A&T Shines in New U.S. News & World Report “2025 Best Graduate Schools” Rankings

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (April 8, 2025) – Graduate programs at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University logged another strong showing in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate School” rankings, led by the MBA program at the Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics.

For the fifth consecutive year, the North Carolina A&T MBA ranks among the top 100 out of more than 1,000 such programs nationwide. Tied at No. 77 – an increase of two positions over last year – with the University of Detroit Mercy, A&T also continues to have the top-ranked MBA of any historically Black college or university.

“We’re delighted, though not surprised, that the Deese College MBA continues to grow in reputation and stature,” said Joseph R. Huscroft, Ph.D., interim Deese College dean. “Our high-achieving students really perform academically and are in strong demand upon graduation, with 92% employed within three months of graduation at an average starting salary of more than $101,000. We’re very proud of them and the great reflection their success has upon the Deese College and North Carolina A&T.”

“We are excited to add this recognition to the rankings successes we have achieved as a business college, and with our MBA program in particular,” said Eric Gladney, Ph.D., Deese College associate dean and MBA director. “We look forward to continuing this momentum as we work to maximize MBA program quality and the tremendous opportunities we provide our graduates.”

In the College of Education, the acclaimed M.S. in mental health counseling – clinical rehabilitation, continued to rank among the top 50 such programs in America, tied with eight other universities including Georgia State, Louisiana State University and Southern University at No. 49.

The A&T College of Engineering rose by four positions to move into the top 150 engineering schools in the nation in a nine-way tie at No. 149 with such schools as Old Dominion, the University of Idaho and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. The college, which produces more African American engineers than any other U.S. university, has seen its overall score of 40 more than double since 2023.

The growth was driven by strong improvements in several critical measures that speak to faculty impact. Peer citations per faculty publication – the number of times a faculty member’s work has been cited in a peer-reviewed scientific journal by other faculty – rose from 4.1 to 5.8, and the percentage of time those citations were in the top 25% of science journals grew from 34% to 45%.

Improvements in engineering disciplinary rankings helped, too. The industrial and systems engineering program rose seven positions to a tie at No. 55 nationally, and the mechanical engineering program shot up by 25 positions to a tie at No. 133. Electrical engineering tied at No. 138 with 10 other campuses.

“It’s a joy to see graduate programs and colleges across our campus building momentum in national rankings,” said Clay S. Gloster, Ph.D., dean of The Graduate College at A&T. “Growth in programmatic quality is reflected in our record graduate student enrollment of 1,814 this year and 20% growth in headcount over the past five years. I’m proud of our students and our outstanding faculty.”