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• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the��United States��leads��the rankings with��first place in three subject rankings:��Arts and Humanities, Business and Economics,��and Social Sciences��

• Times Higher Education��publishes university rankings in��11��subject areas, using the same rigorous��methodology��as its overall World University Rankings, deploying 18��performance metrics across teaching, research, knowledge��transfer��and internationalisation��to provide the world’s most comprehensive and balanced subject rankings��

• United States��tops eight subject rankings��

• United Kingdom��is number one in three subject rankings��

• University of Cambridge��takes a��number one��spot��for first time since 2022, topping the��Psychology��table��

• China��enters top 10 for first time in Computer Science and Physical Sciences��– and has seven��top-10��places across the subject rankings overall, up from four last year����

• Three Asian universities in top 10 for Business and Economics for the first time��

• Australia��rejoins top 10 in Law with University of Melbourne in eighth place��

• Mainland Europe has one��top-10��university: ETH Zurich in��Switzerland��is third for Computer Science and��ninth in Physical Sciences��

• Scroll down for all 11��top-10��tables

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The��United States��and��United Kingdom��dominate the��Times Higher Education��World University Rankings by Subject��top 10s, but��East��Asia is making significant strides forward��at the top of the tables,��demonstrating��the region’s growing strength��in��competing��at the very highest levels.����

China��is the best performing Asian country at the top of the rankings with seven��top-10��places, up from four last year. Peking University has become the��first Chinese university to join the top 10 in Computer Science��in 10th place, up from 12th. Meanwhile,��Tsinghua University is the first Chinese��university to make the top 10 for Physical Sciences in 10th place.��And in Engineering,��Peking University��rises to��eighth position from 11th, giving Asia two universities in the top 10,��as��Singapore’s National University of Singapore is��tenth.��

Singapore��also enters the top 10 for Business and Economics with NUS in joint��10th��position –��bringing the total number of��top-10��Asian universities for Business and Economics to three��– and��joins��the��Arts and Humanities top 20��as��NUS��rises to 19th��place from 25th.��Meanwhile,��Hong Kong��remains��in the top 10��for Education with University of Hong Kong in seventh place,��down from sixth.��

Globally,��US��university MIT tops the highest number of rankings, coming first in��three subjects:��Arts and Humanities, Business and Economics,��and Social Sciences. Stanford University is first for Education and Law but no longer leads the Psychology��ranking as it gets pushed to second place by the��UK’s University of Cambridge.����

Harvard University is number one for Engineering and Life Sciences, and California Institute for Technology comes first in Physical Sciences.��

The remaining top spots are taken by��UK��universities. University of Oxford��(ranked��global number one in the��overall��ɫ��ֱ����World University Rankings)��tops��the subject rankings in��Medical��and Health and Computer Science, while University of Cambridge is number one for Psychology��for the first time since 2022, marking the only first place change across the��11 subject tables.��

The��US��has by far the highest number of��top-10��places across the rankings with��68, followed by the��UK��with 29 and��China��with seven.��Only three universities appear in all 11 subject rankings’��top 10s:��Harvard��University, Stanford��University��and��the��University of��Cambridge.����

Switzerland��is the only mainland European��country to rank in the top 10s:��ETH Zurich is third for Computer Science and ninth in Physical Sciences.��Australia��has rejoined the Law ranking top 10��with University of Melbourne��in eighth place, after dropping out of the top 10 last year down to 11th.��And��Canada��has one top 10 university:��University of Toronto is ninth in��Medical and Health.��

Phil Baty,��chief��global��affairs��officer at��Times Higher Education,��said:��

“Times Higher Education’s��subject��rankings deploy the same��trusted,��gold-standard��methodology��as the��ɫ��ֱ����World University Rankings to��provide��the world’s most comprehensive view��of universities’��subject strength��across��18��performance metrics covering��teaching, research, knowledge��transfer��and international outlook.��

“This year’s exceptionally rich data provides further evidence of an emerging new world order – where Western dominance of higher education and research is steadily being challenged by the rapidly rising powers of East Asia.��East Asian nations, led by China, are making particularly remarkable strides��in geopolitically strategic areas, including Computer Science and Physical Sciences.”

Global top 10s for each of the 11 subject rankings����

If you reproduce any part of these ranking tables or charts, please attribute it to “Times Higher Education��World University Rankings by Subject 2026”, and link to the full list on our website (included under each top 10). All 11 tables are also available to view from this landing page.

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Arts and Humanities��

Full table for Arts and Humanities 2026

Business��and Economics��

Full table for Business and Economics 2026

Computer Science��

Full table for Computer Science 2026

Education Studies��

Full table for Education Studies 2026

Engineering��

Full table for Engineering 2026

Law��

Full table for Law 2026

Life Sciences��

Full table for Life Sciences

Medical and Health��

Full table for Medical and Health 2026

Physical Sciences��

Full table for Physical Sciences 2026

Psychology��

Full table for Psychology 2026

Social Sciences��

Full table for Social Sciences 2026

Methodology��

The��ɫ��ֱ����World University Rankings by Subject 2026��are derived from��our��World University Rankings��methodology, which is recognised as the world’s��most comprehensive evaluation of university performance.��

The subject tables employ the same range of��18��performance indicators used in the overall World University Rankings 2026, brought together with scores provided under five categories. However, the overall��methodology��is carefully recalibrated for each subject, with the weightings changed to suit the individual fields.��

Two criteria��determine��eligibility for the��ɫ��ֱ����subject rankings: a publication threshold by discipline and an academic staff threshold by discipline. For each of the 11 subject rankings, the publication thresholds are different. The academic staff eligibility criterion also changes depending on the subject. An institution needs to have either a minimum proportion of its staff or a minimum number of staff in this discipline to be included in the subject ranking.��

View the World University Rankings by Subject 2026��methodology.

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Notes to editors��

1. For more information, or to arrange an interview, please email��media@timeshighereducation.com ��
2. ɫ��ֱ����is the trusted global data partner for higher education. Drawing on five decades of��expertise��in the sector, millions of individual data points and with more unique institutions��participating��in our flagship university rankings than any other, we offer deeper and richer insight into university performance than anyone else. From powerful data-driven insights and strategic consultancy support to agenda-setting events, student recruitment and hiring solutions, our products and services enable everyone in higher education to make smarter, more informed decisions. For more information, visit����or find us on X:���� a�Ի� .