This year’s Young University Rankings was released by Times Higher Education (THE) on Wednesday, June 23rd. The results feature 475 relatively young universities which were founded up to 50 years ago. According to THE, as soon as an institution reaches its 51st birthday, it drops out of the ranking. In total, the rankings feature universities from 68 nations and territories worldwide. This year’s Young University Rankings feature more Asian universities than the previous years, with South Korea securing three universities within the top then. Still steadily advancing, Asian universities populated this year’s top ten, outnumbering universities from the rest of the world.
THE Young University Ranking – Top ten for 2021
Below is the list of colleges and institutions that made it into the top ten:
1st Nanyang Technological University – Singapore – founded in 1991
2nd Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris – France – founded in 2010
3rd The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology – Hong Kong – founded in 1991
4th Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology – South Korea – founded in 1971
5th City University of Hong Kong – Hong Kong – founded in 1984
6th Maastricht University – Netherlands – founded in 1976
7th Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa – Italy – founded in 1987
8th Pohang University of Science and Technology – South Korea – founded in 1986
9th University of Technology Sydney – Australia – founded in 1988
10th Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology – South Korea – founded in 2009
Both Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and Paris Sciences et Lettres climbed up a rank from last year; from 2nd to 1st place and 3rd to 2nd place respectively, while the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology dropped to 3rd place from 1st. Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology is up to 4th place from 5th place last year; the University of Hong Kong is up to 5th place from 7th last year; while Maastricht University maintained its position in 6th place. Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies in Italy lost its 4th place to 7th this year, with Pohang University of Science and Technology securing its rank for the second year in a row in 8th place. 9th and 10th place were occupied by the University of Technology Sydney and Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea. Both universities have come a long way from 15th and 17th place last year to earn their spots in this year’s top ten.
THE Young University Ranking – Top 50 for 2021
Two universities from the GCC made it to the top 50; Al Faisal University in Saudi Arabia in 36th place and Qatar University in 43rd place. From France and Germany, five universities from each country were listed in the top 50. Even more impressive were the universities in Australia. The country ingrained its presence in this year’s list with ten institutions placing within the top 50.
THE top five most represented countries in THE Young University Rankings for 2021
According to THE, “The UK is still the most represented territory in the ranking, with 37 institutions, but India is now second (up from joint third) with 34”. The third most represented country is Spain, with 33 universities and colleges on the list. Turkey follows closely after in 4th place with 31 universities, and France places 5th with 27 universities making it to the list.
THE Young University Rankings – Assessment methodology
The Times Higher Education Young University Rankings 2021 follows the same evaluation methodology as the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, examining 13 performance indicators grouped under these five areas:
- Teaching and learning environment
- Research (volume, income, and reputation)
- Citations or research influence
- International outlook (staff, students, and research)
- Industry income and knowledge transfer
Sources
THE Young University Rankings 2021
Young University Rankings 2021 – Digital edition
THE Young University Rankings Methodology
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