Times Higher Education (THE) released its 2021 Asia University Rankings list of top colleges and universities from 30 territories across the continent on June 2nd, 2021. A total of 551 institutions are included in this ranking, with Japan being the most-represented nation with 116 institutions.
The list also includes many universities and institutions from the GCC. From the UAE, five institutions made it to the list. The United Arab Emirates University placed 39th. Khalifa University followed closely in 42nd place, and the American University of Sharjah and Zayed University ranked among the 201st – 250th.
Saudi Arabia was also well represented, with ten of its academic institutions making it to the prestigious list. King Abdulaziz University took the 28th spot; Alfaisal University placed 31st; King Saud University ranked 53rd; King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals placed 84th, and King Khalid University placed 117th. Among the universities that ranked between 201st – 250th were King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences and Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University. Similarly, Umm Al-Qura University ranked in the 251st – 300th place, King Faisal University within the 301st – 350th, and Qassim University in the 401+ ranks.
Furthermore, an impressive 43 universities from Turkey made it to the list, with Sabancı University, Koç University, and Cankaya University ranking within the top 100.
Kuwait University also made it to the list ranking in the 250th – 300th while Jordan University of Science and Technology made it to the top 100 in 68th place. Other Jordanian institutions that made it to the list are Al-Balqa Applied University, The University of Jordan, Hashemite University, and Yarmouk University.
Qatar University in Doha ranked 35th with a 75:25 female to male ratio. From Oman, Sultan Qaboos University placed in the 200th – 250th, and from Lebanon, the American University of Beirut ranked 50th in a tie with the South China University of Technology.
Israel still is home to the top institution outside East and Southeast Asia, with Tel Aviv University holding on to the 25th place. However, Israeli institutions have declined overall; the country now has three universities among the top 100, down from five last year. Also noteworthy is the fact that most Indian universities have also declined in ranking.
Meanwhile, Iran has a new top institution, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, which is included in the table for the first time this year at 45th place. Most of Iran’s other representatives have also improved their ranking.
The Asia University Rankings were led by two Chinese institutions for the second year in a row – Tsinghua University in the first place and Peking University in the second. Japan achieved the best performance in six years, but China still tops the regional ranking.
THE Asia University Rankings Methodology
The Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings 2021 use the same 13 performance indicators as the THE World University Rankings. Still, these indicators are recalibrated to match the qualities of the institutions in Asia.
The universities are judged across these indicators, which are grouped into five areas:
- • Teaching (the learning environment)
- • Research (volume, income, and reputation)
- • Citations (research influence)
- • International outlook (staff, students, and research)
- • Industry income (knowledge transfer)
Forge World-Class Universities
Assess, develop, and implement strategies to improve your institution’s leadership excellence and aid global reputation ambitions with our training and consulting programmes. Click below for more information.
