-Lincoln	26.6–31.6	18	18.2	56.1	65.8	38.1
=114	601–800	University of North Carolina at Charlotte	26.6–31.6	15.2	17.6	64.7	62.4	28.1
=114	601–800	University of Rhode Island	26.6–31.6	18	13.4	51.1	37.9	32.9
=114	601–800	University of Texas at Arlington	26.6–31.6	15.1	13.3	65	61	25.3
=114	601–800	University of Toledo	26.6–31.6	17.4	11.5	59.4	54.9	46.2
=114	601–800	University of Wyoming	26.6–31.6	23.9	12.5	53.6	49.5	31.5
=114	601–800	Wayne State University	26.6–31.6	20.5	14.2	57.9	73.7	25.8
=140	801–1000	Baylor University	21.6–26.5	22.5	13.1	45.3	25.3	26.1
=140	801–1000	Central Michigan University	21.6–26.5	13.5	11.4	42.2	39.3	24.8
=140	801–1000	Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University	21.6–26.5	12	8.8	44.6	30.2	38.5
=140	801–1000	Grand Valley State University	21.6–26.5	15.6	7.6	53.7	27.6	33
=140	801–1000	Montana State University	21.6–26.5	15.5	14.6	45.3	55.7	29.2
=140	801–1000	New Mexico State University (Main campus)	21.6–26.5	14.4	11.6	49.5	43.6	36.5
=140	801–1000	Northern Illinois University	21.6–26.5	15.9	12	44.2	43.1	40.8
=140	801–1000	Oakland University	21.6–26.5	13.1	10.2	43	44.1	26
=140	801–1000	Pace University-New York	21.6–26.5	21.6	6.9	33.9	28.4	46.3
=140	801–1000	Saint Louis University	21.6–26.5	24.1	11.6	41.5	53.5	32.2
=140	801–1000	San Diego State University	21.6–26.5	19.9	9.6	48.8	52.4	26.7
=140	801–1000	The Catholic University of America	21.6–26.5	14.6	17.5	27.6	73.4	30.4
=140	801–1000	University of Texas at El Paso	21.6–26.5	12.3	18.7	37	45.4	27.6
=153	1001+	Adelphi University	11.4–21.5	16.1	6.6	23.5	21.4	30.1
=153	1001+	Georgia Southern University	11.4–21.5	12.6	9.3	40	33.4	23.3
=153	1001+	Morgan State University	11.4–21.5	12.5	9.5	27.6	34.5	25.5
=153	1001+	Rowan University	11.4–21.5	15.2	7.5	41.4	38.5	27.2
=153	1001+	University of Texas Rio Grande Valley	11.4–21.5	12.7	7.8	45.5	27.8	29.1

Key insights into the top universities in the US for social sciences 2026

Massachusetts Institute of Technology takes the first place position for social sciences in the US
Princeton University and University of California, Berkeley achieve top scores for their links to industry
Stanford University scores highly for research quality
Social sciences include sociology, psychology, geography, politics, anthropology and media and communications studies.
Some 157 universities in the US are included in the global social science ranking.

Choosing the right university for social sciences in the US

As the home to some of the top universities in the world, the US is a great place to study for a social science degree.

Undergraduate programmes in the US are typically four years long and include the opportunity to study multiple subjects in the first two years, before specialising in the second half of your degree.

Subjects you study alongside your specialisation are known as minors, and your specialisation is your major, or special concentration. This format allows for a level of flexibility and allows students to get a grounding across the social sciences. Find out more about what the social sciences are here.

There are also a huge range of postgraduate options at US universities for students interested in pursuing further research in the social sciences.

The table for the best universities for social sciences in the US was derived from data collected for the THE World University Subject Rankings: Social Sciences. The results are calculated using 18 performance indicators underlying five metrics: research environment, teaching (the learning environment), research quality, industry and international outlook. For more insights and a detailed breakdown of our ranking methodology, visit our methodology page. Use the ranking table above to explore the right institution for you.

Thumbnail image

Section

Best universities

Subjects

Sociology

Languages, Literature & Linguistics

History, Philosophy & Theology

Geography

Economics & Econometrics

Archaeology

Standfirst

Discover the Times Higher Education rankings for the best social science schools in the US 2026.

This list highlights the top-ranked universities for social sciences in the US, based on the Times Higher Education Subject Rankings: Social Sciences 2026. These rankings provide valuable insights into the leading institutions for engineering education and research.

A total of 157 US universities have been ranked for their excellence in teaching, research, industry collaboration and international outlook.

The rankings are based on a rigorous methodology designed by Times Higher Education’s data experts, ensuring accuracy and reliability for students, academics, and industry leaders worldwide.

Country

United States

Student logo

Display TAP Popcard?

Best universities for social sciences degrees in the US 2026

Top universities in the US for social science degrees 2026

Key insights into the top universities in the US for social sciences 2026

Choosing the right university for social sciences in the US

Comments