̽Ƶ

World’s leading young universities revealed

̽Ƶ ranks the top universities in the world under 50 years old
July 3, 2023
THE's Young University Rankings 2023

ձᷡ’s Young University Rankings 2023 reveals the leading 'next generation' universities that are 50 years old or younger -- and topping the ranking is Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.

The institution, which was established in 1991, moved up one place from last year and is one of the highest ranked Asian universities in ձᷡ’s World University Rankings.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology is in second place, up one place from last year. The university, established in 1991, is one of the best in Hong Kong and focuses on providing students with a science and technology education.

In third place is Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris, which moved down two places from last year, where it was first for the first time last year. The collegiate university was formed from a range of older institutions in 2010 with the aim of becoming one of the world’s leading research universities.

Top 10 universities in the world under 50

University

Country/territory

2023 rank

2022 rank

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Singapore

1

2

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Hong Kong

2

3

Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris

France

3

1

Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Hong Kong

4

5

Erasmus University Rotterdam

Netherlands

5

4

City University of Hong Kong

Hong Kong

6

10

University of Antwerp

Belgium

7

7

Institut Polytechnique de Paris

France

8

6

University of Technology Sydney

Australia

9

8

Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST)

South Korea

10

11

Australia has the world’s highest scoring young universities, on average, with an overall score of 53.0, coming ahead of all other countries that have had four or more institutions continuously ranked in ձᷡ’s Young University Rankings since 2019. The rankings see Germany drop to second place with an average score of 52.5. The United Arab Emirates climbs up to the third spot with 51.2, overtaking Italy and France.

Hong Kong has the most institutions - three - in the top 10, while France is the most represented country in the top 20, with five universities.

Italy’s Humanitas University is the highest new entry in the ranking in 29th place.

Turkey has the most universities with 47, followed closely by India with 45. Iran surpasses the UK-(which had 37 ranked universities last year) to become the third most-represented nation, with 39. There are 78 countries/territories in the ranking this year, up from 74 last year. Making their debut are: Bangladesh, Ethiopia and Namibia.

605 universities are in the ranking this year up from 539 in 2022. A further 358 institutions are listed with “reporter” status, meaning that they provided data but did not meet our eligibility criteria to receive a rank.

Top 10 countries with the most represented universities, including their highest ranked institution

Country/region

Highest ranked university

Ranking

Number of ranked universities

Turkey

Koç University

=55

47

India

Mahatma Gandhi University

=77

45

Iran

Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences

=65

39

United Kingdom

Bournemouth University

41

38

Spain

Pompeu Fabra University

18

32

Australia

University of Technology Sydney

9

23

France

Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris

3

23

Pakistan

University of Management and Technology

101–150

22

Italy

Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies – Pisa

19

18

Taiwan

Asia University, Taiwan

=65

18

Phil Baty, ̽Ƶ’s chief global affairs officer, said:

“Some of the world's leading universities have had several centuries to accumulate wealth and reputation, so it is very important for ̽Ƶ to shine a light on the younger generation of universities - the future Harvard and Oxfords. As well as those that have managed to make outstanding progress in rapid time, offering a case study for dynamic transformation.

“This ranking can act as an important contextual benchmarking system for rapidly emerging institutions and nations and also, we hope, a great tool for prospective students who want to make more informed decisions about where to study."

The table is based on the same 13 performance indicators as the flagship THE World University Rankings but the weightings have been adjusted to give less weight to reputation. The universities are judged across all their core missions: teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook, to provide the most comprehensive and balanced comparisons.

The Young University Rankings was revealed at ձᷡ’s at an exclusive fringe event discussing how young universities are leading the way in Europe, sponsored by Constructor University, Germany.

View the Young University Rankings 2023 methodology here, see the full Young University Rankings 2023 table hereand read our analysis of the Young University Rankings 2023 results.

***ENDS***

Featured jobs

See all jobs
ADVERTISEMENT