{"id":155249,"date":"2026-09-17T13:50:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T17:50:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=155249"},"modified":"2026-09-17T16:25:42","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T20:25:42","slug":"ucf-ranks-no-1-in-nation-for-hospitality-for-7th-year-no-2-for-transportation-science-for-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/ucf-ranks-no-1-in-nation-for-hospitality-for-7th-year-no-2-for-transportation-science-for-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"UCF Ranks No. 1 in Nation for Hospitality for 7th Year, No. 2 for Transportation Science for 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>From creating premier vacation experiences to optimizing daily life in thriving cities, UCF is recognized as a leader in education that powers industries that enhance the human experience.<\/p>\n<p>For\u00a0<strong>seven consecutive years<\/strong>, the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/college\/rosen-college-hospitality-management\/\">Rosen College of Hospitality Management<\/a>\u00a0ranks\u00a0<strong>No. 1 in the nation<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>for Hospitality and Tourism Management Programs<\/strong>, according to\u00a0<em>ShanghaiRanking<\/em>\u2019s 2026 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe ranking recognizes what Rosen College has accomplished over the past two decades,\u201d Rosen College Dean Cynthia Mejia says. \u201cWhat excites me most is how we build on that foundation. Our goal is to influence the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/hospitality-tourism\/\">future of hospitality<\/a> through the students we educate, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/research\/\">research<\/a> we produce, the partnerships we create and the solutions we help develop for the industry&#8217;s most important challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, UCF ranks\u00a0<strong>No. 2 in the nation<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/degree\/civil-engineering-ms\/transportation-systems-engineering\/\">Transportation Science and Technology<\/a><\/strong> \u2014 and in the <strong>top 10 for the seventh year in a row<\/strong>. The recognition reflects the breadth of research underway across UCF to develop solutions and advancements for the future of the transportation industry while improving safety and mobility on the nation\u2019s most critical and busiest roadways.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am happy that our hard work and expanding our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/transportation-science\">transportation<\/a> faculty have paid off in this continuous recognition,\u201d UCF Pegasus Professor Mohamed Abdel-Aty says. \u201cWe have opened new fronts in transportation systems, technology and ideas looking to the future. We balance traditional transportation research with cutting-edge and high-impact new directions.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The rankings represent significant industries that drive international economies with travel and tourism contributing to a global GDP (gross domestic product) of $11.6 trillion and supporting about one in every nine jobs around the world, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council\u2019s 2025 report.<\/p>\n<p>The <em>ShanghaiRanking <\/em>Global Ranking of Academic Subjects evaluates universities by academic discipline using research-focused indicators, these include measures related to research output, research quality, international collaboration and academic influence.<\/p>\n<h2>A Global Leader in Hospitality and Tourism Research<\/h2>\n<p>Located in the nation\u2019s top tourism destination, Rosen College students, faculty and staff are embedded in industry, allowing them to directly explore emerging areas in the field.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis ranking reflects the depth, quality and consistency of the research being produced by our faculty,\u201d Manuel Rivera, associate dean of research at Rosen College says. \u201cTo be recognized once again among the world&#8217;s leading hospitality and tourism programs is a testament to the collective efforts of our faculty, students, alumni and industry partners. The ranking recognizes the foundation Rosen College has built over the past two decades. Building on that foundation, Rosen College is helping shape the future of hospitality through impactful research, innovation, industry partnerships and the development of future leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Faculty research spans areas including tourism, lodging, events, food service, consumer behavior, technology, and the management of destinations and hospitality organizations, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>HFTP Professor of Hospitality Financial Management and Technology Mehmet Altin\u2019s study on entrepreneurial ecosystems in hospitality and tourism with a comparative analysis across economic contexts, which was published in <em>Tourism Economics<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li>Associate Professor Yun Ying Zhong, a research faculty member of UCF\u2019s Disability, Aging and Technology faculty cluster initiative, completed a systematic review of 30-year research on hospitality in healthcare, which was published in the <em>International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management<\/em>.<\/li>\n<li>Assistant Professor Frank Badu-Baiden\u2019s study of the factors influencing consumers\u2019 acceptance of drone food delivery, including the role of usefulness, emotions and perceived risk, which was published in the <em>International Journal of Hospitality Management<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The No. 1 <em>ShanghaiRanking<\/em> placement builds on Rosen College\u2019s continued excellence in curriculum, research and workforce impact as Universal Destinations &amp; Experiences (UDX) joined UCF as a Pegasus Partner in June to establish the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/universal-destinations-experiences-ucf-introduce-new-school-to-develop-the-future-leaders-of-themed-entertainment-immersive-experiences\/\">Universal School of Experience Leadership &amp; Innovation<\/a>. Through this partnership, UCF and UDX will further explore:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Service robotics and human-centered approaches to shape guest and employee interactions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>AR and VR simulation technologies for training, operations, and immersive environments<\/li>\n<li>AI and digital twins for optimizing and personalizing the guest experience<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Advancing Transportation Safety and Technology<\/h2>\n<p>With more than 23.4 million residents in 2025, Florida is the nation\u2019s third most populated state, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In the same year, the Sunshine State welcomed 143.3 million visitors\u00a0as America\u2019s No. 1 domestic travel destination, according to Visit Florida.<\/p>\n<p>As residents and tourists navigate around the state, UCF researchers are working to improve transportation challenges related to roadway safety, emerging mobility technologies and other areas.<\/p>\n<p>Abdel-Aty and Associate Professor Shaurya Agarwal lead multiple projects funded by U.S. and Florida Departments of Transportation to develop safety plans and demonstrate technologies across various Florida counties.<\/p>\n<p>One examines Florida\u2019s Regional Advanced Mobility Elements, or IFRAME, project along Interstate 4 between Orlando and Tampa. The study is evaluating the performance of advanced transportation technologies to inform decisions about future investments to enhance safety and mobility.<\/p>\n<p>Research Assistant Professor Zubayer Islam and Abdel-Aty\u2019s Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) project \u2014 the first of its kind in the nation \u2014 evaluates the effectiveness and enhancements of flexible lanes on expressways. It is the latest development in UCF\u2019s longstanding partnership with the CFX.<\/p>\n<p>For nearly 14 years, UCF has worked to make highways safer by tackling wrong-way driving, one of the nation\u2019s deadliest roadway hazards. An international expert in transportation engineering, planning and operations, Professor Haitham Al-Deek, in partnership with CFX, invented the first U.S. technology designed to detect and deter wrong-way driving on high-speed roads. Deployed across the CFX system, it has achieved an 88.5% driver self-correction rate, the highest known worldwide, which is well supported by the largest amount of data collected on the performance of the invented technology.<\/p>\n<p>Al-Deek and his students also invented the nation\u2019s first algorithm to help transportation agencies identify wrong-way driving hotspots and prioritize improvements for greatest safety impact with maximum economic efficiency. Through competitively won contracts at state and national levels, this algorithm was implemented for five transportation networks throughout Florida and Idaho.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAccording to the data we collected, the deployed lifesaving technology on CFX transportation network helped 2,541 out of the detected 2,870 wrong-way drivers self-correct and turn around safely as of June 2026,\u201d Al-Deek says.<\/p>\n<h2>Research That Translates to Daily Impact<\/h2>\n<p>UCF\u2019s performance in transportation science and technology and hospitality and tourism management reflects two distinct research strengths while also demonstrating how the university is improve daily life across the region, state and nation. The 2026 <em>ShanghaiRanking<\/em> Global Ranking of Academic Subjects also show UCF is making an impact in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/degree\/public-administration-bs\/\">Public Administration<\/a> as the No. 11 program in the nation and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/degree\/legal-studies-bs\/\">Law<\/a> as the No. 25 program across the U.S.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ShanghaiRanking\u2019s 2026 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects recognized UCF for its strengths in hospitality and tourism, and transportation science and technology \u2014 areas that drive $11.6 trillion in economic impact globally.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8713,"featured_media":155320,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"lazy_load_responsive_images_disabled":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[5,23,24],"tags":[55081,17177,973,55078,17959,16645,54711,3882,14916,54365,54969,55082],"tu_author":[],"class_list":["post-155249","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colleges","category-research","category-science-technology","tag-ahmet-ozturk","tag-college-of-community-innovation-and-education","tag-college-of-engineering-and-computer-science","tag-haitham-al-deek","tag-kevin-murphy","tag-mohamed-abdel-aty","tag-pegasus-partnerships","tag-rankings","tag-research","tag-rosen-college-for-hospitality-management","tag-universal-destinations-experiences","tag-zubayer-islam"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This 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