As the global economy becomes increasingly competitive, a university education is more important than ever. Graduating from a top-rated university can open doors to better job opportunities, higher salaries, and greater professional success. In this article, we’ll take a look at the top 100 universities in the world and highlight some of their most notable programs and alumni.
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1636 and is the oldest institution of higher education in the country. Some of the best courses/programs offered by the university include Business, Law, Medicine, Education, and Engineering.
Notable alumni of Harvard University include business leaders such as Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook), Bill Gates (Microsoft), and Michael Bloomberg (Bloomberg L.P.), as well as celebrities like Matt Damon, Natalie Portman, and Conan O’Brien.
Stanford University
Stanford University is a private research university located in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 and has a strong reputation in the fields of Engineering, Computer Science, Business, and Law.
Notable alumni of Stanford University include business leaders such as Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google), Elon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX), and Reed Hastings (Netflix), as well as celebrities like Reese Witherspoon and Tiger Woods.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1861 and is known for its strength in the fields of Engineering, Computer Science, and Physical Sciences.
Notable alumni of MIT include business leaders such as Benjamin Netanyahu (Prime Minister of Israel), Kofi Annan (former Secretary-General of the United Nations), and Susan Hockfield (former President of MIT).
California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
The California Institute of Technology (Caltech) is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. It was founded in 1891 and is known for its strength in the fields of Science, Engineering, and Technology.
Notable alumni of Caltech include business leaders such as Charles Munger (Vice Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway), Frank Capra (film director), and Gordon Moore (co-founder of Intel Corporation).
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university located in Oxford, England. It is the oldest university in the English-speaking world and was established in 1096. The university is known for its strength in the fields of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Medical Sciences.
Notable alumni of the University of Oxford include business leaders such as Tim Cook (CEO of Apple Inc.), Tony Blair (former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom), and Indra Nooyi (former CEO of PepsiCo).
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a collegiate research university located in Cambridge, England. It was founded in 1209 and is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. The university is known for its strength in the fields of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Physical Sciences.
Notable alumni of the University of Cambridge include business leaders such as Stephen Hawking (physicist), Emma Watson (actress), and Sacha Baron Cohen (comedian).
List of 100 Top-Rated Universities in the World
| S. No. | University Name | Location | Estd. Year | Website | Best Courses/Programs |
| 1 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) | Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA | 1861 | https://www.mit.edu/ | Computer Science, Engineering, Business, Mathematics, Economics |
| 2 | Stanford University | Stanford, California, USA | 1885 | https://www.stanford.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Medicine, Law |
| 3 | Harvard University | Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA | 1636 | https://www.harvard.edu/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Public Health, Education |
| 4 | California Institute of Technology (Caltech) | Pasadena, California, USA | 1891 | https://www.caltech.edu/ | Physics, Engineering, Astronomy, Chemistry, Mathematics |
| 5 | University of Oxford | Oxford, UK | 1096 | https://www.ox.ac.uk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Computer Science, Philosophy |
| 6 | University of Cambridge | Cambridge, UK | 1209 | https://www.cam.ac.uk/ | Computer Science, Engineering, Medicine, Law, Economics |
| 7 | University of Chicago | Chicago, Illinois, USA | 1890 | https://www.uchicago.edu/ | Economics, Political Science, Mathematics, Philosophy, Sociology |
| 8 | ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology | Zurich, Switzerland | 1854 | https://ethz.ch/en.html | Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics, Earth Sciences |
| 9 | Imperial College London | London, UK | 1907 | https://www.imperial.ac.uk/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Physics, Mathematics |
| 10 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA | 1740 | https://www.upenn.edu/ | Business, Law, Medicine, Education, Engineering |
| 11 | University of California, Berkeley (UCB) | Berkeley, California, USA | 1868 | https://www.berkeley.edu/ | Computer Science, Engineering, Business, Economics, Physics |
| 12 | Columbia University | New York, New York, USA | 1754 | https://www.columbia.edu/ | Business, Law, Journalism, Medicine, Public Health |
| 13 | University of Tokyo | Tokyo, Japan | 1877 | https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/ | Engineering, Medicine, Economics, Science, Law |
| 14 | University of Michigan | Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA | 1817 | https://umich.edu/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Law, Public Policy |
| 15 | Tsinghua University | Beijing, China | 1911 | https://www.tsinghua.edu.cn/en/ | Engineering, Science, Business, Law, Public Policy |
| 16 | Peking University | Beijing, China | 1898 | https://english.pku.edu.cn/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Science, Engineering |
| 17 | National University of Singapore (NUS) | Singapore | 1905 | https://www.nus.edu.sg/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Law, Computer Science |
| 18 | University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | Los Angeles, California, USA | 1919 | https://www.ucla.edu/ | Business, Engineering, Law, Medicine, Public Health |
| 19 | University of Toronto | Toronto, Canada | 1827 | https://www.utoronto.ca/ | Computer Science, Business, Engineering, Medicine, Political Science |
| 20 | Duke University | Durham, North Carolina, USA | 1838 | https://www.duke.edu/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Engineering, Public Policy |
| 21 | University of California, San Diego (UCSD) | La Jolla, California, USA | 1960 | https://ucsd.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Medicine, Business, Economics |
| 22 | Northwestern University | Evanston, Illinois, USA | 1851 | https://www.northwestern.edu/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Engineering, Journalism |
| 23 | University of Edinburgh | Edinburgh, UK | 1583 | https://www.ed.ac.uk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Computer Science, Philosophy |
| 24 | University of Hong Kong (HKU) | Hong Kong | 1911 | https://www.hku.hk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Engineering, Education |
| 25 | Georgia Institute of Technology | Atlanta, Georgia, USA | 1885 | https://www.gatech.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Mathematics, Architecture |
| 26 | University of Manchester | Manchester, UK | 1824 | https://www.manchester.ac.uk/ | Business, Medicine, Engineering, Physics, Computer Science |
| 27 | University of Melbourne | Melbourne, Australia | 1853 | https://www.unimelb.edu.au/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Engineering, Computer Science |
| 28 | King’s College London | London, UK | 1829 | https://www.kcl.ac.uk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Engineering, Physics |
| 29 | University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) | Santa Barbara, California, USA | 1909 | https://www.ucsb.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Economics, Environmental Science |
| 30 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | Madison, Wisconsin, USA | 1848 | https://www.wisc.edu/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Law, Education |
| 31 | Seoul National University | Seoul, South Korea | 1946 | https://www.useoul.edu/ | Engineering, Medicine, Law, Business, Computer Science |
| 32 | The University of Queensland | Brisbane, Australia | 1909 | https://www.uq.edu.au/ | Medicine, Engineering, Business, Law, Environmental Science |
| 33 | New York University (NYU) | New York, New York, USA | 1831 | https://www.nyu.edu/ | Law, Business, Film and Television, Computer Science, Psychology |
| 34 | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, Canada | 1908 | https://www.ubc.ca/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Computer Science, Environmental Science |
| 35 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Urbana, Illinois, USA | 1867 | https://illinois.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Physics, Agriculture |
| 36 | University of Sydney | Sydney, Australia | 1850 | https://www.sydney.edu.au/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Education, Engineering |
| 37 | University of Amsterdam | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 1632 | https://www.uva.nl/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Computer Science, Psychology |
| 38 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University | Shanghai, China | 1896 | https://www.sjtu.edu.cn/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Mathematics, Materials Science |
| 39 | Technical University of Munich | Munich, Germany | 1868 | https://www.tum.de/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Medicine, Business, Physics |
| 40 | Peking University | Beijing, China | 1898 | https://www.pku.edu.cn/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Computer Science, Mathematics |
| 41 | University of Glasgow | Glasgow, UK | 1451 | https://www.gla.ac.uk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Education, Engineering |
| 42 | Australian National University | Canberra, Australia | 1946 | https://www.anu.edu.au/ | Medicine, Engineering, Law, Business, Environmental Science |
| 43 | Karolinska Institute | Stockholm, Sweden | 1810 | https://ki.se/ | Medicine, Public Health, Neuroscience, Oncology, Physiology |
| 44 | University of Bristol | Bristol, UK | 1876 | https://www.bristol.ac.uk/ | Law, Business, Engineering, Medicine, Psychology |
| 45 | University of Copenhagen | Copenhagen, Denmark | 1479 | https://www.ku.dk/ | Law, Business, Medicine, Environmental Science, Humanities |
| 46 | University of Warwick | Coventry, UK | 1965 | https://warwick.ac.uk/ | Business, Engineering, Mathematics, Computer Science, Law |
| 47 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA | 1789 | https://www.unc.edu/ | Law, Medicine, Business, Journalism, Environmental Science |
| 48 | Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU) | Singapore | 1955 | https://www.ntu.edu.sg/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Medicine, Humanities |
| 49 | Brown University | Providence, Rhode Island, USA | 1764 | https://www.brown.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Mathematics, Medicine |
| 50 | Tsinghua University | Beijing, China | 1911 | https://www.tsinghua.edu.cn/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Environmental Science, Humanities |
| 51 | University of Manchester | Manchester, UK | 1824 | https://www.manchester.ac.uk/ | Engineering, Medicine, Business, Physics, Computer Science |
| 52 | École Normale Supérieure de Lyon | Lyon, France | 1880 | https://www.ens-lyon.fr/ | Mathematics, Computer Science, Biology, Physics, Literature |
| 53 | University of Minnesota Twin Cities | Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA | 1851 | https://twin-cities.umn.edu/ | Law, Medicine, Education, Psychology, Environmental Science |
| 54 | University of British Columbia | Vancouver, Canada | 1908 | https://www.ubc.ca/ | Engineering, Business, Medicine, Environmental Science, Computer Science |
| 55 | Hong Kong University of Science and Technology | Hong Kong | 1991 | https://www.ust.hk/ | Engineering, Business, Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics |
| 56 | Hebrew University of Jerusalem | Jerusalem, Israel | 1918 | https://new.huji.ac.il/en | Law, Business, Medicine, Environmental Science, Humanities |
| 57 | University of Geneva | Geneva, Switzerland | 1559 | https://www.unige.ch/ | Law, Business, International Relations, Physics, Computer Science |
| 58 | University of Arizona | Tucson, Arizona, USA | 1885 | https://www.arizona.edu/ | Astronomy, Medicine, Business, Environmental Science, Creative Writing |
| 59 | University of Otago | Dunedin, New Zealand | 1869 | https://www.otago.ac.nz/ | Medicine, Dentistry, Law, Business, Sciences |
| 60 | King’s College London | London, UK | 1829 | https://www.kcl.ac.uk/ | Law, Medicine, Business, History, English |
| 61 | University of Sydney | Sydney, Australia | 1850 | https://www.sydney.edu.au/ | Medicine, Business, Law, Engineering, Arts |
| 62 | University of Helsinki | Helsinki, Finland | 1640 | https://www.helsinki.fi/en | Environmental Science, Social Sciences, Medicine, Arts, Computer Science |
| 63 | University of St. Andrews | St. Andrews, UK | 1413 | https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/ | International Relations, Philosophy, Mathematics, Classics, Medicine |
| 64 | University of Maryland, College Park | College Park, Maryland, USA | 1856 | https://www.umd.edu/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Business, Journalism, Psychology |
| 65 | University of Southampton | Southampton, UK | 1862 | https://www.southampton.ac.uk/ | Oceanography, Medicine, Engineering, Computer Science, Law |
| 66 | University of Western Australia | Perth, Australia | 1911 | https://www.uwa.edu.au/ | Engineering, Business, Law, Medicine, Environmental Science |
| 67 | University of Freiburg | Freiburg, Germany | 1457 | https://www.uni-freiburg.de/en | Medicine, Biology, Law, History, Philosophy |
| 68 | University of Sheffield | Sheffield, UK | 1897 | https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/ | Architecture, Engineering, Medicine, Psychology, Law |
| 69 | University of Cape Town | Cape Town, South Africa | 1829 | https://www.uct.ac.za/ | Medicine, Law, Business, Environmental Science, Social Sciences |
| 70 | University of Wisconsin-Madison | Madison, Wisconsin, USA | 1848 | https://www.wisc.edu/ | Veterinary Medicine, Business, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Education |
| 71 | University of Queensland | Brisbane, Australia | 1909 | https://www.uq.edu.au/ | Agriculture, Medicine, Engineering, Business, Law |
| 72 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA | 1789 | https://www.unc.edu/ | Medicine, Journalism, Education, Law, Environmental Science |
| 73 | University of Tübingen | Tübingen, Germany | 1477 | https://uni-tuebingen.de/en/ | Medicine, Neuroscience, Philosophy, Theology, Law |
| 74 | University of Warwick | Coventry, UK | 1965 | https://warwick.ac.uk/ | Business, Computer Science, Mathematics, Engineering, Philosophy |
| 75 | University of California, Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara, California, USA | 1909 | https://www.ucsb.edu/ | Physics, Computer Science, Environmental Science, Psychology, Sociology |
| 76 | University of Vienna | Vienna, Austria | 1365 | https://www.univie.ac.at/en/ | Psychology, Law, Political Science, Sociology, History |
| 77 | University of Arizona | Tucson, Arizona, USA | 1885 | https://www.arizona.edu/ | Astronomy, Agriculture, Medicine, Business, Law |
| 78 | University of Notre Dame | Notre Dame, Indiana, USA | 1842 | https://www.nd.edu/ | Philosophy, Theology, Law, Business, Engineering |
| 79 | University of Amsterdam | Amsterdam, Netherlands | 1632 | https://www.uva.nl/en/home | Psychology, Business, Law, Social Sciences, Medicine |
| 80 | University of Basel | Basel, Switzerland | 1460 | https://www.unibas.ch/en.html | Medicine, Life Sciences, History, Law, Business |
| 81 | Boston University | Boston, Massachusetts, USA | 1839 | https://www.bu.edu/ | Communication, Business, Law, Psychology, Engineering |
| 82 | University of Mannheim | Mannheim, Germany | 1967 | https://www.uni-mannheim.de/ | Business, Economics, Social Sciences, Law, Psychology |
| 83 | University of Rochester | Rochester, New York, USA | 1850 | https://www.rochester.edu/ | Optics, Music, Business, Medicine, Psychology |
| 84 | University of St. Andrews | St. Andrews, UK | 1413 | https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/ | International Relations, Philosophy, Classics, Medicine, Psychology |
| 85 | University of Southampton | Southampton, UK | 1862 | https://www.southampton.ac.uk/ | Oceanography, Business, Law, Medicine, Engineering |
| 86 | University of Sussex | Brighton, UK | 1961 | https://www.sussex.ac.uk/ | Sociology, Psychology, Business, International Relations, History |
| 87 | University of Göttingen | Göttingen, Germany | 1737 | https://www.uni-goettingen.de/en/1.html | Physics, Mathematics, Law, Philosophy, History |
| 88 | University of St. Gallen | St. Gallen, Switzerland | 1898 | https://www.unisg.ch/en | Business, Economics, Law, International Affairs, Computer Science |
| 89 | University of Bern | Bern, Switzerland | 1834 | https://www.unibe.ch/index_eng.html | Medicine, Law, History, Environmental Science, Business |
| 90 | University of Konstanz | Konstanz, Germany | 1966 | https://www.uni-konstanz.de/en/ | Political Science, Computer Science, Linguistics, Chemistry, Biology |
| 91 | University of Vienna | Vienna, Austria | 1365 | https://www.univie.ac.at/en/ | Law, Psychology, Economics, History, Mathematics |
| 92 | University of Bonn | Bonn, Germany | 1818 | https://www.uni-bonn.de/en | Mathematics, Physics, Economics, Neuroscience, Law |
| 93 | University of Helsinki | Helsinki, Finland | 1640 | https://www.helsinki.fi/en | Environmental Sciences, Social Sciences, Medicine, Law, Education |
| 94 | Eindhoven University of Technology | Eindhoven, Netherlands | 1956 | https://www.tue.nl/en/ | Engineering, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, Business |
| 95 | University of Lausanne | Lausanne, Switzerland | 1537 | https://www.unil.ch/central/en/home.html | Business, Law, Social Sciences, Medicine, Biology |
| 96 | University of Freiburg | Freiburg, Germany | 1457 | https://www.uni-freiburg.de/ | Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Philosophy, Environmental Science |
| 97 | University of Bergen | Bergen, Norway | 1946 | https://www.uib.no/en | Marine Sciences, Psychology, Medicine, Law, Social Sciences |
| 98 | University of Reading | Reading, UK | 1892 | https://www.reading.ac.uk/ | Agriculture, Environmental Sciences, Psychology, Law, Business |
| 99 | University of Maastricht | Maastricht, Netherlands | 1976 | https://www.maastrichtuniversity.nl/ | Health Sciences, Law, Business, Psychology, European Studies |
| 100 | University of Gothenburg | Gothenburg, Sweden | 1891 | https://www.gu.se/en | Environmental Science, Law, Psychology, Medicine, Business |
