A new report released Tuesday ranks a number of the University of Wisconsin’s graduate programs as being among the best in the nation.

The report, compiled by U.S. News and World Report, said 12 of UW’s programs made the rankings this year.

The School of Library and Information Studies was among those ranked, earning a 10th overall ranking. Greg Downey, professor in the School of Library and Information Studies as well as the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, said he was excited to hear about the results.

“The last time this ranking came out, we were also placed in the top 10, so I am very pleased that we have maintained that position, even as UW-Madison has faced severe budget cuts and faculty losses over the past few years,” he said. 

Downey said SLIS is now preparing leaders for today’s global information society and global information economy, from teaching them literary education to XML programming. The school also ranked in specialties including eighth in the nation for archives and preservation, and fifth in services for children and youth.

“We have lots of different things going on here at SLIS – including one of the first online master’s degree programs in the College of Letters and Science, an internationally-known Center for the History of Print and Digital Culture,” Downey said. “But the one I’m most involved in is the new cross-departmental digital studies certificate program, which SLIS has been part of from the start.”

The LaFollette School of Public Affairs also gained recognition, ranking 12th overall. The school also scored rankings of third in the specialty of social policy, ninth in health policy and tenth in public policy. 

Thomas DeLeire, Director of the LaFollette School, said there was great excitement in the school over the recent acknowledgment of the work it does.

“The mission of our school is improving the design public policy and the practice of governance worldwide,” DeLeire said. “In particular, we produce and publish innovative policy research. We train, mentor and educate students interested in domestic and international policy and governance in public, non-profit and private settings.”

DeLeire said the results should be attributed to the faculty’s work and their practice of the Wisconsin Idea. He said through the staff’s research, service and teaching, they have found ways to connect university expertise with real world problems. 

“We continue to strive to conduct relevant and timely policy research for today’s policymakers and to provide essential training for tomorrow’s public and non-profit leaders,” DeLeire said.

Other ranked schools include the School of Business, which was ranked 25th overall for the full-time MBA program and 21st overall for the part-time MBA program. The College of Engineering also received a 17th overall ranking and the Law School was ranked 35th overall. 

Studies inside the Schools of Social Sciences, Humanities and Science were also ranked. These include economics, ranked 14th overall; English, ranked 17th overall and chemistry, which was ranked seventh overall.