UMD Rises Three Spots in Computer Science Undergraduate Program Rankings
The University of Maryland’s undergraduate computer science program climbed three spots to 16th overall in the 2026 edition of U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges.” UMD ranks No. 9 overall among public institutions and in the Top 10 among publics for the specialties of artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
“Our students are at the heart of this success. Their passion for learning, creativity in solving problems and commitment to making an impact are what drive our program forward. We are proud to provide them with an environment where they can thrive and launch meaningful careers in technology and research," said Matthias Zwicker, chair of UMD’s Department of Computer Science and holder of the Elizabeth Iribe Chair for Innovation and the Phillip H. and Catherine C. Horvitz Professorship.
UMD boasts one of the largest computer science programs in the country, with nearly 4,000 undergraduate computer science majors who can pursue a specialization in cybersecurity, data science, machine learning or quantum information. UMD ranks No. 1 among non-online U.S. universities for conferring the most undergraduate degrees in computer and information science, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.
The 2024 Graduation Survey administered by the University Career Center reported a 93% placement rate of UMD’s computer science graduates with a median starting salary of $105,000 and a range of notable employers, including Amazon, Capital One, Google, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, the National Security Agency and others. Of the survey respondents, 80% reported full-time employment and 12% are continuing their education.
“It is gratifying to see our world-class computer science faculty and staff members and our outstanding students recognized in many ways, including these rankings by our peers,” said Amitabh Varshney, dean of UMD’s College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences and a professor of computer science. “We take great pride in the top-notch education and training we provide to our undergraduates, as well as our graduate students and postdocs.”
Graduates of UMD’s undergraduate computer science program include: Michael Antonov ’03, Oculus co-founder; David Baggett ’92, Inky founder; Sergey Brin ’93, Google co-founder; Katherine Calvin ’03, former NASA chief scientist; Anthony Casalena ’05, Squarespace founder; Jonathan Chen ’14, Nitra founder; Judith Dotson ’85, Booz Allen Hamilton president of the global defense sector; Josh Kamdjou ’14, Sublime Security founder; Akash Magoon ’18, Adonis co-founder; Ruvi Kitov ’97, Tufin co-founder; Cassandra Lewis ’09, Meta head of avatar innovation; Andy Looney ’86 and Kristin Looney ’88, Looney Labs co-founders; Idris Mokhtarzada ’10 and Zeki Mokhtarzada ’01, Truebill co-founders; Sujal Patel ’96, Nautilus Biotechnology co-founder; Andrew Reisse '01, Oculus co-founder; Jagdeep Singh ’86, QuantumScape founder; and Adam Wenchel ’99, Arthur co-founder.
Undergraduate computer science programs have been ranked by U.S. News & World Report for the past six years and UMD has ranked in the top 20 every year. UMD’s graduate computer science program ranks 16th overall according to U.S. News & World Report.
