Baylor Graduate, Professional Programs Across Disciplines Ranked by U.S. News
National rankings highlighted by Top 20 programs in physical therapy, nursing, health care management, trial advocacy and more
Aerial view of the Baylor University campus and downtown City of Waco. (Matthew Minard/Baylor University)
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Highlighted by Top 10 graduate programs across disciplines ranging from physical therapy and nursing to trial advocacy and health care management, Baylor University graduate and professional programs were among those nationally ranked in the 2026 Best Graduate Schools rankings, released today by U.S. News & World Report.
As a preeminent Christian Research 1 university guided by the Baylor in Deeds strategic plan, Baylor University serves more than 5,600 graduate students in more than 100 programs in multiple disciplines through Baylor's Graduate School and Online & Hybrid Professional Education programs.
Baylor Law School
Among the U.S. News Best Law Schools, Baylor Law School’s renowned Trial Advocacy program again is nationally recognized at No. 3. Ranked by U.S. News in the Top 5 yearly since 2010, Baylor Law’s Trial Advocacy program teaches all aspects of successful trial advocacy, from trial and litigation procedures to persuasive storytelling and the effective use of courtroom technologies.
Overall, Baylor Law was one of the University’s biggest movers in the U.S. News Graduate School rankings, jumping nine places into the nation’s Top 40 law schools at No. 34.
In addition, Baylor Law earned Top 20 specialty program recognition at No. 18 – and one of only two Texas law schools in the Top 20 – among Law Schools with Most Grads in Federal Clerkships. The rankings, which U.S. News debuted last year, outlined the law schools whose graduates were most likely to obtain full-time, long-term jobs serving in federal clerkships.
Louise Herrington School of Nursing
In the U.S. News Best Nursing Schools rankings, the Doctor of Nursing Practice program in Baylor’s Louise Herrington School of Nursing in Dallas continued its rankings move, jumping another six places into the Top 40 nationally at No. 37.
In specialty rankings, two Baylor LHSON graduate nursing programs also are among the top programs in their fields:
- The U.S. Army-Baylor graduate program in anesthesia nursing (USAGPAN), which operates at the U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence at Joint Base San Antonio, Fort Sam Houston, in San Antonio, moved up within the Top 10 to No. 3 nationally; and
- The nurse-midwifery program moved six places into the U.S. News Top 20 at No. 16.
Baylor nursing’s DNP program offers eight tracks, including Family Nurse Practitioner, Nurse-Midwifery, Neonatal Nurse Practitioner, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, Executive Nurse Leadership and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner and the U.S. Army-Baylor Anesthesia Nursing (USAGPAN).
Hankamer School of Business
Among U.S. News Best Business Schools, the full-time MBA program in Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business ranked No. 67 overall, highlighted by a No. 14 ranking for the online MBA program in marketing and the graduate program in entrepreneurship, which is ranked No. 22 nationally.
In addition, U.S. News highlighted a pair of business graduate programs that moved up among the nation’s Top 15 in health care administration:
- The U.S. Army-Baylor master’s degree program in health care management at No. 10, up from No. 12; and
- The MBA in health care administration, a specialized Baylor MBA, which moved up six places to No. 13.
Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences
Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences has several highly ranked programs in the latest U.S. News rankings, including:
- The U.S. Army-Baylor Doctor of Physical Therapy program, which is Top 10 nationally at No. 10;
- The innovative hybrid Doctor of Physical Therapy program, which moved up two places in the U.S. News rankings at No. 40;
- The hybrid Doctor of Occupational Therapy program, which jumped up 11 places to No. 41;
- The U.S. Army-Baylor Doctor of Occupational Therapy at No. 51;
- The Public Health graduate program at No. 74 for both its Master of Public Health and a Ph.D. in Public Health in epidemiology or social and behavioral health science; and
- The Speech-Language Pathology graduate program at No. 78 for its master’s degree (residential and online) and Ph.D. in communications sciences and disorders.
Moody School of Education
The Moody School of Education’s graduate programs were ranked No. 117 in the U.S. News Best Education Schools rankings. The SOE offers 17 graduate programs that prepare leaders for research careers or professional roles in education, administration, quantitative methods and related areas, including five Ph.D. and two Ed.D. programs, an Ed.S. in school psychology in Dallas and Waco, three M.A. programs, a joint M.A./M.S.Ed./M.Div. with Baylor’s Truett Seminary, M.S. in learning design and technology, and four M.S.Ed. programs.
Baylor School of Engineering and Computer Science
Baylor’s growing graduate engineering programs in the School of Engineering and Computer Science were ranked No. 161 overall by U.S. News. In engineering specialty rankings, Baylor’s Electrical Engineering graduate programs jumped up another nine places to No. 100, Best Materials Engineering programs with the burgeoning Ph.D. in materials science and engineering rated No. 101 and Mechanical Engineering programs at No. 128.
Psychology, social sciences and humanities
U.S. News also ranked additional Baylor graduate programs in the Diana R. Garland School of Social Work and the College of Arts & Sciences, including:
- Social Work at No. 51
- Clinical Psychology at No. 65
- Statistics at No. 72
- Chemistry at No. 77
- English at No. 90
- Sociology at No. 91
- Biological Sciences at No. 92
- Psychology at No. 95
- History at No. 96
- Political Science at No. 96
- Physics at No. 104
- Mathematics at No. 104
- Earth Sciences at No. 114
U.S. News first published a reputation-only graduate school ranking in 1987. The annual “America’s Best Graduate Schools” report began in 1990.
The annual Best Graduate School rankings evaluate professional school programs in business, education, law and nursing, among other fields, plus specialties in each area. The rankings in these areas are based on two types of data: expert opinion about program excellence and statistical indicators that measure the quality of a school’s faculty, research and students and their post-graduate outcomes.
The most current rankings are listed on usnews.com.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.