Times Higher Education (THE) released the World University Rankings 2027 on 30 September 2026. This edition ranks 2,297 institutions in 118 countries and territories, up from 2,191 in the 2026 edition.
If you are building a university shortlist, here is what actually moved: the top 10, the leading US and UK universities, the 14 Vietnamese universities in the table, and how to use a ranking without being misled by it.
The top 10 and what changed since 2026
Oxford is number one for a record 11th year in a row. Its lead over MIT, though, is just 0.1 points (97.9 against 97.8).
| University | Country | 2027 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| University of Oxford | UK | 1 | 1 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | US | 2 | 2 |
| Princeton University | US | =3 | =3 |
| Stanford University | US | =3 | =5 |
| University of Cambridge | UK | 5 | =3 |
| Harvard University | US | 6 | =5 |
| California Institute of Technology | US | 7 | 7 |
| Imperial College London | UK | 8 | 8 |
| University of California, Berkeley | US | =9 | 9 |
| Yale University | US | =9 | 10 |
An "=" marks a tie. The split is unchanged: seven American and three British universities. Stanford climbs into a tie for third, Cambridge drops to fifth, Harvard to sixth, and Yale joins Berkeley in joint ninth.
The bigger story sits just below. Tsinghua University rises to 11th, overtaking ETH Zurich (12th), so Asia's top university now outranks the best in mainland Europe for the first time. Peking University holds 13th and the National University of Singapore moves up to 15th, giving Asia three places in the top 15 for the first time.
US and UK universities: who rose, who fell, and why
United States
The US has 53 universities in the top 200, two fewer than last year. THE's analysis notes that American institutions declined on most metrics, including research strength, citation impact and international students.
- UC San Diego made the biggest gain among US top-50 universities, from 47th to 37th, driven mainly by reputation and publications per staff member.
- Cornell slips from joint 18th to 21st, UCLA from joint 18th to 20th and Duke from 28th to 32nd.
- Georgia Tech falls from joint 41st to 49th, Illinois Urbana-Champaign from joint 41st to 48th, and Boston University from joint 76th to 86th.
- NYU edges up from joint 31st to joint 29th.
United Kingdom
The UK has 25 universities in the top 200, one fewer than last year. According to THE, every income measure for UK universities (institutional, research and industry income) fell relative to the rest of the world, and research strength and productivity dropped. Strong reputations are what keep the sector near the top.
- UCL returns to the top 20 for the first time since the 2022 edition, at joint 17th (from 22nd).
- LSE climbs to 47th (from 52nd), ending a five-year decline.
- Edinburgh is joint 29th (29th last year), King's College London 40th (from 38th) and Manchester 60th (from 56th).
- Among the larger moves, St Andrews falls from joint 162nd to joint 185th, while Durham rises from 175th to joint 157th.
Vietnamese universities in the table
Vietnam has 14 ranked universities in 2027, up from 11 in 2026. Two more appear with "Reporter" status, meaning they submitted data but did not meet the criteria to be ranked.
Beyond 200th place THE publishes bands rather than exact positions, and the 2027 bands are drawn differently from 2026 (which used 1201–1500 and 1501+). Treat year-on-year comparisons as a direction of travel, not a precise move.
| University | 2027 band | 2026 band |
|---|---|---|
| Duy Tan University | 701–800 | 601–800 |
| UEH University | 701–800 | 501–600 |
| Hanoi Medical University | 801–1000 | 801–1000 |
| Ton Duc Thang University | 1001–1200 | 601–800 |
| Nguyen Tat Thanh University | 1201–1400 | 1001–1200 |
| Vietnam National University, Hanoi | 1201–1400 | 1201–1500 |
| Ho Chi Minh City Open University | 1401–1600 | 1201–1500 |
| Hanoi University of Science and Technology | 1601–1800 | 1501+ |
| National Economics University | 1601–1800 | Not ranked |
| Vietnam National University (Ho Chi Minh City) | 1801–2000 | 1501+ |
| Can Tho University | 2001+ | Not ranked |
| Hue University | 2001+ | 1501+ |
| Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City | 2001+ | Not ranked |
| The University of Danang | 2001+ | 1501+ |
The two Reporter institutions are Can Tho University of Medicine and Pharmacy and Nam Can Tho University.
Duy Tan and UEH share Vietnam's top spot in the 701–800 band. UEH, Ton Duc Thang and Nguyen Tat Thanh fall into lower bands, Hanoi Medical University holds steady, and three universities enter for the first time. With more than a hundred institutions added each year, a lower band does not necessarily mean a university got worse; others may simply have improved faster.
How THE's methodology differs from QS
THE scores universities across five weighted pillars:
- Teaching (29.5%): teaching reputation (15%), staff-to-student ratio, doctoral ratios and institutional income.
- Research environment (29%): research reputation (18%), research income and research productivity.
- Research quality (30%): citation impact (15%) plus research strength, excellence and influence.
- International outlook (7.5%): international students, international staff and international collaboration.
- Industry (4%): industry income and patents.
Reputation, measured through THE's academic survey, makes up 33% of the total, and citation data come from Elsevier's Scopus. The key contrast with QS is that QS includes employer reputation and employment outcomes, which THE does not, while THE leans more heavily on research. The same university can therefore sit in quite different places in the two tables. Compare with our QS World University Rankings 2026 overview.
Using rankings to choose a university: what works and what doesn't
Do:
- Use the overall table to build a first shortlist, then look at the subject you plan to study.
- Read the pillar scores. If small classes matter to you, the staff-to-student ratio tells you more than the overall rank.
- Look at trends over several years rather than a single edition.
Don't:
- Read a gap of a few places as a gap in quality. Oxford and MIT are separated by 0.1 points.
- Compare banded positions as if they were exact ranks. Universities within the same band are not ordered.
- Ignore cost, scholarships, location, career outcomes and how well the university fits your profile.
Sources
- Times Higher Education – World University Rankings 2027
- Times Higher Education – World University Rankings 2027: highlights
- Times Higher Education – World University Rankings 2027: results announced
- Times Higher Education – Methodology
- Times Higher Education – World University Rankings 2026
Data from Times Higher Education, retrieved on 1 October 2026.