Baylor matches best-ever U.S. News ranking, moves to No. 4 in Texas

When U.S. News released its latest ranking of national universities yesterday, the headlines around Texas didn’t focus on Baylor’s individual rank (although at No. 71, it matched the university’s highest ranking ever).

No, the headlines from outlets like the Texas Tribune noted that, after years of steady movement, Baylor passed Texas A&M to become the No. 4-ranked university in Texas. The state’s top universities, according to U.S. News, are now Rice (15), Texas (56), SMU (56) and Baylor (71). Other notables include Texas A&M (74), TCU (82), UT-Dallas (146), Texas Tech (176), Houston (194) and Dallas Baptist (214).

Baylor actually comes in at No. 2 in the Big 12, behind only Texas and ahead of TCU, Iowa State (111), Oklahoma (111), Kansas (118), Kansas State (135), Oklahoma State (152), Texas Tech and West Virginia (183).

Also notable in this year’s U.S. News numbers: Baylor’s undergraduate entrepreneurship program came in No. 9 in the nation, while the university moved up 17 places to No. 43 among the Best Colleges for Veterans. High school counselors across the country ranked Baylor No. 56 nationally in their review of which schools provide the best undergraduate education.

It’s no coincidence that this fall, Baylor welcomed a freshman class (the Class of 2020) that is not only large (second-largest in BU history), but also the most academically prepared ever (based on a combination of high school rank, SAT/ACT scores and GPA).

Sic ’em, Bears!