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THE-QS World University Rankings 2008 New world university rankings show regional discrepancies by subject area
14 October 2008
The THE-QS World University Rankings, the definitive review of the top universities around the globe, show major differences by region in the five key subject areas. The rankings, which focus heavily on the opinions of thousands of international academics and recruiters, have become the most relied-upon university grading system in the world, used by governments, academic institutions, journalists and students in every corner of the globe.
Key findings
• Technology focused institutions have thrived due largely to profound improvements in employer evaluation (examples: Caltech, MIT, ETH Zurich, Georgia Tech, KAIST)
• Asia’s weakness in the Arts & Social Sciences is profoundly demonstrated with no schools in the top 20, compared with three in Engineering / IT
• Europe edges out North America in Arts & Humanities – expectations were that the English language factor would stand strongly in North America’s favour
• North America’s primary dominance seems to lie in the Life Sciences, with 72 of the Top 200
• Australasia’s greatest strengths lie in the Arts & Humanities and Social Sciences
• Europe makes its presence most felt in Engineering & IT and Natural Sciences, fuelled by strong performances from more specialist institutions like ETH Zurich, TU Delft and ENS-Paris who all fall in the top 20 in one or the other of these disciplines
(The full results can be seen on www.topuniversities.com/worlduniversityrankings)
The rankings feature the opinions of over 6,000 academics and employers worldwide.
According to Ann Mroz, editor of THE:, “These rankings use an unprecedented amount of data to deliver the most accurate measure available of the world’s best universities, and of the strength of different nations’ university systems. The rankings are important for governments worldwide wanting to gauge the progress of their education systems, and are used in planning by universities across the world.”
Nunzio Quacquarelli, founder and Managing Director of QS, says: “In just five years, the THE-QS World University Rankings have become the primary benchmark for comparing universities across borders – recognised for their accuracy and insight. The rankings allow prospective students, parents, academics, journalists and editors to gain an insight into international university education, helping them to make the right choices, whether it is in selecting a university for study or for partnership.”
Number of schools per region in each subject area:
| Arts & Humanities | Top 20 | 50 | 100 | 200 | ||
| Asia |
| 0 | 6 | 13 | 30 | |
| Australasia | 3 | 5 | 11 | 20 | ||
| Europe |
| 2 | 17 | 41 | 86 | |
| Latin America | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| North America | 15 | 22 | 35 | 62 | ||
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| Engineering & IT |
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| Asia |
| 3 | 17 | 27 | 50 | |
| Australasia | 0 | 5 | 8 | 15 | ||
| Europe |
| 5 | 10 | 26 | 63 | |
| Latin America | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | ||
| North America | 12 | 20 | 39 | 67 | ||
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| Life Sciences |
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| Asia |
| 3 | 8 | 18 | 44 | |
| Australasia | 0 | 7 | 9 | 13 | ||
| Europe |
| 3 | 10 | 29 | 67 | |
| Latin America | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
| North America | 14 | 26 | 44 | 72 | ||
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| Natural Sciences |
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| Asia |
| 3 | 11 | 19 | 42 | |
| Australasia | 0 | 4 | 6 | 11 | ||
| Europe |
| 5 | 13 | 36 | 84 | |
| Latin America | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| North America | 12 | 22 | 38 | 58 | ||
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| Social Sciences |
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| Asia |
| 1 | 8 | 18 | 35 | |
| Australasia | 2 | 7 | 9 | 18 | ||
| Europe |
| 3 | 11 | 36 | 77 | |
| Latin America | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
