Hofstra/Northwell's medical school receives top ranking for research from U.S. News & World Report

Hofstra University’s Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine has been ranked among the top research medical schools in the country, one of only two in New York State to make the list.

U.S. News & World Report announced its rankings of the top medical schools on Tuesday, and the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell received a Tier 1 ranking in the medical research category, one of 16 schools nationwide to receive such a designation.

"Our focus was not simply primary care. We wanted to be as reputable as any other medical school in the country," said Dr. David Battinelli, dean of the Zucker School of Medicine and executive vice president and physician-in-chief of Northwell Health. "It’s an incredible partnership between Hofstra and Northwell Health."

"We were very confident from the earliest days that we were going to succeed because of our ability to harvest all the resources of Northwell Health and a strong university," he said.

Rankings for medical schools were changed by U.S. News to a tier system from last year's numerical list. Tuesday's rankings mark the 10th consecutive year Zucker has been recognized for its medical research, the medical school said.

U.S. News breaks down its medical schools rankings into two lists: Best Medical Schools for Research and Best Medical Schools for Primary Care. Hofstra’s medical school received a Tier 3 designation in U.S. News’ medical school primary care rankings.

In total, there are four tiers, with Tier 1 medical schools being recognized as the highest performing and Tier 4 as the lowest performing.

Zucker’s research program comes out of opportunities facilitated through Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, in addition to collaborations with research partners like Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory," Battinelli said.

“The school of medicine is built on established education programs and robust research conducted throughout the Feinstein Institutes and Northwell Health,” Kevin J. Tracey, president and CEO of the Feinstein Institutes of Medical Research said in a statement issued to Newsday.

“This achievement is a testimony to our dedication to scientific discovery, medical education, and outstanding patient care,” Tracey said.

One other school in the state, the School of Medicine and Dentistry at University of Rochester, received a Tier 1 ranking in the medical school research category this year, according to U.S. News.

The Tuesday release on medical school rankings came as part of U.S. News & World Report's 2025 list of graduate school rankings, and is meant to help prospective students make informed decisions when applying to schools.

“The rankings are intended to provide valuable information for people interested in going to medical school," said LaMont Jones, senior editor of education at U.S. News. Medical school is "a big financial decision, one of the biggest in [students'] lives."

U.S. News produces rankings of six categories of graduate school programs, including law, business, nursing, education, engineering, and medicine, in addition to several subcategories of rankings.