Asia's Young Universities Surge Ahead: Turkey, India, and Iran Lead the Way

Turkey has 58 universities in the ranking, up from 47 last year and just 23 in 2020. India boasts 55 ranked institutions, up from 45 last year and 26 in 2020.

Asia now hosts nearly half of the world's top young research universities, according to the latest Times Higher Education (THE) Young University Rankings. The number of Asian institutions on the list has almost doubled over five years, growing from 165 in 2020 (40% of the total) to 327 in 2024 (49%).

Turkey, India, and Iran are key drivers of this increase. Turkey has 58 universities in the ranking, up from 47 last year and just 23 in 2020. India boasts 55 ranked institutions, up from 45 last year and 26 in 2020, while Iran now has 46 universities, up from 39 last year and 20 in 2020.

Nanyang Technological University in Singapore retained its top spot, followed by Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris in second place. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, which was second last year, slipped to third.

Young University Rankings 2024: The Top 10

Rank 2024	Rank 2023	Institution	Country/Region
1	1	Nanyang Technological University, Singapore	Singapore
2	3	Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris	France
3	2	The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology	Hong Kong
4	6	City University of Hong Kong	Hong Kong
5	12	Université Paris-Saclay	France
6	8	Institut Polytechnique de Paris	France
7	4	The Hong Kong Polytechnic University	Hong Kong
8	15	Sorbonne University	France
9	14	Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH)	South Korea
10	13	Maastricht University	Netherlands

The rankings, which evaluate institutions founded within the last 50 years, reflect the dynamic growth of university systems in Asia. They apply the same methodology as THE’s World University Rankings, but with recalibrated weightings to suit younger universities.

Several French universities also made significant gains, with Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris moving up to second place, Université Paris-Saclay climbing to fifth, and Sorbonne University advancing to eighth.

Africa has also increased its presence in the rankings, with 77 universities represented this year, up from 39 five years ago. Nigeria saw the most significant growth, increasing from one ranked university in 2020 to ten in 2024.

Phil Baty, THE’s chief global affairs officer, highlighted the rise of Asia as a significant trend, noting the emergence of young, dynamic universities across the continent. He emphasized the importance of these institutions in the global higher education landscape, predicting continued success for Asian universities in the future.

The rankings also reveal that Australia has the highest average score for its universities, followed by Germany and France. South Korea made notable progress, moving to fourth place from several lower positions last year.

Indian Universities in Young University Ranking 2024

Rank 2024	Institution	Country
81	Mahatma Gandhi University	India
=96	Anna University	India
113	Bharathiar University	India
=117	Indian Institute of Technology Patna	India
=121	Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences	India
138	Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati	India
=151	Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar	India
=151	International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad	India
163	Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham	India
=165	Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune	India
=168	KIIT University	India
=173	VIT University	India
=175	Manipal Academy of Higher Education	India
=194	Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences	India

The surge in representation and ranking positions of Asian and African universities underscores the dynamic and evolving landscape of global higher education. The report suggests that as these institutions continue to develop, they will play an increasingly significant role in the academic world.

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