The Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings is one of the most comprehensive global university ranking systems, published annually since 2004. It evaluates research-intensive universities across five broad areas: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry engagement, and international outlook, using 18 performance indicators.
Indicator Weights
| Pillar | Weight | Indicator | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teaching | 29.5% | Reputation survey (teaching) | 15% |
| Staff-to-student ratio | 4.5% | ||
| Doctorate-to-bachelor's ratio | 2.25% | ||
| Doctorates awarded to academic staff ratio | 6% | ||
| Institutional income | 2.75% | ||
| Research Environment | 29% | Reputation survey (research) | 18% |
| Research income | 5.5% | ||
| Research productivity | 6% | ||
| Research Quality | 30% | Citation impact | 15% |
| Research strength | 5% | ||
| Research excellence | 5% | ||
| Research influence | 5% | ||
| Industry | 4% | Industry income | 2% |
| Patents | 2% | ||
| International Outlook | 7.5% | International students | 2.5% |
| International staff | 2.5% | ||
| International co-authorship | 2.5% |
Teaching (29.5%)
This pillar assesses the learning environment at an institution.
The reputation survey component is based on the THE Academic Reputation Survey, in which scholars worldwide rate universities on their perceived teaching quality. The staff-to-student ratio serves as a proxy for available teaching resources. The doctorate-to-bachelor's ratio and doctorates awarded to academic staff ratio reflect the institution's commitment to research-led teaching and advanced study. Institutional income (scaled by academic staff numbers) provides an indicator of overall resources and infrastructure.
Research Environment (29%)
This pillar measures the volume, income, and reputation of an institution's research.
The research reputation survey captures the perceived quality and breadth of research from scholars worldwide. Research income (scaled by academic staff and adjusted for purchasing power parity) reflects the institution's ability to attract competitive funding. Research productivity measures the number of publications per academic staff member, based on data from the Scopus database.
Research Quality (30%)
This pillar evaluates the impact, strength, and excellence of an institution's research output.
Citation impact measures the average number of times an institution's published work is cited, normalized by field and publication year. Research strength measures the proportion of an institution's publications that are among the top 10% most cited globally. Research excellence focuses on the share of publications in the top 1% most cited. Research influence assesses the proportion of total citations an institution receives from its top 1% most cited publications.
Industry (4%)
This pillar measures an institution's ability to attract industry funding and produce innovation.
Industry income (scaled by academic staff numbers) indicates how much research funding an institution attracts from the private sector. Patents measures the number of patent applications that cite the institution's research output, reflecting real-world innovation and knowledge transfer.
International Outlook (7.5%)
This pillar assesses the international diversity of an institution's students, staff, and research collaborations.
The international students and international staff indicators measure the proportions of foreign students and faculty. International co-authorship measures the share of publications with at least one international co-author, reflecting global research engagement.
Data Sources
- Academic Reputation Survey: THE annual survey of scholars worldwide
- Publication and citation data: Scopus (Elsevier)
- Patent data: Patsnap
- Institutional data: Submitted by universities and verified by THE