Graduating from one of the world’s top universities is a doorway to success.
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European and U.S. universities dominated the 2024 Academic Ranking of World Universities as Harvard University picks up the top spot once again.
British, German, French, and Swiss universities were among the top European universities to make it to the latest 2024 edition of the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, claimed the top spot for the 22nd year in a row.
Two other American universities made up the top three, with Stanford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) coming in second and third place.
Two British Universities in the Top 10: The Only Europeans to Make It
Cambridge University ranked fourth place while Oxford came in sixth place. No other European universities made up the top ten places. The United States dominated the top 10, with eight out of the top ten spots awarded stateside.
How the Ranking Is Decided
ARWU, published by ShanghaiRanking Consultancy, calculates the ranking by evaluating several academic and research key performance indicators. These include the number of alumni awarded prestigious academic awards like Nobel Prizes or Field Medals. These are used to indicate quality of education as well as the quality of the staff and faculties at each university.
Other criteria include the number of Highly Cited Researchers, papers indexed in major citation databases, publications in top-tier journals like Nature and Science, and per capita academic output of each institution.
The Top 10 Universities in the World 2024
Harvard stormed to victory once again, with a score of 100/100 in the 2024 edition of the Academic Rankings of World Universities.
Top European Universities
Besides the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford, which both claimed top 10 spots, other European universities claimed rankings within the top 50 universities in the world.
Paris-Saclay University in France secured 12th place, a rise of three positions since last year. ETH Zurich followed in 21st place worldwide. Imperial College London and the University of Copenhagen also secured high rankings, coming 25th and 32nd respectively.
Which Countries Come Out on Top?
The United States was by far the most represented country in the top 100, with 38 institutions making the list. China followed in second with 14 universities.
In Europe, the UK led the field with 8 universities claiming spots in the top 100. The UK was followed by Switzerland, Germany, and France.
European Universities Taking Great Strides
Germany made great progress this year, with three universities ranking in the top 50 for the first time. These included the University of Munich (43rd), Technical University of Munich (47th) and Heidelberg University (50th).
French universities have also shown competitive advancement, contributing three universities to the top 50. Following Paris-Saclay in 12th came PSL University in 33rd place, and Sorbonne University in 41th spot.
Other European countries like Spain, Italy, Austria, and Portugal didn’t make it into the top 100, but were represented within the top 500 universities.
Where Did Spanish Universities Rank?
The top rated Spanish university was the University of Barcelona, ranked within the top 200 universities in the world. It was followed by the University of Valencia, the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the Autonomous University of Madrid, and the Complutense University of Madrid.
Where Does Your University Rank?
Check the ARWU rankings yourself and tell us where your university ranks!
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