How are the world’s best universities ranked, and what do systems like the QS World University Rankings consider in the top institutions?

Globally recognised and produced by Quacquarelli Symonds, a higher education publisher, the QS World University Rankings is one of the most widely read and reputable university ranking systems.

It has consistently based its ranking methodology on key metrics including academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio and international student ratio. Three new metrics were recently introduced—international research network, employment outcomes and sustainability. All metrics contribute a percentage towards an institution’s final score.

The results come from the analysis of millions of academic papers, and expert opinions of over 250,000 academics and employers.

QS ranking metrics explained

Academic reputation (30%)

Carrying the heaviest weightage, the academic reputation metric is based on a survey of faculty members, researchers, and professionals in academia from around the world, who nominate institutions based on academic excellence, research quality, impact and innovation.

Employer reputation (15%)

This metric evaluates the reputation of a university among employers, an indicator of employability of students. A survey sent to thousands of employers around the world collates their ratings of the best universities for producing relevant graduates.

Faculty/student ratio (10%)

QS looks at the ratio of faculty to students as an indicator of the learning and teaching environment in an institution. The more academic staff resource available to students, such as teaching and curriculum development, the better the experience expected.

Citations per faculty (20%)

To determine this metric, QS evaluates the number of academic citations in papers an institute produces, factoring in the size of the university, across a five-year period.

QS also performs a normalisation to keep the influence of research broadly equal for the different academic fields, considering that certain fields publish more papers than others.

International student ratio and international faculty ratio (5% each)

These metrics show how effective the institute is in attracting faculty members and students from all over the world. With a sizeable number of international faculty and students, an institution would offer a multicultural environment and benefits from diversity, networking and cultural exchanges.

International Research Network (5%)

An indicator of the quality of an institution’s research partnerships and collaborations on the international stage.

Employment outcomes (5%)

Another indicator of employability, this metric measures an institution’s graduate employment rate and alumni impact.

Sustainability (5%)

Recognising the importance of social and climate issues to students, QS became the first among the major world rankings to include sustainability as a key metric. It evaluates social and environmental impact, with governance factored in.

Below, we’ve compiled the top universities in each destination—Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Ireland, the UK and the USA. If you’re keen to find out about studying abroad in any of these countries, have a chat with one of our friendly counsellors! 

QS top 10 universities in Australia 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

University of Melbourne 

13 

2 

The University of Sydney 

18 

3 

The University of New South Wales (UNSW) Sydney 

19 

4 

Australian National University 

30 

5 

Monash University 

37 

6 

The University of Queensland 

40 

7 

The University of Western Australia 

77 

8 

University of Adelaide 

82 

9 

University of Technology Sydney 

88 

10 

RMIT University 

123

QS top universities in New Zealand 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

University of Auckland 

65 

2 

University of Otago 

214 

3 

University of Waikato 

235 

4 

Massey University 

239 

5 

Victoria University of Wellington 

244 

6 

University of Canterbury 

261 

7 

Lincoln University 

371 

8 

Auckland University of Technology (AUT) 

412 

QS top 10 universities in Canada 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

University of Toronto 

25 

2 

McGill University 

29 

3 

University of British Columbia 

38 

4 

University of Alberta 

96 

5 

University of Waterloo 

115 

6 

Western University 

120 

7 

Université de Montréal  

159 

8 

McMaster University 

176 

9 

University of Ottawa 

189 

10 

Queen’s University at Kingston 

193 

QS top 10 universities in the UK 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

Imperial College London 

2 

2 

University of Oxford 

3 

3 

University of Cambridge 

5 

4 

UCL (University College London) 

9 

5 

The University of Edinburgh 

27 

6 

The University of Manchester 

34 

7 

King’s College London 

40 

8 

The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) 

50 

9 

University of Bristol 

54 

10 

The University of Warwick 

69 

QS top universities in Ireland 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

Trinity College Dublin 

87 

2 

University College Dublin 

126 

=3 

University College Cork 

=273 

=3 

University of Galway (previously National University of Ireland Galway) 

=273 

=5 

Dublin City University 

=421 

=5 

University of Limerick 

=421 

7 

Maynooth University 

801-850 

8 

Technological University Dublin 

851-900 

QS top 10 universities in the USA 2025

Rank 

University  

Global rank 

1 

Massachusetts Institute of Technology 

1 

2 

Harvard University  

4 

3 

Stanford University  

6 

4 

California Institute of Technology 

10 

5 

University of Pennsylvania 

11 

6 

University of California, Berkeley 

12 

7 

Cornell University 

16 

8 

University of Chicago 

21 

9 

Princeton University 

22 

10 

Yale University 

23

How to use rankings to decide where to study

The QS World University Rankings are one of the most trusted tools for comparing top universities globally, and provide valuable insights into an institution’s academic reputation, faculty quality, employer recognition and global outlook, which are areas to look into when choosing where to study.

However, rankings are just one part of it. Other crucial factors should be part of your decision-making process, such as tuition fees, career opportunities, university location and your personal goals.

Let an education counsellor from IDP, a global leader in international education services, guide you for free to find the best university for you. If you’re ready to chase your dreams at a top university, tap the button below.

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