The recently released QS World University Rankings 2023 has been making news. Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a renowned global education and career network, is behind this comprehensive annual ranking system. The goal of QS is to aid aspiring professionals in their quest for personal and professional development by providing comparative data about various institutions.
So, how does QS evaluate these higher educational institutions? Their methodology involves six key parameters: Academic Reputation (40% weightage), Employer Reputation (10%), Faculty/Student Ratio (20%), Citations per faculty (20%), International Faculty Ratio (5%), and International Student Ratio (5%).
Highlights from the Global Rankings
The QS World University Rankings 2023 unveiled some fascinating insights. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, continued its streak as the top-ranking university for the 11th year running. The University of Cambridge secured the second spot, with Stanford University following closely behind.
Indian Universities in the Rankings
Indian institutes also made their presence felt in the rankings. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) bagged the highest rank among Indian institutions, followed by IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi. In total, 27 Indian institutions made it to the top 1000 globally, marking an increase from the previous count of 22.
Moreover, IISc Bengaluru stood out as the world’s top research university, attaining a perfect score of 100/100 for this criterion. It also emerged as the fastest rising South Asian university among the QS World University Rankings top-200. However, despite these achievements, the performance of Indian educational institutes was below par on several key metrics.
Indian Institutions Lacking in Key Metrics
Out of 41 Indian institutions in the rankings, 30 witnessed declines in the Faculty Student Ratio (FSR) indicator, with only four registering improvements. The top 500 category’s Indian representation was predominantly from IITs. Besides IISc, eight IITs (Delhi, Bombay, Madras, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Roorkee, Guwahati, Indore) featured among the top 500 globally. No other Indian university, whether public or private, figured in the top 500 category since the inception of the Institute of Eminence scheme.
Indian Initiatives Aiming for Global Recognition
India has launched several initiatives to elevate its higher education system. The Institutions of Eminence (IoE) Scheme is one such government-backed scheme aimed at enhancing or setting up 20 world-class teaching and research institutions. The National Education Policy, 2020, envisions several alterations in the country’s education system to transform India into a global knowledge powerhouse.
Further initiatives include Impacting Research Innovation and Technology (IMPRINT), a joint venture by Pan-IIT and IISc to formulate a new education policy and research roadmaps to resolve major engineering and technology challenges. The Uchhatar Avishkar Yojana (UAY) was introduced to facilitate innovation that directly benefits the Industry and strengthens India’s competitive edge in manufacturing.
While these initiatives indicate a promising future for Indian higher education, constant efforts towards better performance on key benchmarks remain crucial to achieving global recognition.