University Rankings

Find out where your university ranks on the global map

Deciding the right place to study overseas requires you to consider many factors. From the university’s reputation, curriculum, faculty, student-teacher ratio, scope of research, and employment opportunities to campus diversity and international exposure; there isn’t a single thing you can miss when finalizing your future institution.

We know this can get tedious, but you can largely map these factors by looking at the world university rankings, which compare key performance indicators across different universities or schools.

Popular university rankings

Most students planning to go abroad consider these five internationally recognized university rankings. Do note that each university ranking table has been developed using their own ranking system and is thus unique in its results.

1. Times Higher Education World University Rankings

The influencers under this ranking include teaching (30%), research (30%), citation (30%), industry income (2.5%), and international outlook (7.5%).

2. QS World University Rankings

The QS system considers the university’s reputation among other universities (40%), employers (10%), student-teacher ratio (20%), citations-academic staff ratio (20%) and international outlook including students and staff (10%) for its compilation of top universities in the world.

3. Academic Ranking of World Universities

Also known as the Shanghai Ranking, ARWU is based on citation indices of articles (20%), articles in the journals in Nature or Science (20%), highly cited (top 1%) scientists (20%), if an alumnus or alumna of the university is a Nobel laureate (10%), receiving a Nobel prize or a Fields Medal whilst working in the university (20%) and the ratio of the above achievements to the number of academic staff (10%). ARWU can be quite beneficial for students going for research or doctoral degrees.

4. CWTS Leiden Ranking

Universities are ranked on the basis of bibliometric statistics - citation impact and scientific collaboration - as per CWTS Leiden Ranking You can study the ranking of a particular institution by selecting the time period, field, country, and your preferred type of indicator.

5. The Webometrics Ranking

Unlike the conventional parameters, the Webometrics Ranking system uses the university’s as its indicators for its ranking.

Conduct additional research 

Rankings should be used together with additional research of each university or school so you can make an informed choice about where to go based on your own preferences. It’s important to note that these tools are not the only measure of how appropriate the university or school may be for you; it is just one of the elements to consider.

How can you use university rankings to shortlist universities?

You can further analyze a university on the basis of country/region, course/program, and your preferred subject.

For instance, if you wish to study management, look for universities that rank higher in your preferred field of study. It is quite possible that the university ranking the highest globally may not be the best in its department of management.

Once you have your list of shortlisted universities, dive deeper by studying each of its curriculum, modules offered, faculties, teaching methodologies, culture, campus life, and sustainability.

Are university rankings important?

To an extent - yes! Rankings can help you sort your options; they can also make you aware of universities you may not have otherwise heard of! Each ranking is compiled on the basis of its own list of factors taken into consideration.

To make a well-informed choice, you can always walk into your nearest Get Guidelines office and meet with our international education specialists. Our team is backed by a sophisticated knowledge matching system that contains all the latest information on our partner institutions, including high schools, English language schools, vocational colleges, and universities.

Your Get Guidelines counsellor can assist in finding the right university for you and help you get where you want to be!