KU Medical Center graduate programs earn high marks in U.S. News & World Report rankings for 2024
The University of Kansas Medical Center has a number of programs that were recognized as top graduate programs in the country in U.S. News & World Report’s rankings for 2024. These programs span all three schools of KU Medical Center: the School of Health Professions, the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing.
KU School of Medicine was named one of the best schools for primary care by U.S. News for 2024. In this latest edition of Best Medical Schools, the schools were placed in tiers instead of ranked by number as they were in previous editions. There are four tiers, with Tier 1 medical schools being the highest performing and Tier 4 the lowest. KU School of Medicine placed in Tier 1 for primary care among public and private schools combined.
The Tier 1 placement, which put KU School of Medicine in the top 15 schools for primary care, is consistent with the numerical rankings for primary care released in 2023, in which KU School of Medicine was ranked No. 14.
Numbered rankings were still used for practice areas. KU School of Medicine ranked 10th in the percentage of graduates practicing in health professional shortage areas and 12th in the percentage of graduates providing direct patient care in rural areas. The school ranked 35th in the percentage of graduates practicing in primary care.
“We are pleased to rank in the top tier of medical schools for primary care,” said Akinlolu Ojo, M.D., executive dean of KU School of Medicine. “We believe this reflects our contributions and ongoing commitment to educating the next generation of physicians to serve and care for communities across Kansas and beyond.”
KU School of Health Professions’ speech-language pathology program placed 6th among public schools and 9th overall. KU’s occupational therapy program ranked 11th among public institutions, while the audiology program ranked 15th. The physical therapy program ranked 5th in the country among public schools, and 11th overall.
“This recognition of our DPT program is highly valuable to us. Our department faculty have national reputations as leaders, with multiple teaching awards and high research productivity, and our student outcomes are exceptional,” said Patricia Kluding, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation Science, and Athletic Training.
At KU School of Nursing, the nurse-midwifery program rose significantly from when the last rankings were released in 2020, jumping from 21st to 8th place overall and from 11th to 7th for public schools.
“We are ecstatic to receive this national recognition of our nurse-midwifery program. Consistent with the mission at KU Medical Center, the nurse-midwifery program is improving lives and communities by educating highly qualified clinicians through excellence and innovation,” said Cara Busenhart, Ph.D., program director of Nurse-Midwifery Education at KU School of Nursing.
The nurse-anesthesia program jumped several spots also and is now ranked 10th among public schools, up from 14th in the 2016 ranking. It ranked 22nd overall.
In September 2023, the bachelor’s program at KU School of Nursing took the No. 17 spot for all public schools in the 2024 Best Colleges rankings released by U.S. News, and it placed 23rd for public and private schools combined.
Read More
