UCSB IS AMONG TOP 100 COLLEGES FOR LATINOS

When it comes to getting a Ph.D., a large number of Latino graduate students chose the University of California, Santa Barbara in the 1996-97 academic year.

In the "Top 100 Colleges for Hispanics" issue of The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education (April 23), UC Santa Barbara ranked 13th in the number of doctoral degrees given to Latino students, topping other prestigious universities such as Princeton University, MIT and Ohio State University. Among UC campuses, the much larger Davis trailed Santa Barbara.

This is the fourth edition of the "Top 100" and is one of the most widely sought, read and shared of all issues published during the year, said officials at the New Jersey-based education journal. Colleges and universities were ranked according to the number of degrees conferred to Latino students.

According to the journal, undergraduates also sought out the university, making it the 30th most popular campus for Latinos. The university issued more bachelor's degrees, 388, than Stanford University or Boston University.

UC Santa Barbara ranked 78 among 100 universities in the area of master's degrees.

The journal also broke down the diploma count by academic programs. UC Santa Barbara placed in the top 50 in biological sciences, ethnic area studies, foreign language, social sciences and visual and performing arts. The university placed in the top 100 for business and marketing.

Hispanic Outlook based its rankings on data gathered by the National Center for Education Statistics of the U.S. Department of Education. Ninety-nine percent of all universities and colleges in the country reported their 1996-97 diploma count to the center.

UC Santa Barbara serves some 19,000 students each year, making it the fourth largest campus in the UC system. Its 900-member faculty includes a 1998 Nobel prize winner in chemistry.

The campus was recently ranked in a national study as one of the top two public research universities in the country, based on per capita faculty productivity and scholarship. It boasts the only Chicano Studies department in the UC system, which includes a Chicano Studies research center and a library collection devoted to the field.

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