Who’s No. 1? UCLA and UC Berkeley stake their claims on social media

Who’s No. 1?

UCLA and UC Berkeley can’t seem to agree. In fact, they refuse to back down from a top spot.

When U.S. News and World Report released its global rankings last month, Cal was the first public university to appear on the list — even though it was technically ranked No. 6 — behind five private campuses, including Harvard, MIT and Stanford.

But being the top public university to pop up on the global list was enough for Berkeley, leading to an avalanche of social media boasts for the oldest UC campus.

“#1 public” UC Berkeley posted on its Instagram and TikTok accounts, with a photo of Oski the Bear and the hashtag “#HolyAirBall,” a reference to a meme about severely underestimating someone’s talent or accomplishments.

Not to be usurped, UCLA within days began posting on its own socials: “Still #1,” it said, citing another U.S. News national ranking of public universities that came out nine months ago and put the Bruins as the top public campus in the nation.

Fans and alumni of both schools have been sparring ever since.

“Wow, UCLA really takes these rankings very seriously,” wrote a user on the Berkeley Reddit community.

Berkeley fans have flooded UCLA’s Instagram, with GIFs of Oski the Bear dancing.

“Lol UCLA and Berkeley both posting they’re #1,” commented an Instagram follower who has degrees from both campuses.

“UCLA #1 in national rankings — the one that actually matters 😇” said one of the most-liked comments on Berkeley’s TikTok post about its rank.

“Meh. UCLA all day every day,” went a TikTok comment, while another made an observation: “Damn, so many insecure UCLA trolls here in the comments freaking out.”

The UC Berkeley Chancellor, Rich Lyons, has even chimed in.

“We admire UCLA’s eagerness to take a single ranking for its undergraduate program and use it for all it is worth,” Lyons, a 1982 Berkeley alumnus, said to The Times. “We know how challenging a sibling rivalry can be for the younger sibling. Go Bears (and Bruins).”

Mary Osako, a 1996 UCLA alumna and the school’s Vice Chancellor of Strategic Communications, shot back, citing the campus ranking as the top public on the U.S. News national list for multiple years.

“Bruins everywhere love celebrating our No. 1 ranking — we’ve been diligently doing so for eight years, but who’s counting?” she said. “Our playful banter may have ruffled a few (golden) feathers. UCLA and Cal are both top public universities that are changing the world for the better. Bruin or Bear, we can all be proud of that.”

The schools that have long competed for professors, students, athletes and federal grants. Add rankings to the list.

UCLA students in front of the Bruin Bear statue.

(Brian van der Brug/Los Angeles Times)

But what gives? Is there really a No. 1?

The U.S. News and World Report rankings differ in methodology and scope. The global list, which looked at 2,250 institutions — private and public — focused on academic research, including citations, and regional reputation. It’s supposed to be an overall assessment that isn’t based on graduate or undergraduate programs alone.

On the global list, UCLA ranked as the third-best public university in the country. University of Washington in Seattle was the No. 2 public school.

The national list of public colleges and universities zeroed in on the undergraduate experience at 1,500 campuses, weighing areas including graduation rates, first-year retention, how well students from lower-income families perform and the results of “peer assessment” surveys sent to college presidents, provosts and deans of admissions.

On that tally, Berkeley took second place behind UCLA. The two rivals have been neck and neck for several years, including a #1 tie in 2023.

The rankings are popular — many campuses in the country covet the lists — and controversial.

Over the years, several prominent professional schools have pulled out of providing data to the the U.S. News law school rankings. In 2022, UCLA and UC Irvine law school deans said they’d boycott the rankings because of the group’s methodology, which they said disincentivized students who embarked on public service careers. That year, former U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said undergraduate rankings were a “joke” because they push schools to game the system.

There’s also a competing world of list-makers. Some of the most popular ones: Wall Street Journal’s “best colleges,” Forbes’ “America’s top colleges,” and for international rankings, Times Higher Education and QS “world university rankings.”

“There are many rankings, each has a slightly different focus, and each with its own source of noise,” said UC Berkeley Chancellor Lyons, who carries a rankings table in his coat pocket that shows Berkeley’s scores. “The more robust picture is a weighted average across them.”

Students walk through Sproul Plaza at UC Berkeley.

(Eric Risberg / Associated Press)

In the business of college ranking services — which are themselves vying to carve out popular niches — both UCs tend to fare pretty well, though Berkeley does beat Westwood overall.

• On the Wall Street Journal list, Berkeley is No. 8 while UCLA is No. 68. The Journal accounts strongly for estimates of how much attending a certain school will affect a graduate’s salary.
• Forbes puts the Bears at No. 5 and Bruins at No. 13. Forbes list heavily weighs whether a school’s alumni appear on a “Forbes American Leaders” list.
• The Times Higher Education ranks Berkeley at No. 8, 10 notches above Westwood.
• On the QS tally, Cal is No. 17, while UCLA is No. 46. The Times Higher Education and QS rankings, which have an international angle, look closely at academic research.

Soubhik Barari, a research methodologist at NORC at the University of Chicago, has studied college rankings and co-wrote a 61-page paper last year analyzing the major college lists.

What he found is that none are perfect. Many change how they much they weigh different factors or what they look at from year-to-year. They often don’t account for uncertainty or margin or error, he said.

“So many people pay attention to these college rankings,” said Barari. “It’s not always clear what they are measuring. Are you measuring the best college for the average college student? Are you measuring it based on other factors that you think are important for higher education? Are you looking at the median college student? Are you looking at domestic students or international students?”

Barari, a Tufts University undergrad alum with graduate degrees from Harvard, steered clear of taking a side in the UC rivalry.

The Bruins vs. Bears competition seems nowhere near its end, with the ranking brags continuing on social media and campus websites.

When UCLA posted on TikTok recently about its No. 1 spot, the most-liked comment said, “NOT number 1 🤣 🤣.”

The second-most liked comment? “I thought #1 was Berkeley.”

When Berkeley made a similar post to its TikTok, responses came in from the other direction.

“Love the confidence but no ❤️.”

“That’s awesome! What about the #2 you guys posted on ur Instagram 😉. 8 years straight baby,” said an obvious UCLA lover, referring to an older Berkeley post about being the No. 2 public on the U.S. News national list.

Still, the charts — and stacks of applications — show that both campuses are desirable places to land.

The two schools also share a lot more in common than they let on.

After all, isn’t a Bruin a Bear?