Overall Score The Overall Score is made up of 12 parts. Six measure how students feel about free speech on campus. Three look at school speech policies. The last three look at how people on campus respond during speech controversies. A higher score reflects a better free speech climate.
64.1 Treanding Up
/ 100
Overall Rank The Overall Rank shows where a school stands among the 257 institutions evaluated, based on its Overall Score.
45 Treanding Up
/ 257
Overall grade The Grade is a letter based on the college's rounded Overall Score. Scores fall into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
4
Overview
University of Florida ranks 45 in the 2026 College Free Speech Rankings with a score of 64, a D speech climate grade. The school continues to be penalized for speech controversies — this year Florida suspended a law student over controversial speech.Policy remains Florida's strong suit: it earns a “green light” Spotlight rating and benefits from the State University System of Florida’s adoption of the Chicago Statement. Student perceptions tell a different story. This year, student perceptions are slightly worse across the board compared to last year’s perceptions.
Florida could strengthen its position by adopting an official commitment to institutional neutrality and launching more initiatives that promote open discussion.
Highlights
44% of students say they have self-censored on campus at least once or twice a month.
76% of students say shouting down a speaker to prevent them from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
34% of students say using violence to stop someone from speaking on campus is acceptable, at least in rare cases.
1.77:1
There are roughly 1.77 liberal students for every one conservative student.
Spotlight Rating
Green
Score over time
Student Voices
After the clearing of the encampment, when the state government forced the university to take a pro-Israel line and punish speech in support of Palestine
When a professor strongly hints at their political affiliation, I feel that I should not express my opinions about how I feel about topic since they have authority over my academic standing.
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Score Calculator
'How to Improve Your School' Score Calculator
Every school's score is shaped by campus policies. Adjust the factors below to see how different policies affect the ranking for the University of Florida.
Score Deep Dive
Inside the Score
Explore the key factors shaping this score. This section provides a detailed look at the data, policies, and student experiences that influence free speech on campus.
Overall Score The Overall Score is made up of 12 parts. Six measure how students feel about free speech on campus. Three look at school speech policies. The last three look at how people on campus respond during speech controversies. A higher score reflects a better free speech climate.
64.1 Treanding Up
/ 100
This score out of 100 reflects how open and supportive a campus is for free speech, based on student surveys, campus policies, and recent speech-related controversies.
Overall Rank The Overall Rank shows where a school stands among the 257 institutions evaluated, based on its Overall Score.
45 Treanding Up
/ 257
A comparison of 257 U.S. colleges and universities on free speech, based on overall scores from student surveys, campus policies, and speech-related controversies.
Overall grade The Grade is a letter based on the college's rounded Overall Score. Scores fall into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D
A school’s speech climate, shown as a letter grade (A–F), based on its overall score from student surveys, campus policies, and speech-related controversies.
Speech Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
4
Reflect recent incidents where a speaker, professor, student, or student group faced efforts to punish, disinvite, or silence them for expressing a controversial view.
Chicago Statement for Free Speech
Adopted
Institutional Neutrality
Not Adopted
Spotlight Rating
Green
Comfort Expressing Ideas Comfort Expressing Ideas measures how comfortable students feel sharing their views on controversial topics in different campus settings. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D
Disruptive Conduct Disruptive Conduct measures how acceptable students think it is to disrupt a campus speaker. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
C+
Openness Openness measures how many controversial topics students feel they can openly discuss on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
D+
Self-Censorship Self-Censorship measures how often students hold back their views on campus. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93–100) to F (below 60).
D-
Administrative Support Administrative Support measures how clearly students think their school supports free speech and how likely the administration is to defend a speaker's rights during a controversy. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Political Tolerance Political Tolerance measures how willing students are to allow controversial speakers — on both the left and right — to speak on campus, even if they disagree with their views. The grade falls into standard grade ranges from A (93-100) to F (below 60).
F
Speech Controversies
Speech Controversies: When Free Expression Is Challenged
Explore notable incidents where free speech was tested on campus. From speaker deplatformings to administrative actions, these events highlight the challenges — and consequences — of restricting expression.
Total Controversies Controversies are campus incidents where a student, professor, or speaker faces backlash or pressure for speech that's protected by the First Amendment or academic freedom.
4
Scholars Under Fire Scholar Controversies are campus incidents where a professor or academic staff member faces backlash or punishment for speech protected by academic freedom or the First Amendment.
0
Students Under Fire Student Controversies are campus incidents where a student or student group faces punishment or pressure from the school for speech that's protected by the First Amendment.
2
Deplatformings Deplatformings are the number of incidents where a scheduled event or speaker is canceled or prevented from taking place.
2
Honor Roll Statements Honor Roll Statements are the number of public messages from a college or university defending free speech during a campus controversy. Schools that make these statements can earn bonus points on their Overall Score for standing up for free expression when it counts.
0
Attempted Disruptions Attempted Disruptions are the number of incidents where people on campus try to stop a scheduled event or speaker.
0
New in 2025 The number of controversies that have occurred since the previous launch of the College Free Speech Rankings.
1
Students Under Fire
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | University of Florida | Preston Damsky | Administrators banned Damsky from campus, issuing a trespass order making it a second-degree misdemeanor for him to set foot on campus for three years, after months of escalating concern over his rhetoric about Jewish people and other groups. | -2.0 | Read More |
| 2024 | University of Florida | Keely Gliwa/Tess Segal/Parker Hovis/Rose Bisram/Augustino Pulliam | During the second day of a pro-Palestine campus protest, administrators seemingly adopted new, more restrictive, and seemingly viewpoint-discriminatory rules on campus protest and had police distribute flyers which listed prohibited activities and items and stated that non-compliance would result in a “3 year trespass and suspension.” Not only did the flyers not refer to university policy, but in several instances they appeared different from official UF policy. Among prohibited items were chairs. Noticing several protesters sitting in chairs while peacefully playing Uno, police ordered the demonstration’s dispersal. All five students were arrested for failure to obey police and obstruction without violence, and would be suspended for three years. | -1.0 | Read More |
Deplatformings
| Year | School | Target | Controversy Explanation | Score Impact | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | University of Florida | Ranna Abduljawad/Plestia Alaqad/Abi Fletcher/Umayyah Cable/Saree Makdisi/Judith Butler | Faculty members in the university’s English department invited Palestinian activists Abduljawad, Butler, Makdisi, Cable, Fletcher, and Alaqad for a two-day symposium titled “Critical Conversations in the Humanities: The War in Israel/Palestine.” Less than 24 hours before the event was scheduled to begin, university administrators withdrew support, citing policy violations in how the faculty organizers promoted the event. The faculty, who alleged that the cancellation constituted viewpoint discrimination, moved the event off-campus to a local church where it occurred successfully. | -2.0 | Read More |
| 2023 | University of Florida | Burn It Down: Communications of Resistance | The university took down a student art exhibit titled Burn It Down: Communications of Resistance, because administrators wanted to clarify that the artwork represented the views of the artists and not of the university. | -1.0 | Read More |
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More Student Voices
Sometimes, just the fear of someone taking your words and twisting them to potentially ruin your college career can be scary. I was once having a political discussion with some friends on campus and I pretty much sounded neutral the entire conversation because I was pretty much the only one who didn't agree with anyone else's views.
Survey Results
Survey Results: Student Perspectives
See how students at University of Florida perceive free speech on their campus. This section breaks down survey responses to key questions, providing insights into overall trends as well as demographic differences in how students experience free expression.
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The College Free Speech Rankings are based on student surveys, campus policies, and recent speech-related controversies.
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The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression defends and sustains the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thought — the most essential qualities of liberty. FIRE educates Americans about the importance of these inalienable rights, promotes a culture of respect for these rights, and provides the means to preserve them.
