The 50 Best Universities in the World Today
University rankings can focus on many different factors, including attractiveness of campus, satisfaction of students and alums, extracurricular benefits (such as top athletics programs), affordability of tuition, and expected income of graduates.
For this ranking, we looked to the Center for World-Class Universities operated by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (left). This center specializes in ranking universities around the world by academic performance.How do American universities stack up against the competition overseas? Next to each university in our ranking is the country where the university resides. The country that you’ll find overwhelmingly represented is the United States. Indeed, over half of the world’s hundred best universities (52 to be exact) are in the U.S.Accordingly, we identified the 100 best universities in the 2014 Academic Ranking of World Universities, better known as the “Shanghai Ranking.” Taking the Shanghai Ranking as our point of departure, we researched the most important characteristics of each of the top 100 universities on the list in order to reveal why each university appears where it does.
As you scan this list, you’ll notice some interesting things. Of the top ten universities in the world, the top eight are in the United States. Most of the Ivy League schools are on the list. Also, most of the University of California campuses are on this list as well.
To assist our readers in seeing how American universities compare to themselves, we also include, in brackets, the relative rankings of U.S. universities.
The 50 Best Universities in the World
1Harvard University … [1st in U.S.]
(Cambridge, MA, USA)
Harvard University is the standard by which all other research universities are measured. No school has ever challenged its position as the world’s premier academic institution in the history of the Shanghai rankings.
Founded in 1636 (only 16 years after the Mayflowertouched down at Plymouth Rock), Harvard is the oldest school in the world’s richest nation, and it has capitalized on the benefits this grants. Under manager Jack Meyer’s leadership, the school’s endowment fund grew from $4.6 billion to $25.8 billion in 15 years. Today, the university possesses over $36 billion, and its fortune is still growing.
But there is much more to Harvard than massive wealth. The school has produced 47 Nobel Laureates, 32 heads of state, and 48 Pulitzer Prize winners. It boasts the largest academic library in the world (Widener Library, home to some 6 million volumes), as well as leading medical, law, and business schools. It has an integrated alumni network that stretches around the globe.
It would be invidious to single out any of Harvard’s many academic departments for its excellence, for the school’s principal claim on the #1 position lies in the fact that it is at or very near the top in nearly every field across the entire spectrum of the sciences and the humanities!
Not only is Harvard dominant across a multitude of academic fields, it is also ideally situated to work alongside a variety of other schools. The most obvious example is MIT, but the greater Boston metropolitan area is also home to Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern, Tufts, Brandeis, and several other research universities. This fact equips both students and faculty with endless opportunities for collaborative research.
2Stanford University … [2nd in U.S.]
(Stanford, CA, USA)
With an $18.7 billion endowment Stanford has access to numerous world-class research resources.
The school’s 1,189 acre Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve lets scientists study ecosystems first hand. Its 150-foot radio telescope, nicknamed “The Dish,” studies the ionosphere.
Stanford also boasts a 315-acre habitat reserve which is actively trying to bring back the endangered California tiger salamander. And the SLAC Accelerator Laboratory actively advances the U.S. Department of Energy’s research.
Stanford is also affiliated with the prestigious Hoover Institution, which is one of the nation’s leading social, political, and economic think tanks.
But it takes more than just great laboratories and facilities to build a great research center. Stanford also has some of the finest minds in the world working for it. The school’s faculty currently include 22 Nobel Laureates, 51 members of the American Philosophical Society, three Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients, 158 National Academy of Science members, five Pulitzer Prize winners, and 27 MacArthur Fellows.
3Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) … [3rd in U.S.]
(Cambridge, MA, USA)
In the century and a half since its founding in 1861, MIT has become the world’s preeminent science research center.
The university is known for a focused approach that uses first-class methodologies to tackle world-class problems. This pragmatic creativity has produced legions of scientists and engineers, as well as 80 Nobel Laureates, 56 National Medal of Science winners, 43 MacArthur Fellows, and 28 National Medal of Technology and Innovation winners.
Nevertheless, the school’s more than $10 billion endowment still leaves plenty of room for the arts and humanities. This is why MIT Press can publish 30 prestigious journals and 220 state-of-the-art books every year. Since 1899, MIT Technology Review has continuously researched developing trends in the industrial sciences and other related fields, making their publications essential for anyone trying to understand where future innovation is headed.
Notable people affiliated with MIT include Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin, father of linguistics Noam Chomsky, former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, and former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
4University of California at Berkeley … [4th in U.S.]
(Berkeley, CA, USA)
Berkeley is unique among the elite universities of the world. Most of the schools it competes with are privately owned, but Berkeley is a state school—albeit one with the elite status of a private school.
The university is nestled in a pleasant city by the same name, within easy commuting distance of San Francisco. With over 36,000 students, Berkeley is also one of the larger elite universities.
An impressive selection of talented students feeds its over 350 degree programs, producing more Ph.D.’s annually than any other U.S. institution. Student research is encouraged as each year 52 percent of seniors assist their professors in their research.
Berkeley draws students from over 100 nations. During the previous decade the National Science Foundation granted its students more graduate research fellowships than any other school.
The faculty has produced 39 members of the American Philosophical Society, 77 Fulbright Scholars, 32 MacArthur Fellows, and 22 Nobel Laureates (eight of whom are current faculty members).
5University of Cambridge
(Cambridge, UK)
As one of the oldest universities in the world (founded in 1209), Cambridge is an ancient school steeped in tradition.
It is small exaggeration to say the history of western science is built on a cornerstone called Cambridge. The roster of great scientists and mathematicians associated with the university includes Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, James Clerk Maxwell, Augustus De Morgan, Ernest Rutherford, G.H. Hardy, Srinivasa Ramanujan, Alan Turing, Francis Crick, James Watson, Roger Penrose, and Stephen Hawking. Whether speaking of the unifying ideas in physics, the foundations of computer science, or the codifying of biology, Cambridge has been at the forefront of humanity’s quest for truth longer than most nations have existed.
Of course, great achievements are not restricted to the sciences. Such luminaries in the humanities as Desiderius Erasmus, John Milton, G.E. Moore, Bertrand Russell, Ludwig Wittgenstein, John Maynard Keynes, and C.S. Lewis, among dozens of other great names, taught and studied here.
But despite the many memories conjured by its imposing Gothic architecture, Cambridge does not live in the past. The university remains one of the world’s elite research institutions, with only Oxford to rival it in the U.K. and only a handful of American schools able to do so from overseas.
Its over 18,000 students represent more than 135 countries and its faculty have earned over 80 Nobel laureates.
6Princeton University … [5th in U.S.]
(Princeton, NJ, USA)
Princeton University is one of the oldest, most historic universities in the United States. Its famous Nassau Hall (right) still bears a cannonball scar from the 1777 Battle of Princeton, and its former president, John Witherspoon, was the only University president to sign the Declaration of Independence.
The school’s nearly three-century history has given it ample time to develop an impressive $18.2 billion endowment. But unlike the other big institutions it competes with—such as Yale, Harvard, and Stanford—Princeton spreads its considerable wealth across a far smaller number of students and programs.
Princeton has no law school, medical school, business school, or divinity school. Instead of developing professional programs, it has self-consciously evolved into a massive, research-driven think tank.
Whereas other schools typically direct their elite faculties’ attention towards graduate students, Princeton expects its professors to teach students of various academic levels. Furthermore, Princeton, more so than many other leading institutions, continues to challenge its students with a difficult grading scale. Even brilliant valedictorians who come here from around the country find that they need to focus on their studies.
7California Institute of Technology (Caltech) … [6th in U.S.]
(Pasadena, CA, USA)
Any school can assign a textbook for you to read on your own, but research universities pride themselves on giving you the opportunity to work alongside leaders in their respective fields who write the textbooks.
Of course, in order to do this efficiently a school needs a decent student/faculty ratio. Few schools can beat Caltech’s three-to-one ratio—which is one of the many reasons why this relatively young school has risen to international prominence.
Its faculty includes 33 Nobel Laureates, 58 National Medal of Science recipients, 13 National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipients, and 111 National Academy of Science members.
But to gain access to this prestigious collection of brilliant professors you will have to be the best of the best. Six thousand six hundred twenty-five applicants compete to be one of the 226 members of the freshman class—which is why 98 percent of the student body graduated in the top 10 percent of their class.
These students and teachers can also study at some of the school’s world-famous research centers, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the Seismological Laboratory, and the International Observatory Network.
8Columbia University … [7th in U.S.]
(New York, NY, USA)
As one of the colonial colleges and the fifth-oldest school in the United States, Columbia has a lot of history. That history has created an internationally recognized, elite university with an $8.2 billion endowment and a library containing nearly 13 million volumes.
Columbia University is spread across five distinct campuses in New York City, including Columbia College, the undergraduate division. In 2013, 26,376 students applied for 1,751 admittances to Columbia College.
The university’s medical school—the College of Physicians and Surgeons, which was founded in 1767—produced the first M.D.’s in the 13 colonies. The school now graduates nearly 1,400 doctors per year.
Columbia is the leading university in the New York metropolitan area, which gives its students numerous unique opportunities that only proximity to Wall Street, the U.N., Broadway, and other epicenters of finance, politics, and culture can bring. The university’s ideal location also gives its students the chance to interact with various other respected institutions, such as New York University.
Eighty-two Columbians have won a Nobel Prize at some point in their careers.
9University of Chicago … [8th in U.S.]
(Chicago, IL, USA)
The University of Chicago was only founded in 1890, making it one of the youngest elite universities in the world. But despite its youth, the school has spearheaded many of the world’s most important scientific achievements.
It was here that Italian physicist Enrico Fermi created the world’s first controlled, self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction in 1942. It was likewise at Chicago that Stanley Miller and Harold Urey demonstrated in 1952 that amino acids essential to life could be produced starting from simple molecules such as methane and ammonia, thus founding the entire field of what has come to be known as “origin of life” research. Today, the university is one of the leading universities building on the work of its famous alum, James Watson, in the exploration of the human genome.
But Chicago is not just a science school. It also possesses great depth, with elite programs in the humanities and the social sciences, including its world-renowned Economics Department and its interdisciplinary gathering of highly distinguished thinkers known as the Committee on Social Thought.
Of Chicago’s 89 Nobel Prize winners, 22 have been in economics, which is remarkable given that the economics prize was only first awarded in 1969 (45 years ago at the time of this writing). Perhaps this is one reason why the university weathered the 2008 financial crisis relatively well!
In any case, the school’s approximately $7 billion endowment is now rapidly growing once more, assuring the continuation of the ample research opportunities it provides its faculty and students well into the future.
10Oxford University
(Oxford, UK)
Oxford University traces its origins back to the 13th century. With its intellectual roots firmly planted in medieval scholasticism, Oxford has survived the centuries, adapted to the times, and grown into what it is today—one of the world’s most impressive centers of learning.
Perhaps more than any other school in the world, Oxford’s name has become synonymous with knowledge and learning. This is because the school runs the world’s largest—and arguably most prestigious—academic press, with offices in over 50 countries.
One in five people who learn English worldwide do so with Oxford University Press materials. This international appeal may explain why almost 40 percent of the student body comes from outside the U.K.
Oxford’s academic community includes 80 Fellows of the Royal Society and 100 Fellows of the British Academy. Over 17,200 people applied for 3,200 undergraduate places in 2014.
However, despite thousands of undergraduate students willing to pay full tuition and centuries of accumulated assets, the highest source of income for Oxford continues to be research grants and contracts.
11Yale University … [9th in U.S.]
(New Haven, CT, USA)
Yale University has everything one would expect from a major research university: it is one of the eight original Ivy League schools; it has a $20 billion endowment; and roughly one in six of its students come from foreign nations.
Yale has also had a disproportionate influence on American politics. Numerous major U.S. political careers have begun at Yale—the school’s notorious Skull and Bones secret society has produced three Presidents—and Yale Law School has been the preeminent law school in the country for years.
The university’s research centers address topics as varied as Benjamin Franklin’s writings, bioethics, magnetic resonance research, and the Russian archives.
Whereas many other elite institutions develop areas of specialization—be it Caltech’s and MIT’s focus on science and technology or Princeton’s focus on pure research—Yale is equally dominant in the humanities, the sciences, and the learned professions. This gives the school a unique ability to pursue interdisciplinary research.
Yale also enjoys a flexible alumni network that stretches to every corner of the globe.
12University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) … [10th in U.S.]
(Los Angeles, CA, USA)
With over 72,000 applications for the fall of 2012 alone, UCLA receives more applications than any other school in America. This is all the more impressive when one considers the institution was only founded in 1919 as a two-year, undergraduate teacher-training program.
Today, the university can claim 13 Nobel Laureates, 12 Rhodes Scholars, 12 MacArthur Fellows, 10 National Medal of Science winners, three Pulitzer Prize winners, and a Fields Medalist.
UCLA has also produced numerous athletic achievements, with over 111 NCAA championships, 110 professional athletes, dominance over the No. 1 pick in the major league drafts, and 250 Olympic medals.
With a roughly $3 billion endowment and a budget exceeding $4.5 billion, UCLA has recovered rapidly from the 2008 financial crisis. Its substantial research funds are a part of the reason why over 100 companies have been created based on technology developed at the school.
13Cornell University … [11th in U.S.]
(Ithaca, NY, USA)
Cornell University is a sprawling city of scholarship that seems almost out of place amid the rolling upstate New York countryside.
Typically, schools numbering in the tens of thousands are integrated into much larger cities. Thus, in many ways Cornell has both the air of a quaint college nestled in the woods and the endless opportunity characteristic of urban centers.
But Cornell is not limited by its beautiful upstate campus. It also runs one of the nation’s leading medical schools in New York City. Moreover, the university is among the most active schools in seeking out international connections. In 2001, it started the first American medical school outside the states, in Qatar, and continues to develop strong ties with China, India, and Singapore.
Cornell is building itself into a transnational hub of intellectual inquiry. It has also developed multiple interdisciplinary research centers in nanotechnology, biotechnology, genomics, and supercomputing.
The university was also the first to build entire colleges for hotel administration, labor relations, and veterinary medicine.
14University of California at San Diego … [12th in U.S.]
(San Diego, CA, USA)
With a roughly $750 million endowment and over 30,000 students, no one would ever expect that the University of California at San Diego is younger than many of its faculty members.
The school lies on the frontiers of knowledge despite being founded in 1960. It is also unique in that unlike many of the private schools it competes with, UC San Diego is a public school with competitive costs. In-state students pay only $13,302 for tuition, and even out-of-state students will typically save $10,000 or more per year.
The school is one of the 10 largest centers for scientific research in America, which is why it has attracted 16 Nobel Laureates to teach there during the past 50 years.
Over 650 companies were launched or utilize technology developed at UC San Diego and, as of 2013, the university’s Technology Office managed over 400 license agreements. This propensity for innovation has been especially productive in the increasingly lucrative field of biotechnology.
Besides being ranked 14th in the world overall, UC San Diego is also ranked 15th for scientific impact (according to the Center for Science and Technology Studies), sixth for happiest freshmen in America (CBS News), and first for positive impact on the world (Washington Monthly).
15University of Washington … [13th in U.S.]
(Seattle, WA, USA)
University of Washington’s $2.1 billion endowment combines with 54,000 students paying state school tuition via three campuses and distance learning. This combination makes the school a top-notch research center available to the masses.
The university runs several highly respected professional schools in medicine, engineering, business, and law.
However, unlike many schools of its size and caliber, UW does not forget about its undergraduates. They enjoy a low 11:1 student-to-teacher ratio, as well as an annual undergraduate research symposium. The university also boasts an impressive 93 percent freshman retention rate.
UW has launched multiple prominent social research centers such as the Diversity Research Institute, the Center for Women’s Health and Gender Research, the Institute for Ethnic Studies in the U.S., and the West Coast Poverty Center.
The school has produced 35 Rhodes Scholars and seven Marshall Scholars. Moreover, four current professors and three alumni have won the Nobel Prize, and over 130 have become Fulbright Scholars.
16University of Pennsylvania … [14th in U.S.]
(Philadelphia, PA, USA)
The University of Pennsylvania (universally known as “Penn”) is an Ivy League school dating back to 1740. To this day, the university—which has become an integral part of the city of Philadelphia—carries forward the practical curiosity of its founder, Benjamin Franklin, in a wide spectrum of fields.
Penn is extremely diverse. Of the class of 2017, 50 percent of the student body is black, Hispanic, Asian, or Native American. The school also has just under 500 international students.
The faculty include 84 Academy of Arts and Sciences members, 81 Institute of Medicine members, 33 National Academy of Science members, 31 American Philosophical Society members, 175 Guggenheim Fellowship recipients, and 12 National Academy of Engineering members.
These first-class thinkers power the school’s more than 100 research centers and institutes, and direct much of its $8 billion endowment.
The school owns 357 buildings spread over 994 acres, in addition to its own teaching hospital.
17Johns Hopkins University … [15th in U.S.]
(Baltimore, MD, USA)
Many of the universities on this list began their existence as small schools aimed primarily at religious instruction. Johns Hopkins is different—it was designed from its inception to be at the forefront of scientific discovery.
The university operates what is widely regarded as the world’s leading medical school. As such, it has received more extramural National Institutes of Health awards than any other medical research institution in the country. Which is the main reason why the school receives more federal research funds than any competitor.
But Johns Hopkins is much more than just a medical school. The university as a whole also receives more federal research and development dollars than any other school—which helps it to further such prestigious institutions as the School of Advanced International Studies, the Carey Business School, and the Whiting School of Engineering.
Its faculty members include 51 American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellows, 61 Institute of Medicine members, 28 National Academy of Science members, and four Nobel Prize winners.
18University of California at San Francisco … [16th in U.S.]
(San Francisco, CA, USA)
The vast majority of universities on this list take a broad-brush approach to education: they have a variety of departments dedicated to the study of law, art, and the humanities, in addition to science. Some—such as MIT or Cal Tech—are known for specializing in the natural sciences.
However, the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) is the world’s highest-ranked research university focused on only one field of study: namely medicine. The school is the only one within the 10-campus-wide University of California system dedicated solely to the health sciences.
But what UCSF lacks in versatility it more than makes up for in research success. Its more than 3,000 students are divided into divisions studying medicine, nursing, pharmacy, or graduate research, each of which is commended as a national leader in its respective field.
UCSF’s all-professional/graduate level student body lends a seriousness to the school often compromised at large state schools. Five Nobel Laureates teach at this $1.9 billion institution.
19Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)
(Zurich, Switzerland)
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology—widely known by its German acronym ETH—is the leading university in Switzerland and the highest-ranked school on the continent of Europe.
Once the home of Albert Einstein, today ETH draws over 18,000 students from roughly 80 countries (36.9 percent of its students are foreign), who study in both German and English. Twenty-one Nobel Laureates are associated with the school.
ETH is especially well-connected to the private sector. It produces approximately 80 new patents a year. The school also helps its scientists develop and market the products of their research, and has consequently paved the way for hundreds of spin-off companies.
The university has special strengths in the areas of energy supply, risk management, city development, global food security, and international health.
ETH also benefits from its location within one of Europe’s leading cultural centers. Zurich has the reputation of a clean and pleasant place, which is why it has long been ranked as the city with the world’s highest standard of living.
ETH also benefits from its proximity to another major research institution, the University of Zurich.
20University College London
(London, UK)
University College London (UCL) is blessed with an elite staff. Their ranks include 53 members of the Royal Society, 51 of the British Academy, 15 of the Royal Academy of Engineering, and 117 of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Moreover, the school’s past and present students and faculty members have earned 29 Nobel Prizes (40, if you include research fellows and honorary graduates). Two alumni and one current faculty member have earned the coveted Fields Medal in mathematics.
UCL ranks third among U.K. schools for national funding. It has also recently linked efforts with Yale to form a transatlantic research initiative called the Yale UCL collaborative.
The school also runs multiple interdisciplinary research programs, such as the UCL Energy Institute, the UCL Centre for Multidisciplinary & Intercultural Inquiry, and the UCL Cancer Institute.
As its name implies, University College London benefits from its location within the British capital and world-class city that is London.
21University of Tokyo
(Tokyo, Japan)
University of Tokyo is not only the leading school in Japan, but also the leading school in all of Asia.
University of Tokyo has made many strides in an effort to become an internationally renowned research center. In 2012, the school developed PEAK, or “Programs in English at Komaba,” and now attracts students from over 100 nations.
University of Tokyo runs numerous research institutes studying multiple fields, including medical science, earthquakes, Asian culture, molecular bioscience, cosmic ray research, solid state physics, and environmental science. The school has produced seven Nobel Prize winners and one Field’s Medalist.
The university has also fully utilized its strategic location in the world’s largest city, and has had a major impact on the domestic front. Fifteen Japanese Prime Ministers have come from University of Tokyo.
The school’s influence on the Japanese government has been so extensive that former Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa felt the need to order government agencies to reduce their percentages of University of Tokyo alumni to under 50 percent in order to promote diversity!
22Imperial College London
(London, UK)
What MIT is to the U.S., Imperial College London is to the U.K.
This university—whose full, official name is “Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine”—focuses on the empirical disciplines. It ascended to prominence by absorbing several smaller institutions, including the Royal College of Chemistry, the Royal School of Mines, the Royal College of Science, and the City and Guilds College.
Along the way, multiple medical facilities also joined with Imperial College, until now the university represents a conglomeration of research centers spread out across several campuses. Today, Imperial College is divided into three main schools: Engineering; Natural Science and Medicine; and Business.
Imperial College’s faculty has laid claim to 14 Nobel Prizes, and the Queen and the Prime Minister share the same physician who teaches there.
Imperial College is also ideally situated to work alongside of University College London, and to tap into the massive political and economic power associated with the U.K.’s capital city.
23University of Michigan … [17th in U.S.]
(Ann Arbor, MI, USA)
With 51,000 students and 5,600 faculty spread over three sites, the University of Michigan’s flagship campus is an extremely large research university with the expansive alumni network that such numbers grant.
Students have 17 distinct schools and colleges, 588 majors, over 600 student organizations, and a staggering 350 concerts and recitals annually to choose from. The pleasant college town of Ann Arbor was listed as the Number One College Town in 2010 by Forbes Magazine.
The university’s faculty include many Pulitzer Prize winners, Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellows, and Emmy Award recipients. Eight Nobel Prize winners number among the school’s alumni.
Michigan runs one of the world’s largest health care facilities, gives its students first class computer access, and possesses a library system with holdings of over 10 million volumes altogether.
It is little wonder that the school attracts students from all 50 states and over 100 countries. Almost half of the student body graduated in the top five percent of their class, and two thirds graduated in the top ten.
Michigan sends more undergraduates to medical school than any other school in America.
24University of Toronto
(Toronto, ON, Canada)
University of Toronto is the leading Canadian research university. Even by the standards of large state schools, this institution is utterly massive, with over 80,000 students, 20,000 faculty and staff, and 530,000 alumni around the world.
Students can choose from 215 different graduate, 60 professional, and more than 700 undergraduate degrees spread over three different campuses. The student body represent over 150 nations.
Toronto has 44 libraries with holdings of over 21 million in all. The school has an operating budget of C$1.9 billion and contributes C$15.7 billion to the Canadian economy every year.
Toronto has produced no fewer than 10 Nobel Prize winners, including the first two from Canada. Given its immense size and resources, coupled with the world-class intellects it attracts, it should come as no surprise that Toronto ranks second among North American universities for faculty publications and third for citations.
The university’s ample research leads to dozens of new patents every year and many new technological spin-offs.
25University of Wisconsin … [18th in U.S.]
(Madison, WI, USA)
The University of Wisconsin’s flagship campus at Madison is a large public school comprising 40,000 students divided into 13 schools and colleges, supported by a $2 billion-plus endowment (third in the U.S. for research expenditures).
Speaking of its impressive budget, the university has recently invested a lot of money in new facilities. In 2010, it built the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, which is designed for biomedical research. In 2012, it added a 200,000-square-foot addition to its Human Ecology Building. And in 2013, it opened the Wisconsin Energy Institute for advancing alternative energy technology.
However, University of Wisconsin represents more than state-of-the-art facilities. For over 100 years, this school has also developed a tradition of public service. Besides a vast collection of research programs directed towards more specific problems, the school’s Morgridge Center for Public Service has also engaged such broad social issues as poverty, inequality, and globalization.
26Kyoto University
(Kyoto, Japan)
In 1897, Kyoto University became the second university founded in Japan. Within a decade, the school added programs in science, engineering, law, medicine, and humanities.
The university, which is divided among three campuses, now has 17 graduate schools, 14 research institutes, 21 research/educational centers, and 10 faculties.
Eight of the 22 Japanese Nobel Prize Laureates have been affiliated with Kyoto. The school is also home to two Fields Medalists, as well as Gauss Prize winners and recipients of the Japan Prize.
Kyoto University has also recently received several major donations. In 2007, Japanese entrepreneur Tetsuro Funai gave the school enough funding to establish the Tetsuro Funai Auditorium and the Funai Center. Just three years later, Canon gave the school $4.89 million for the Advanced Medical Device Development and Clinical Research Center. Currently, the school has a $2.2 billion endowment.
Kyoto University runs multiple research centers, including the Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics, the Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences, the Primate Research Institute, the Kosobe Conservatory, and the Seto Marine Biological Laboratory.
27New York University … [19th in U.S.]
(New York, NY, USA)
New York University (NYU), located in the Washington Square neighborhood adjacent to Greenwich Village, pursues academic excellence while striving to be as diverse as the city it resides in. Eight-seven different foreign nations and 48 states are represented in its freshman class alone.
NYU also sends more students abroad than any other American school. Even in the present unpredictable economic atmosphere, 83 percent of the graduating class leave with jobs. This number increases to 94 percent employed or in graduate school within six months of commencement.
Furthermore, the average starting salary of recent graduates is an impressive $53,350. Almost half of the graduating class will receive multiple job offers.
NYU has also expanded into two foreign countries, with campuses in Shanghai (China) and Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). Students can choose from over 230 areas of study and enjoy an intimate 10:1 student-to-faculty ratio.
28Northwestern University … [20th in U.S.]
(Evanston, IL, USA)
Northwestern University’s 21,000 students enjoy three campuses, two of which border on Lake Michigan, while the third resides in Doha, Qatar. These campuses house 12 schools and colleges.
The school employs a prestigious 3,344-strong full-time faculty that currently includes a Nobel Prize winner, MacArthur Fellowship winners, and Tony Award winners. The university is also known for its 19 teams’ presence within the Big Ten athletic conference.
Its $9.8 billion endowment is why the school can afford to utilize more than $500 million for research in a given year, and why its library can hold over 5 million items, including numerous journals and microforms.
As often seems to be the case, this leading research university benefits from its close proximity to an even stronger neighbor, the University of Chicago.
Northwestern also runs several major graduate research initiatives, including the Center for Global Health, the Initiative for Sustainability and Energy at Northwestern, and the Global and Research Opportunities at Northwestern.
29University of Illinois … [21st in U.S.]
(Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA)
In the modern world, many marvel at the technological advances of science. The University of Illinois prides itself on a deep commitment to this progress through the kind of interdisciplinary research done at the Applied Research Institute—which brings together a wide assortment of engineers—or the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology—which unites a multitude of fields such as biology, computation, and physics—as well as the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership—which helps propagate the university’s nearly $2 billion endowment.
Yet, the school also utilizes much more focused research programs. These more specialized research programs include the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and the European Union Center.
This is why the University of Illinois, whose flagship campus is located at Urbana-Champaign, has produced 22 Noble Laureates and 22 Pulitzer Prizes. Famous Illinois alumni include many wealthy, successful people such as Oracle founder Larry Ellison,Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, and two of You Tube’s three founders.
30University of Minnesota … [22nd in U.S.]
(Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, USA)
The University of Minnesota has more people than most armies in history had soldiers. With just under 70,000 students, 25,000 faculty administering instruction, and an alumni network of over 400,000, Minnesota’s web of influence has encircled the globe. The school now impacts Minnesota’s economy to the tune of $8.6 billion annually.
This combination of massive financial resources and legions of brilliant minds is why Minnesota has no less than 325 research centers and institutes, giving students the opportunity to pursue their passions no matter where they lead.
The university, whose flagship campus is located in the “Twin Cities” of Minneapolis-St. Paul, has developed an especially successful medical research program through its children’s hospital and biomedical library.
Typically, one would expect a school of Minnesota’s size and prominence to be driven by publications and patents. However, in spite of its size the university has maintained a compassionate touch. In addition to its children’s hospital, the school also runs an extremely successful education program for students in grades K–12. This allows future educators, parents, and children to learn about learning while learning about everything else. As a result, Minnesota stands at the forefront of education research.
31Duke University … [23rd in U.S.]
(Durham, NC, USA)
Often called the Ivy League of the South, Duke University’s 14,600 students enjoy a first-class education in one corner of North Carolina’s famed “Research Triangle” (the other two corners being North Carolina State University at Raleigh and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill).
Duke is especially well known for its two most prestigious professional programs. The first is Duke’s medical program which includes the Duke University Health System, Medical School, Nursing School, and Duke Hospital, all working in partnership. The second is the university’s well-rated law school, which consistently ranks among the top 10 in the country (and has never dropped out of the prestigious top 14). Given these two areas of expertise, it is not surprisingly that Duke runs one of the world’s most sought-after dual J.D./M.D. programs.
The school also operates Duke University Press, which publishes about 120 new books each year and maintains 30 academic journals. In addition, the school maintains 700 acres of undisturbed woods called Duke Forest, which serves as a natural laboratory.
32Washington University … [24th in U.S.]
(St. Louis, MO, USA)
Washington University is a private university located in St. Louis, near the confluence of the mighty Mississippi and majestic Missouri Rivers. It was from here that Lewis and Clark set out on their great voyage of discovery in 1804; today, Washington University in St. Louis carries on in their tradition by extending the frontiers of knowledge.
U.S. News & World Report named the school first in social work and sixth among comprehensive medical schools, while Princeton Review named it seventh for best value in private colleges and eighth in top schools for entrepreneurs.
The U.S. Department of Education ranked Washington University 21st highest for freshman retention rate. Students enjoy an impressive 8:1 student-to-faculty ratio.
The university’s faculty are among the most highly honored in the world, including three Pulitzer Prize winners, two Poets Laureate of the United States, 53 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 45 National Academy of Sciences members, 18 American Law Institute members, and 16 National Medal of Science winners. Twenty-four Nobel Laureates have also been affiliated over the years with Washington University in Saint Louis.
33Rockefeller University … [25th in U.S.]
(New York, NY, USA)
Many universities try to study as wide a range of subjects as possible. Rockefeller University is different. More than any other school in the world’s top 100, Rockefeller specializes in bioscience and medical research.
The areas of biology that its departments focus on range from stem cells to neuroscience, and from biochemistry to structural biology.
Twenty-four Nobel Prizes have been connected to Rockefeller, as well as 21 Lasker Awards, 20 National Medals of Science, 16 members of the Institute of Medicine, 33 members or foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences, and 18 recipients of the Canadian Gairdner International Award.
What this university lacks in breadth it more than makes up for in depth. There are other schools that have faculties of comparable distinction spread out over all of their respective departments, but few schools can match Rockefeller University’s incredible concentration of talent within the frontiers of medical science.
34University of Colorado … [26th in U.S.]
(Boulder, CO, USA)
The University of Colorado, whose flagship campus is located in Boulder just north of Denver, sits against the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains—one of the most spectacular settings of any college campus.
But there is much more to this university than beautiful scenery. The school boasts five Nobel Laureates and more than 50 members of prestigious academic societies.
The University of Colorado at Boulder has a humanitarian-driven outlook. It is one of the top five contributors to the Peace Corps and founded the first Engineers Without Borders chapter.
The University runs 11 different research institutes empowered by the more than $350 million in research funds awarded to faculty. The school offers 3,600 undergraduate courses in roughly 150 fields for 81 different degrees at the bachelor’s level alone.
University of Colorado students come from every state and over 100 foreign countries. They also participate in study-abroad programs in 65 different nations.
Colorado-Boulder alumni have found success in fields from theology and ethics (Baptist theologian Stanley J. Grenz) to statesmanship and politics (President of Liberia and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf).
35Pierre and Marie Curie University (Paris VI)
(Paris, France)
As the chief science and medicine faculty in Paris, Pierre and Marie Curie University (also known as “Paris Six”) is its nation’s leading academic institution.
The university has 18 campuses spread over four regions. Its four museums advance cultural awareness of the arts, while its 125 laboratories partner with a variety of nationally funded research initiatives, including the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS).
The school, with 10,500 staff members and 5,820 teacher-researchers in residence, produces over 6,700 publications and 745 theses each year. Paris VI spends €400 million on scientific research projects annually. Of the school’s 32,000 students, some 10,000 are studying science and 11,000 medicine.
The university has also built a network of marine biology labs around the world—making the school a leader in the field of oceanography—as well as the impressive Paris Astrophysics Institute and the respected Henri Poinacaré Institute.
36University of North Carolina … [27th in U.S.]
(Chapel Hill, NC, USA)
As the oldest public school in America, the University of North Carolina (UNC) combines the long-standing traditions and prestige more typical of a private school with the economic heft and intellectual prowess of a big state school.
UNC—whose flagship campus is located in the “Research Triangle” town of Chapel Hill—has just under 30,000 students who routinely participate in 325 study-abroad programs in 70 countries.
The university was listed first on Princeton Review’s “Top 10 Best Value Public Colleges for 2014” list, ranked the fifth-best public school by U.S. News & World Report for the 14th straight year, and slotted #46 in the world according by London-based Times Higher Education.
UNC also cycles through a staggering number of research dollars. The National Institutes of Health awarded the university over $428 million in 2014, while another $141.5 million went to various UNC centers and institutes. Last year the university spent a total of $792.7 million on research supporting over 10,000 researchers, professors, scientists, and various other UNC staff.
37University of British Columbia
(Vancouver, BC, Canada)
The University of British Columbia (UBC) consistently ranks among the world’s top 40 research universities, and likewise among the top 20 public universities.
The school has produced seven Nobel Laureates, 65 Olympic medals, 68 Rhodes Scholars, and 180 Royal Society of Canada members. Both Kim Campbell and Charles Joseph Clark—two of Canada’s Prime Ministers—also came out of UBC.
The school’s great size (over 58,000 students and 5,130 faculty members) contributes to its vast alumni network of over 300,000 people spread out over 120 countries.
The school induces C$12.7 billion worth of economic impact on a yearly basis, and uses a C$2 billion operating budget. Up until now, 158 different companies have spun off of UBC-fnanced research.
The school is spread across two campuses, the larger of which is located in Vancouver and is surrounded by beautiful mountain scenery. The second campus is in the city of Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley.
UBC’s more-than-ample library system has 15 divisions and over 7 million items.
38University of Manchester
(Manchester, UK)
The University of Manchester’s 38,000 students and over 4,400 academic and research staff make this school the largest single campus-university in the United Kingdom.
The school has many illustrious accomplishments to its credit, including 25 Nobel Laureates. Several famous scientific experiments were performed here, such as Ernest Rutherford’s historic Gold Foil Experiment proving that the so-called “atom” has an internal structure (a nucleus).
Alan Turing laid the conceptual foundations for the field of computer science at Manchester, and later on it was here that the world’s first supercomputer was built. This university is also responsible for the discovery of graphene. Britain’s Research Assessment Exercise found nearly two-thirds of Manchester’s work to be either world-leading or internationally excellent.
Over 90 percent of graduates directly enter employment or further studies.
And as if all this success were not enough, Manchester has just invested £750 million into upgrading its facilities, and plans to spend a further £1 billion by 2022. This will be the greatest investment ever implemented into any university in the U.K.
39University of Texas … [28th in U.S.]
(Austin, TX, USA)
The University of Texas (UT) is one of the fastest-growing institutions of higher learning in the U.S., with an ever-increasing population and business potential.
UT—whose flagship campus is located in the state capital, Austin—is the anchor of the Texas University System, which consists altogether of nine universities and six medical schools. UT-Austin is considered one of the Public Ivy League schools.
UT’s research allowance is approaching $700 million annually, its operating budget is well over $2 billion, and its endowment is a whopping $6 billion.
Some 51,000 students and 24,000 faculty members pursue the love of learning here. The school’s faculty have earned rewards such as the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Wolf Prize, and the National Medal of Science.
There are 17 seventeen libraries and seven museums on campus. UT-Austin also runs the McDonald Observatory in the Davis Mountains of West Texas.
The school is very successful in the athletic arena, as well, where it competes within the well-known Big 12 Conference.
40University of Copenhagen
(Copenhagen, Denmark)
Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the oldest and the second-largest University in Denmark.
The university has over 38,000 students and 9,000 employees. It is a member of the international Alliance of Research Universities and has produced eight Nobel Laureates.
The school is divided into six departments, namely medicine, law, humanities, theology, social science, and science. It runs over 100 research centers that cover topics as diverse as real-time language change, international courts, military studies, dark-matter cosmology, aging, and Søren Kierkegaard.
University of Copenhagen has produced many noteworthy historical figures, such as the great astronomers Tycho Brahe and Ole Rømer. In more recent years, numerous Scandinavian, and especially Danish, Prime Ministers have graduated from the university.
The school continues to add to its rich history of intellectual and artistic achievement. For instance, the Copenhagen Orchestra—only founded in 2007—has already established an impressive reputation as one of Europe’s top symphony orchestras.
41University of California at Santa Barbara … [29th in U.S.]
(Santa Barbara, CA, USA)
The University of California at Santa Barbara (UCSB) is a young school, barely a century old. But in the last 60 years, it has surged onto the world scene and become internationally renowned.
The university’s 21,500 students and 1,100 faculty enjoy one of the most aesthetically stunning campuses in the world. Newsweek has written of UCSB: “If there’s a more beautiful campus than this one at the edge of the Pacific, we haven’t seen it.”
The current faculty include five Nobel Prize Laureates since 1998, as well as members of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the National Academy of Engineering, as well as recipients of the Fields Medal and the Millennium Technology Prize. These first-class intellects pursue research at the school’s 12 national research centers.
This rapid rise to prominence was rewarded in 1995, when UCSB joined the 62-school Association of American Universities, an honor which less than two percent of North American Universities enjoy.
42University of Paris-Sud (Paris XI)
(Paris, France)
The University of Paris-Sud (also known as “Paris Onze”) is an ancient school founded in the 12th century. It is in many ways reminiscent of the city it calls home.
Just as Paris is both one of the cultural capitals of the world and simultaneously advancing in the ever-evolving information age, so too Paris XI combines its historic linage with a bold future.
One hundred thirty-two nationalities are represented within the student body’s vibrant, 28,000-strong membership. The school also attracts 1,900 teachers and 2,500 researchers.
These people advance their work in over 100 laboratories and produce 5,000 international publications annually. Most of this body of work is cited at above the average rate. Paris XI has also produced two Nobel Prize Laureates and four Fields Medalists.
The university’s Industrial and Commercial Activity Office regularly produces 50 patents a year. Most of the patents are in cutting-edge hard science such as physics, engineering, and medicine.
Paris XI earns €19 million each year through contract research.
43University of Maryland … [30th in U.S.]
(College Park, MD, USA)
The University of Maryland (UMD) is the leading research center in its state.
UMD’s flagship school is located on a beautiful 1250-acre campus in College Park, Maryland, which is effectively a suburb of Washington, D.C. The school is only nine miles from the White House, the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Archives. Students work with federal agencies, labs, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
In 2013, the school’s Food Recovery Network received its first large grant through Sodexo. Now, this organization provides food for hungry people in 53 colleges across 20 states. UMD pioneered the hugely successful living-learning programs, which have given students hands-on experience in fields as diverse as entrepreneurship and cybersecurity.
The faculty includes members of various national academies, Pulitzer Prize winners, and Nobel Laureates. UMD researchers have worked alongside NASA on multiple space missions, including Voyagers I and II and the Deep Impact missions.
UMD’s environmental researchers are currently working to restore the Chesapeake Bay.
44University of Melbourne
(Melbourne, Victoria, Australia)
The University of Melbourne is both the oldest and the leading university in Australia. The school sits next to Melbourne’s center of commerce, and consequently benefits from all the culture and opportunity that a city which has been called “the fourth best city for college students” affords.
The University offers over 340 graduate tracks. One can study everything from professional degrees in law and medicine, to research programs in various sciences.
This is why every year 52,000 students—12,000 of whom are foreigners representing 129 different countries—come to Melbourne. This healthy research environment is one reason why Melbourne gave the world its first bionic ear and is currently developing the first bionic eye.
The school belongs to several prestigious university groups, such as the Asia-Pacific Rim and the Group of Eight. The university has refocused its research directives towards discerning three broad issues: our place/purpose, promoting well-being, and supporting sustainability.
Melbourne actively seeks to engage public discourse through its biennial Festival of Ideas and public lecture program.
45University of Edinburgh
(Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)
Founded in 1583, the University of Edinburgh is one of the oldest colleges in the English-speaking world. Its list of historic luminaries includes Adam Smith, David Hume, Charles Darwin, James Clerk Maxwell, and Alexander Graham Bell.
The school has also produced heads of state for Canada, Malawi, Syria, Nicaragua, South Korea, Tanzania, and of course, the United Kingdom.
Edinburgh scientists cloned Dolly the Sheep (the first cloned mammal), while Peter Higgs created his theory of the Higgs Boson here. Scientists at this university created the first genetically engineered hepatitis B vaccine, and helped design the first industrial-assembly robot.
Students can study 500 degree programs spread throughout 100 disciplines. Edinburgh has the largest proportion of international students (two-thirds of the world’s nations are represented in the student body) of any school in Scotland, and participates in many foreign exchange programs.
During the past five years, the school has invested £80 million in improving educational facilities. Students can enjoy all these opportunities right in the middle of Scotland’s beautiful capital.
46University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center … [31st in U.S.]
(Dallas, TX, USA)
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas is the largest medical training facility in the Texas University System. It trains over 4,700 students and postdoctoral fellows from the medical, graduate, and health professions every year. The school’s students and faculty care for 92,000 hospitalized patients and 2.1 million outpatients each year.
The school receives $415.5 million from various federal agencies, including the National Institutes of Health. These funds support over 3,300 research projects.
Southwestern Medical has 13,800 employees utilizing a $2.3 billion operating budget. The faculty do not restrict their teaching to just students and fellows. They also teach 1,600 clinical residents and 63,000 physicians pursuing continuing education each year.
The graduate school runs 12 different degree programs covering every area of modern medicine. The current faculty hold six Nobel Prizes. In addition, 21 are members of the National Academy of Sciences and 19 are members of the Institute of Medicine.
47Karolinska Institute
(Solna, Sweden)
For many scientists around the world, winning the Nobel Prize in their field is equivalent to an athlete’s winning an Olympic gold medal, or to a politician’s being elected President or Prime Minister.
Five researchers affiliated with the Karolinska have received the Nobel Prize, all right—but more interestingly, it is here that the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded every year since 1895 (except during World War II).
This world-class medical science center—located in a suburb of Stockholm—produces over 40 percent of the medical research done in Sweden. It was here that in 1915 researchers discovered the sedimentation reaction (ESR), which remains a useful diagnostic tool to this day.
The Karolinska was also the first to develop methods for the production of pure insulin and non-toxic heparin and other blood thinners. The institute also conducted important studies on the impact of the fluoridation of drinking water on public health, the use radiation to examine blood vessels, and the purification of myoglobin.
Finally, it was here that the first pacemaker was implanted into a live person, and the foundations for mitochondrial medicine were laid.
This illustrious list of contributions to medicine continues unabated into the present and will continue for the foreseeable future.
48University of California at Irvine … [32nd in U.S.]
(Irvine, CA, USA)
The University of California at Irvine shares many traits with its sister schools in the University of California public research system. It is young (founded in 1965) and large (over 29,000 students), and has rapidly climbed the ranks from an unknown entity to one of the world’s premier research universities.
Times Higher Education ranks UC Irvine as the number one university under 50 years old, and it was the youngest school to enter the Association of American Universities.
Its yearly contribution of outside funding now exceeds $300 million per year. Its endowment is rapidly expanding, having nearly reached its $1 billion fundraising goal set for its 50th anniversary next year.
These growing assets allow the school to develop cutting-edge technology, such as new extremely lightweight but strong materials in resilient micro-lattice metal, or the work of famous computer scientists like Deva Ramanan.
UC Irvine also runs first-class professional schools. Its business school is now respected as one of the best in the world and is particularly known for employing many female professors, while the university’s law school is now ranked among the top 10 for scholarly publications.
49Heidelberg University
(Heidelberg, Germany)
Founded in 1386, Heidelberg University is Germany’s oldest research university. The school has also used a combination of research-based teaching and effective doctoral training to become one of Europe’s most respected science schools.
Heidelberg focuses on four broad areas of research: materials and structures; molecular and cellular pattern formation; self-organization and regulation; and global culture.
The school also runs the interdisciplinary Centre for Advanced Study and works alongside independent research centers, including the German Cancer Research Center and the Max Planck Institute.
The school’s 30,000 students study and work in 12 different faculties and can choose from 160 different programs. This incredibly wide range of topics of study is unparalleled in Germany, and further enhances the institution’s ability to do interdisciplinary research.
Heidelberg is also plugged into a worldwide collection of over 400 research universities. It is a member of the League of European Research Universities, the Coimbra Group, and the European University Association. The school also has a satellite campus in Latin America and offers courses in various other locations.
Roughly 20 percent of both the student body and the researchers are international. The school is also connected to a staggering 55 Nobel Prizes, as well as numerous other faculty awards.
50University of Munich
(Munich, Germany)
The Ludwig Maximilian University Munich—or the “University of Munich,” for short—is a leading European research university over half a millennia in age.
The university was chosen by the German government’s Excellence Initiative as a university of excellence. Seven hundred forty professors and 4,750 academic staff conduct research via its many laboratories and medical facilities.
Unlike many younger schools which have a far stronger tendency to focus on the hard sciences, the University of Munich also maintains an impressive emphasis on the humanities. For example, it has two separate theology departments—one Protestant and the other Catholic—that work side-by-side with its Philosophy department.
Half of the university’s 18 faculties are dedicated to studying various aspects of culture. The school offers 150 subjects for its 48,000 students, 5 percent of whom (about 6,800) are foreigners.
The school’s operating budget is an impressive €488.6 million, which leaves plenty of room to still focus on the hard sciences.
This is one reason why Munich has produced 34 Nobel Prizes, and has 1,800 doctors treating over 500,000 patients each year.
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