THE World Universities Ranking by Subject: IISc top Ranked across categories; 78 from India in Engg

Delhi University, Jamia Millia Islamia, and LPU are among the universities ranked among the top in India across categories.

Times Higher Education has announced results of World University Rankings by subject across 11 disciplines. Is Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru is one of the highest-ranked Indian universities across several categories, Delhi University, and Jamia Millia Islamia are among the universities ranked among the top in India across categories.

Harnessing its World University Rankings indicators, the subject rankings detail the performance of universities across individual fields of study. Engineering has the highest number of representation from India followed by Physical Sciences, Life Sciences and Computer Sciences.  

As per THE, although US and UK institutions continue to hold the highest ranks across subjects, there is a growing diversity of institutions from other corners of the world. This trend is salient in the fields of education, business and economics, data suggests.

Engineering Ranking 2024

Despite older IITs like IIT Delhi, Bombay and Madras boycotting THE Rankings, the Engineering category has the highest number of Indian institutions getting ranked this year. As many as 76 Indian universities have been ranked with IISc leading the table from India. Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024, includes 1,374 universities, up from 1,306 last year.

The best institutions for engineering this year continue to be Harvard University and Stanford University. A total of six Indian universities have figured among the top 500. Indian Institute of Science (100-125), Anna University (301–400), Jamia Millia Islamia (401-500), Lovely Professional University (401-500), Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences (401-500), Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (401-500).
Physical Sciences

In the Physical Sciences category, universities that are leading across the following disciplines: mathematics and statistics, physics and astronomy, chemistry, geology, environmental sciences, and earth and marine sciences have been ranked. This year’s table includes 1,370 universities, up from 1,307 last year.

The California Institute of Technology leads the physical sciences subject ranking, replacing Princeton University, which drops to joint sixth place. The University of Cambridge is the only institution outside the US to make the top five, ranking in fifth place, up from seventh.  

After Engineering highest number of Indian institutions have been ranked from this category, which is 60. In this category as well it is the IISc which is the highest-ranked university from India (201–250), followed by Lovely Professional University, Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences ranked between 301-400 and Jamia Millia Islamia (401-500), among top 500 globally.

Computer Science Ranking 2024

As many as 48 Indian universities have been ranked in the Computer Sciences Category this year, of these eight are among the top 500 globally.

It is to be noted that the older IITs have been boycotting THE Rankings for the past several years. Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is the best-ranked university in India as it has been ranked in the band 100-125, it is followed by Amity University, IIIT- Hyderabad, Jamia Millia Islamia, KIIT University, UPES, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology and VIT University, which are ranked in the band 401-500.

The computer science Rank list includes 1,027 universities, up from 974 last year. The University of Oxford leads the computer science ranking for the sixth consecutive year. Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) switched places to take the second and third places respectively.

Life Sciences Ranking 2024

In the Life Sciences category, once again it is IISc Bengaluru which is the highest-ranked Indian institution. This year a total of 33 universities from India have been ranked in this category, with seven among the top 500 globally. IISc has been ranked in the band 201–250, it is followed by AMU, BHU, and Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences which are ranked in the band 301-400.

While, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani; Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Jamia Hamdard University and Jamia Millia Islamia have been ranked in the band 401-500.

World University Rankings 2024 by subject: Clinical and Health

The clinical and health subject ranking is one of those categories which has the highest number of representatives from India as 20 universities have been ranked this year. It highlights the universities that are leading across medicine, dentistry and other health subjects. This year’s table includes 1,059 universities, up from 1,001 last year.

As many as seven Indian institutions have been ranked among the top 500 globally in the clinical and health category with Manipal Academy of Higher Education leading the table from India as it has been ranked in the band of 201-250. While, BHU, Panjab University and Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences are ranked between 301-400. Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani; Jamia Millia Islamia and Lovely Professional University have been ranked between 401-500.

The UK’s University of Oxford leads the table for the 13th consecutive year. But the US is the most-represented nation in the top 10, with five institutions.

Social Sciences Category

In the Social Sciences category, 14 Indian universities have figured in the World University Rankings 2024 by subject.

Lovely Professional University (LPU) is the highest-ranked university from India in this category as it has been ranked in the band of 401-500. Jamia Millia Islamia and JNU have been ranked between 501-600. Aligarh Muslim University, Amity University, Banaras Hindu University, University of Delhi and Manipal Academy of Higher Education are some of the other institutions ranked in the band of 601-800 in this category.

The social sciences subject table uses the same trusted and rigorous performance indicators as the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2024, but the methodology has been recalibrated to suit the individual fields.

It highlights the universities that are leading across the following disciplines: communication and media studies, politics and international studies (including development studies), sociology and geography.

This year’s table includes 997 universities, up from 941 last year. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) shares joint first place with Stanford University this year.

The top 10 comprises only universities in the US and the UK. However, the top 20 includes one university each from Singapore, China and the Netherlands. These are the National University of Singapore (16th), Peking University (17th) and the University of Amsterdam (joint 18th).

Business and Economics Rankings

In the business and economics category, this year’s table includes 909 universities, up from 870 last year. There are 15 universities from India in the list with Jamia Millia Islamia being ranked in the top 500, it has been ranked in the band 401–500. Five universities have been ranked in the band 501–600, which are AMU, Amity University, Banaras Hindu University, University of Delhi and Lovely Professional University.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University hold on to the top two spots, as they did last year. China’s Peking University moves up five places to 10th position and is the only new entrant in the top 10.

Humanities, Education, Psychology Rank

In the Arts and Humanities category, the University of Delhi and Jawaharlal Nehru University have been ranked between 501–600. Similarly, in the Education and Psychology categories, it is Delhi University which is the only university from India that has been ranked (401-500).

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