US News Best Undergraduate Programs Rankings include four rankings:

1. Best Undergraduate Business Programs Rankings
2. Best Undergraduate Computer Science Programs Rankings
3. Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs Rankings (two separate rankings - one for HEIs where doctorate is highest degree and one for HEIs where doctorate is not offered) 
4. Best Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Programs Rankings 

BEST UNDERGRADUATE BUSINESS PROGRAMS RANKINGS 

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Undergraduate Business Programs rankings are based solely on peer assessment surveys (the judgments of deans and senior faculty members at peer institutions). These deans and faculty members – two at each AACSB-accredited business program – were asked to rate the quality of all programs with which they were familiar on a scale from 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished). To appear on these surveys, undergraduate business programs must be accredited by AACSB International.

U.S. News determined average peer assessment scores for each business program by computing a trimmed mean – eliminating the two highest and two lowest scores given by respondents. Average scores were then sorted and undergraduate business programs were ranked in descending order based on the average peer assessment score. Undergraduate programs that received the most mentions in each area are ranked in descending order by number of mentions. A school or program had to receive seven or more top-15 nominations in a specific specialty area to be listed. This means that schools ranked at the bottom of each specialty ranking received at least seven nominations. 

SPECIALTY RANKINGS

U.S. News also asked those same respondents to nominate up to 15 of the best programs in these 13 business specialty areas:

• Accounting
• Business analytics
• Entrepreneurship
• Finance
• International business 
• Insurance / risk management 
• Management information systems 
• Marketing
• Management 
• Production / operations management
• Quantitative analysis / methods
• Real estate
• Supply chain management / logistics 

Methodology: https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/undergraduate-business-programs-methodology

BEST UNDERGRADUATE ENGINEERING PROGRAMS RANKINGS

The U.S. News & World Report Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs rankings are based solely on the judgments of deans and senior faculty at peer institutions. Respondents were asked to rate each program they were familiar with on a scale from 1 (marginal) to 5 (distinguished). Each qualifying engineering school or program was sent two peer assessment surveys. To appear on an undergraduate engineering survey, a school must have an undergraduate engineering program accredited by ABET.

U.S. News has separate rankings for the 210 undergraduate engineering programs at colleges or universities that offer doctoral degrees in engineering and for the 239 engineering programs at institutions where the terminal degree in engineering is a bachelor’s or master’s. There were two separate surveys and respondent groups, which means that deans and senior faculty only rated engineering programs within their institution’s ranking category. All programs surveyed are ranked.

Average peer assessment scores for each engineering program were determined by computing a trimmed mean – eliminating the two highest and two lowest scores given by respondents. Average scores were then sorted and undergraduate engineering programs were ranked in descending order based on the average peer assessment score. Schools that received the most mentions in each specialty appear on the site, ranked in descending order by number of mentions. A school or program had to receive seven or more top-15 nominations in a specialty area to be listed. This means that schools ranked at the bottom of each specialty ranking received at least seven nominations. 

SPECIALTY RANKINGS

U.S. News also asked respondents for nominations of up to 15 of the best engineering programs in 12 specialty engineering areas:

• Aerospace / aeronautical / astronautical
• Bioengineering / biomedical
• Biological and agricultural
• Chemical
• Civil
• Computer engineering
• Electrical / electronic / communications
• Environmental / environmental health
• Industrial / manufacturing / systems
• Materials
• Mechanical
• Petroleum 

Methodology: https://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/articles/undergraduate-engineering-programs-methodology

BEST UNDERGRADUATE COMPUTER SCIENCE PROGRAMS RANKINGS

Top academics and officials at computer science programs rated the overall quality of undergraduate programs with which they were familiar on a 1-5 scale. A school’s undergraduate computer science rank is solely determined by its average of scores received from these surveys. To be included in this standalone peer assessment survey and ranked, a program must either have been accredited by ABET or have recently awarded 20 or more bachelor’s degrees in computer science.

Methodology: https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/computer-science-overall

BEST BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN NURSING (BSN) PROGRAMS

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs rankings are determined by the average of scores received from surveys of top academics and officials at nursing schools or departments. These officials rated the overall quality of undergraduate BSN programs they were familiar with on a 1-5 scale. Schools are included and ranked in this standalone peer assessment survey if they have bachelor’s-level accreditation by either the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. In addition, these regionally accredited institutions must have recently awarded at least 35 BSN degrees.

Methodology: https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/nursing-overall