In further affirmation of Cal Poly Pomona’s mission of diversity, the university ranked first in awarding architecture undergraduate degrees to minorities and also finished high in four other categories, according to research compiled by Diverse: Issues in Higher Education magazine.
Aside from the architecture distinction, the university ranked No. 4 in hospitality management, No. 5 in both agriculture and engineering, and No. 9 in business administration among minorities receiving bachelor’s degrees. Cal Poly Pomona ranked No. 27 when all academic disciplines are taken into account.
The study assesses U.S. colleges and universities that confer bachelor’s and master’s degrees to Hispanic, African American, Asian American and Native American students. The rankings are based on degrees awarded in the 2012-13 academic year, and the top 100 schools are listed.
“Diversity is one of our university’s core values, so these rankings don’t really surprise me in that they reflect exactly that our campus has been working hard to become a welcoming place for all students,” said Byron E. Howlett Jr., acting associate vice president and dean of students. “We already knew that we have a great reputation. These rankings now confirm to those outside of the Cal Poly Pomona community that our campus has a great reputation.”
Among Hispanic students earning bachelor’s degrees, the university ranked No. 2 for both engineering and architecture, No. 5 in agriculture and hospitality management, and No. 9 for business administration.
In other academic areas for Hispanic students, the university is ranked in mathematics and statistics (No. 14), liberal arts and social sciences (No. 16), ethnic and women’s studies (No. 25), psychology (No. 34), history (No. 43), biological sciences (No. 45) and computer sciences (No. 47).
For Asian Americans receiving bachelor’s degrees, the campus is ranked No. 2 for both architecture and hospitality management, and No. 10 for engineering. In other areas, liberal arts and social sciences is listed at No. 19, while mathematics and statistics and the performing arts both come in at No. 27. History is listed at No. 45 and biological sciences is slotted at No. 50.
Cal Poly Pomona is ranked No. 22 in architecture, No. 27 in agriculture and No. 43 in engineering for African American students earning bachelor’s degrees.
For Native Americans earning bachelor’s degrees, the campus ranked No. 10 in agriculture and No. 22 in engineering.
Among Hispanic recipients of master’s degrees, Cal Poly Pomona ranked No. 14 in architecture, No. 20 in math and statistics, No. 34 in liberal arts and social sciences, and No. 48 in biological sciences. For Asian Americans receiving master’s degrees, the university came in at No. 6 in liberal arts and social sciences, No. 10 for architecture, and No. 30 for mathematics and statistics.
“Because of these rankings, prospective minority students will come to recognize and see Cal Poly Pomona as a choice campus and consider us as one of their top destination universities,” Howlett added.
In a separate college website ranking, Cal Poly Pomona was listed No. 6 in a compilation of top colleges for Hispanic students, according to BestColleges.com.
Aside from academics, the BestColleges.com ranking factored in the percentage of Hispanic students enrolled along with in- and out-of-state tuition costs. Schools also were evaluated for offering cultural centers and degree programs or scholarships dedicated to enhancing the experiences of Hispanic students.
The university also was cited for being the home of the first nationally recognized Latino fraternity, Lambda Theta Phi Latin Fraternity Inc. In addition to a Latina sorority, the university also has a variety of clubs, including La Familia, a group for Hispanic students who identify themselves as LGBT.