Universities in Asia, especially in Singapore, mainland China, and Hong Kong, have made significant progress in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025. These universities saw a notable increase in their top 50 subject entries. The rankings assess over 18,300 programs from 1,700 universities in 100 countries, showing growing global competition in higher education.
U.S. universities still lead in many areas, dominating 32 subjects. Harvard University is ranked first in 15 subjects, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) leads in 11. U.K. universities excel in 18 subjects, with Cambridge University topping four. The University of Leeds had the most subject entries among U.K. schools, with 53 subjects ranked.
While U.S. and U.K. universities continue to hold strong positions, Asian universities have seen remarkable growth. Mainland China’s presence in the top 50 grew by 131%, with 231 subject entries this year, up from 100 in 2020. The number of Chinese universities ranked in the top 10 has also surged from five to 21. Hong Kong’s universities also showed strong results, with its top 50 rankings increasing by 42percent. Singapore had the most dramatic rise, with its top 10 subject rankings increasing by 325percent.
The University of Hong Kong leads in Asia, ranking in the top 200 for 55 subjects, the most of any institution in the region. It also had the most ranking improvements this year, followed by The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Ben Sowter, QS vice president, noted that the growth in Asia and the Middle East suggests that universities in the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada may face increasing competition from developing higher education markets.
The 2025 rankings cover 55 disciplines in fields like Arts & Humanities, Engineering, Life Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences.
