Rankings released! QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 

QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024

The QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 are now live

This year, over 16,300 academic programmes were ranked across various subjects, marking an increase of over 600 from last year. 1,559 institutions were ranked, including 64 newcomers. 

In the 14th edition of the rankings, five broad faculty areas have been featured: Arts and Humanities, Engineering and Technology, Life Sciences and Medicine, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences and Management. Within these five areas, there are 55 specific subject areas also ranked – Music is brand new for the 2024 edition. 

Universities are ranked using various metrics, including their academic reputation, employer reputation, and the International Research Network (IRN) Index. 

The top institutions in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 

Below are the top scoring universities in the five broad faculty areas. Read the more specific subject rankings here

Arts and Humanities  

1. Harvard University 

2. University of Cambridge  

3. University of Oxford 

4. Stanford University  

5. University of California, Berkeley (UCB)  

6. Yale University 

7. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 

8= New York University (NYU) 

8= University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) 

10= University College London 

10= University of Toronto  

Engineering and Technology 

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 

2. Stanford University  

3. University of Oxford  

4. University of Cambridge 

5. University of California, Berkeley (UCB) 

6. ETH Zürich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology 

7. Imperial College London 

8. Harvard University  

9. California Institute of Technology (Caltech) 

10. EPFL 

Life Sciences and Medicine  

1. Harvard University 

2. University of Oxford 

3. Johns Hopkins University  

4. Stanford University  

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 

6. University of Cambridge  

7. Imperial College London  

8. University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) 

9. University College London 

10.  Karolinska Institute 

Natural Sciences 

1. Harvard University 

2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 

3. University of Oxford 

4. University of Cambridge  

5. Stanford University  

6. California Institute of Technology (Caltech) 

7. University of California, Berkeley (UCB) 

8. ETH Zürich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology   

9. Imperial College London 

10. Princeton University 

Social Sciences and Management  

1. Harvard University  

2. University of Oxford  

3. Stanford University  

4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 

5. University of Cambridge  

6. The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) 

7. University of California, Berkeley (UCB) 

8. Yale University  

9. University of Chicago 

10. New York University (NYU) 

Highlights

Subjects graph

With over 700 universities ranked in Computer Sciences & Information Systems, and Medicine, these are our largest subject areas, followed by Biological Sciences and Chemistry. 

Other notable features of the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 include: 

  • The number of institutions ranked in most of the specific subject areas has been expanded. 
  • 805 institutions have earned entries in subject and faculty areas they haven’t previously achieved a ranking in. Notably the United States, UK, and Mainland China have the largest number of such institutions.  
  • Mainland China has the largest number of new institutions ranked for the first time, with eight new institutions ranked. France has six new institutions, and India has five. 
  • A Tunisian university, Université de Tunis El Manar, makes its debut in this year’s rankings. 

Looking for more insight into the methodology of the rankings? Catch the replay of the 2024 QS World University Rankings by Subject – Webinar to get the scope and philosophy guiding these rankings. Learn about eligibility requirements, selected indicators, and more. 

Related QS Insights

Sign up for industry insights

Receive the latest insights, expertise and commentary on the topics which matter most in higher education, straight to your inbox.

Sign up