Long Beach State University a National Leader in Diversity

Published August 29, 2018
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LONG BEACH, Calif. (Aug. 29, 2018) – Long Beach State University awarded the second-most bachelor’s degrees in the United States to minority students during the 2016-17 academic year, according to the latest issue of Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.

The rankings signify an upward trend for the campus, which placed third in the magazine’s 2017 analysis.

The Long Beach campus awarded 6,100 bachelor’s degrees to African American, Asian American, Hispanic and Native American students during the 2016-17 academic year. That number signifies an 11 percent increase from the previous year, according to the magazine’s annual report on the United States’ Top 100 institutions awarding degrees to minority students.

“These rankings affirm our commitment to both inclusion and degree completion,” President Jane Close Conoley said. “As we welcome the largest class of students to ever attend Long Beach State, I want to commend our faculty and staff for helping students from all backgrounds access a quality education.”

How Long Beach State ranked in other categories:

  • Bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanic students – 3rd place
  • Bachelor’s degrees awarded to Asian American students – 10th place
  • Bachelor’s degrees awarded to Native American students – 73rd place
  • Master’s degrees awarded to Hispanic students – 14th place
  • Master’s degrees awarded to minority students – 34th place
  • Master’s degrees awarded to Asian American students - 36th place

The rankings are the product of the sole national-level analysis of its kind for the U.S. Department of Education’s most recent data for the 2016-17 academic year, according to Diverse: Issues in Higher Education.

“That ranking is very well-deserved, and it makes me proud to be the student body president of a student population that represents students of color, and that we’re actually getting those students of color to graduate,” Associated Students President Genesis Jara said.

Associated Students President Genesis Jara speaks to Long Beach State’s culture of inclusive excellence.

In July, Diverse: Issues in Higher Education published a ranking of the United States’ top degree producing institutions for STEM fields. Those rankings included the finding that Long Beach State University ranked in 14th place for the number of bachelor’s degrees in engineering awarded to minority students.

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About the campus: Long Beach State University is a teaching-intensive, research-driven university committed to providing highly valued undergraduate and graduate degrees critical for success in the globally minded 21st century. Annually ranked among the best universities in the West and among the best values in the entire nation, the university’s eight colleges serve more than 37,500 students. The campus values and is recognized for rich educational opportunities provided by excellent faculty and staff, exceptional degree programs, diversity of its student body, fiduciary and administrative responsibility and the positive contributions faculty, staff, students and more than 300,000 alumni make on society.