photo by: Journal-World Staff

The University of Kansas on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026.

The University of Kansas held steady at No. 74 for the second straight year among public universities in the nation, but fell five spots among all universities in the latest rankings of ‘Best Colleges’ by U.S. News & World Report released Tuesday.

KU is now ranked No. 148 among all universities in the U.S — both public and private.

KU’s 74th spot among public universities puts the school in line with other public universities that received a similar ranking, including the University of Kentucky, the University of Massachusetts and the University of Rhode Island.

KU also has three undergraduate programs ranked in the top 50 among public universities, including in Nursing (No. 14), Psychology (No. 37) and Business (No. 44).

The annual rankings by the U.S. News & World Report is considered one of the top measures of academic institutions in the country.

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