Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University: Rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 58 in United States, 97 in the global 2026 rating, and scored in the TOP 1-3 across multiple research topics. The ranking is based on 3 factors: research output (EliteDegrees's index has 151,942 academic publications and 4,439,531 citations attributed to the university), non-academic reputation, and the impact of notable alumni.
| Position | Category |
|---|---|
| # 97 of 14,131 | In the World |
| # 1 of 2 | In Blacksburg |
| # 62 of 2,597 | In North America |
| # 58 of 2,496 | In United States |
| # 2 of 63 | In Virginia |
| # 59 of 5,096 | For Business |
| # 68 of 5,910 | For Engineering |
| # 86 of 6,463 | For Environmental Science |
| Top 1-3 | For 12 other topics |
Jump to topical rankings below
Engineering rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 33 for Engineering in United States and 68 in the World with 88,694 publications made and 2,601,619 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Engineering Subfield Rankings
Physics rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 45 for Physics in United States and 94 in the World with 76,171 publications made and 2,316,185 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Physics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Applied Physics | #28 | #28 | #56 |
| Optics | #53 | #58 | #146 |
| Nanotechnology | #49 | #54 | #155 |
| Astrobiology | #78 | #87 | #201 |
| Theoretical | #62 | #70 | #221 |
| Molecular | #73 | #81 | #223 |
| Condensed Matter | #67 | #75 | #249 |
| Biophysics | #109 | #121 | #269 |
| Quantum and Particle physics | #38 | #43 | #81 |
Biology rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 82 for Biology in United States and 202 in the World with 74,470 publications made and 2,455,452 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Biology Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animal Science | #17 | #18 | #25 |
| Forestry | #18 | #21 | #31 |
| Toxicology | #22 | #24 | #32 |
| Horticulture | #24 | #25 | #53 |
| Entomology | #35 | #38 | #67 |
| Botany | #39 | #44 | #78 |
| Paleontology | #47 | #52 | #96 |
| Zoology | #42 | #49 | #103 |
| Wildlife and Fisheries Management | #55 | #63 | #135 |
| Evolutionary | #68 | #77 | #139 |
| Microbiology | #59 | #69 | #139 |
| Nanotechnology | #49 | #54 | #155 |
| Astrobiology | #78 | #87 | #201 |
| Virology | #84 | #95 | #205 |
| Bioinformatics / Computational biology | #85 | #95 | #216 |
| Biotechnology | #83 | #95 | #218 |
| Biochemistry | #97 | #109 | #261 |
| Genetics | #100 | #114 | #266 |
| Biophysics | #109 | #121 | #269 |
| Neuroscience | #107 | #122 | #273 |
| Immunology | #106 | #121 | #355 |
| Molecular | #129 | #145 | #408 |
| Oncology | #129 | #143 | #483 |
| Pharmacology | #141 | #156 | #548 |
| Ethics | #207 | #229 | #561 |
| Nutrition and Food Science | #27 | #35 | #94 |
| Agricultural Science | #21 | #22 | #33 |
Environmental Science rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 45 for Environmental Science in United States and 86 in the World with 71,149 publications made and 2,184,769 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Environmental Science Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forestry | #18 | #21 | #31 |
| Environmental Engineering | #13 | #16 | #47 |
| Hydrology and Water resources | #11 | #12 | #50 |
| Ecology | #39 | #44 | #74 |
| Environmental Management | #31 | #36 | #92 |
| Geology | #46 | #51 | #92 |
| Paleontology | #47 | #52 | #96 |
| Earth science and Geoscience | #37 | #42 | #100 |
| Oceanography | #46 | #51 | #116 |
| Wildlife and Fisheries Management | #55 | #63 | #135 |
| Meteorology and Atmospheric Science | #35 | #39 | #77 |
| Geography and Cartography | #45 | #49 | #86 |
Chemistry rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 67 for Chemistry in United States and 166 in the World with 69,554 publications made and 2,287,961 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Chemistry Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biochemical Engineering | #37 | #43 | #122 |
| Physical | #42 | #48 | #140 |
| Organic chemistry | #56 | #60 | #146 |
| Nanotechnology | #49 | #54 | #155 |
| Computational | #59 | #66 | #172 |
| Biochemistry | #97 | #109 | #261 |
| Pharmacy | #75 | #88 | #388 |
| Radiochemistry | #67 | #77 | #477 |
| Polymer science and Plastics engineering | #18 | #20 | #43 |
| Materials Science | #34 | #38 | #98 |
| Petrology and Geochemistry | #25 | #29 | #66 |
Computer Science rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 48 for Computer Science in United States and 91 in the World with 67,631 publications made and 1,973,856 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Computer Science Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software Engineering | #14 | #17 | #25 |
| Multimedia | #21 | #23 | #31 |
| Telecommunications | #21 | #24 | #44 |
| Animation | #25 | #28 | #48 |
| Computer Engineering | #23 | #25 | #49 |
| Cryptography and Distributed computing | #24 | #26 | #50 |
| Management Information Systems (MIS) | #34 | #39 | #84 |
| Data Science | #47 | #56 | #86 |
| Robotics | #26 | #31 | #97 |
| Machine Learning | #45 | #52 | #98 |
| Computer Vision | #47 | #55 | #113 |
| Information Technology | #76 | #85 | #162 |
| Computational Linguistics | #56 | #66 | #181 |
| Cognitive Science | #76 | #90 | #205 |
| Bioinformatics / Computational biology | #85 | #95 | #216 |
| Neuroscience | #107 | #122 | #273 |
| Web Design and Development | #22 | #24 | #38 |
| Library and Information science | #46 | #50 | #75 |
| Human-Computer Interaction | #11 | #12 | #18 |
| Database Administration | #46 | #51 | #92 |
| Cyber Security | #35 | #38 | #57 |
| Computer Networking | #26 | #29 | #42 |
| Artificial Intelligence (AI) | #38 | #43 | #80 |
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 58 for Liberal Arts & Social Sciences in United States and 154 in the World with 60,653 publications made and 1,682,146 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Liberal Arts & Social Sciences Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education | #43 | #48 | #75 |
| Aesthetics | #44 | #51 | #94 |
| Forensic Science | #37 | #42 | #97 |
| Archaeology | #48 | #53 | #104 |
| Law | #58 | #68 | #113 |
| History | #50 | #57 | #117 |
| Political Science | #59 | #70 | #129 |
| Gender Studies | #70 | #81 | #131 |
| Media Studies | #57 | #66 | #134 |
| Sociology | #68 | #79 | #145 |
| Linguistics | #63 | #73 | #146 |
| Special Education | #79 | #90 | #154 |
| Publishing | #66 | #80 | #170 |
| Anthropology | #80 | #93 | #172 |
| Broadcast Journalism | #80 | #91 | #173 |
| Genealogy | #82 | #96 | #175 |
| Philosophy | #59 | #72 | #204 |
| Demography | #92 | #106 | #210 |
| Social Work | #107 | #121 | #241 |
| Early Childhood Education | #59 | #62 | #95 |
| Communications and Public Relations | #50 | #59 | #96 |
| Military science | #56 | #59 | #81 |
| Journalism and Digital Media | #56 | #61 | #89 |
Medicine rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 106 for Medicine in United States and 294 in the World with 43,474 publications made and 1,316,421 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Medicine Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toxicology | #22 | #24 | #32 |
| Veterinary | #22 | #23 | #48 |
| Forensic Science | #37 | #42 | #97 |
| Clinical Psychology | #78 | #91 | #143 |
| Paramedicine and Emergency | #86 | #98 | #157 |
| Sports | #77 | #91 | #189 |
| Virology | #84 | #95 | #205 |
| Gerontology | #110 | #124 | #215 |
| Health Science | #102 | #115 | #218 |
| Physical Therapy | #93 | #109 | #240 |
| Social Work | #107 | #121 | #241 |
| Nursing | #104 | #120 | #242 |
| Audiology | #104 | #118 | #289 |
| Orthodontics | #86 | #97 | #289 |
| Urology | #95 | #110 | #306 |
| Psychiatry | #113 | #129 | #312 |
| Dentistry | #90 | #100 | #323 |
| Healthcare Administration | #130 | #149 | #335 |
| Pathology | #111 | #126 | #347 |
| Immunology | #106 | #121 | #355 |
| Pharmacy | #75 | #88 | #388 |
| Occupational Therapy | #122 | #142 | #400 |
| Radiology | #123 | #138 | #424 |
| Optometry | #135 | #151 | #458 |
| Oncology | #129 | #143 | #483 |
| Plastic Surgery | #142 | #153 | #488 |
| Surgery | #131 | #146 | #513 |
| Epidemiology | #132 | #151 | #539 |
| Pharmacology | #141 | #156 | #548 |
| Radiation Therapy | #131 | #145 | #550 |
| Anesthesiology | #145 | #162 | #551 |
| Ethics | #207 | #229 | #561 |
| Cardiology | #150 | #166 | #580 |
| Ophthalmology | #169 | #187 | #658 |
| Obstetrics and Gynecology | #142 | #160 | #731 |
| Pediatrics | #163 | #182 | #732 |
| Dermatology | #153 | #170 | #794 |
| Neurosurgery | #161 | #179 | #795 |
| Cosmetology | #167 | #186 | #893 |
Mathematics rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 49 for Mathematics in United States and 95 in the World with 33,999 publications made and 990,191 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Mathematics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operations Research | #18 | #20 | #39 |
| Cryptography and Distributed computing | #24 | #26 | #50 |
| Applied Mathematics | #33 | #37 | #64 |
| Mathematics Education | #49 | #53 | #88 |
| Econometrics | #52 | #59 | #95 |
| Statistics | #54 | #62 | #107 |
| Actuarial Science | #65 | #72 | #115 |
Business rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 38 for Business in United States and 59 in the World with 30,585 publications made and 925,761 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Business Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engineering Management | #3 | #3 | #3 |
| Construction Management | #9 | #9 | #17 |
| Operations Research | #18 | #20 | #39 |
| Management | #27 | #29 | #48 |
| Advertising | #35 | #37 | #48 |
| Marketing | #36 | #38 | #54 |
| Real Estate | #36 | #38 | #77 |
| Risk Management | #38 | #43 | #79 |
| Management Information Systems (MIS) | #34 | #39 | #84 |
| Accounting | #56 | #61 | #87 |
| Actuarial Science | #65 | #72 | #115 |
| Project Management | #36 | #43 | #118 |
| Finance | #60 | #68 | #121 |
| Entrepreneurship | #95 | #111 | #292 |
| International Trade | #86 | #105 | #422 |
| Hospitality and Hotel Management | #3 | #4 | #11 |
Psychology rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 93 for Psychology in United States and 208 in the World with 26,727 publications made and 829,254 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Psychology Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education | #43 | #48 | #75 |
| Human Sexuality | #81 | #89 | #115 |
| Clinical Psychology | #78 | #91 | #143 |
| Special Education | #79 | #90 | #154 |
| Cognitive Science | #76 | #90 | #205 |
| Social Work | #107 | #121 | #241 |
| Neuroscience | #107 | #122 | #273 |
| Psychiatry | #113 | #129 | #312 |
| Occupational Therapy | #122 | #142 | #400 |
| Organizational / Business / IO Psychology | #61 | #69 | #97 |
Economics rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 62 for Economics in United States and 123 in the World with 16,983 publications made and 477,786 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Economics Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Econometrics | #52 | #59 | #95 |
| Actuarial Science | #65 | #72 | #115 |
| Finance | #60 | #68 | #121 |
| International Trade | #86 | #105 | #422 |
| Agricultural Economics | #27 | #30 | #45 |
Art & Design rankings
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University ranked 43 for Art & Design in United States and 86 in the World with 12,694 publications made and 323,313 citations received.
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Art & Design Subfield Rankings
| Field | Nat. | Cont. | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graphic Design | #18 | #19 | #25 |
| Multimedia | #21 | #23 | #31 |
| Animation | #25 | #28 | #48 |
| Architecture | #25 | #28 | #73 |
| Aesthetics | #44 | #51 | #94 |
| Creative Writing | #44 | #52 | #98 |
| Literature | #54 | #65 | #126 |
| Interior Design | #31 | #37 | #156 |
| Music | #69 | #77 | #165 |
| Photography | #77 | #92 | #201 |
| Acting and Drama | #98 | #119 | #311 |
| Cinematography | #130 | #152 | #430 |
| Landscape Architecture | #74 | #90 | #439 |
| Sculpture | #132 | #152 | #582 |
| Computer Graphics | #33 | #36 | #60 |
| Fashion Design | #46 | #51 | #98 |
| UX/UI Desgin | #11 | #11 | #12 |
| Game Design and Development | #10 | #11 | #12 |
