Michigan State University’s online graduate civil engineering program, housed in the College of Engineering, has been ranked No. 5 among universities nationwide and No. 3 among public institutions, according to the U.S. News & World Report Online Program Rankings 2025 Edition. This is the first time MSU has appeared in the online graduate civil engineering rankings.

“Our online civil engineering master’s program is built upon our strengths in transportation, pavement engineering, and structural engineering, with a strong focus on emerging areas and industry needs,” said John Papapolymerou, interim dean of the College of Engineering. “This ranking by our peers confirms our efforts to deliver high-quality educational experiences through this program are indeed successful.”

Out of more than 300 online graduate programs nationwide, MSU’s online graduate program in the College of Education ranks No. 7 overall and among public institutions for the second year in a row. Additional education disciplines also continue to rank in the top 10, including: 

• No. 3 for curriculum and instruction
• No. 3 for educational administration and supervision
• No. 6 for educational/instructional media design
• No. 9 for special education

Out of more than 200 online non-MBA graduate programs, the Broad College of Business’s online non-MBA graduate program ranks No. 8 overall and No. 5 among public institutions. MSU is also ranked No. 5 overall and among publics in online business programs for veterans.

The Broad College can also boast No. 1 ranks in the general management, health care administration, human resources management, and organizational behavior specialties, as well as No. 2 in the leadership and marketing specialties.

Among nearly 100 programs ranked nationwide, the MSU College of Social Science’s online graduate program in criminal justice ranks No. 10 overall and No. 6 among public institutions for the second year in a row. MSU is also ranked No. 7 overall and No. 5 among publics for criminal justice programs for veterans.

U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on a combination of reputational surveys, data-based metrics and metrics specific to online instruction.