In the 2023 edition of the Times Higher Education (THE) rankings, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) maintained its position as the top-ranked Indian university. Major IITs continued to boycott the rankings for the third year in a row, citing concerns about “transparency” in the ranking criteria, including those at Delhi, Roorkee, Kanpur, Mumbai, and Kharagpur. India ranked as the 6th most represented country in THE’s 2023 ranking with 75 institutes.
Five Indian universities made it into the world’s top 500 varsities – IISc, Bengaluru; JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Mysore; Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences, Solan; Alagappa University, Karaikudi; and Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam.
IISc has been placed in the 251-300 bracket, jumping one ranking band from last year. MGU, which was tied at the third spot, jumped two ranking bands, from 601-800 in the 2022 ranking to 401-500 in the latest tally. In total, 22 Indian universities made it below rank 800 – three of which were debutant entries.
Six universities made their debut in THE rankings this year, with Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences attaining the highest among new entrants in the 351-400 band and jumping straight to the joint second-highest spot in the country.
THE World University Rankings 2023 include 1,799 universities across 104 countries and regions. The rankings are based on 13 parameters that measure an institution’s performance across four areas: teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international outlook.
The University of Oxford topped the list for the seventh consecutive year, followed by Harvard University. The University of Cambridge jumped to joint third from joint fifth last year. The United States is the most-represented country overall with 177 institutions in the overall ranking list.