India hits new high in QS rankings with 54 entrants
India is the fastest-growing higher education system among the G20
NEW DELHI: India has recorded its strongest presence yet in the QS World University Rankings 2026, with 54 institutions making it to the list - a significant jump from 46 in 2025 and 45 in 2024.
This 390% increase from just 11 ranked universities in 2014 makes India the fastest-growing higher education system among G20 countries and the fourth most represented nation in the rankings, behind only the US, UK, and China.
At the top of the Indian pack is Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, which climbed to a joint 123rd position (alongside Georgia Institute of Technology, US) - its best-ever showing. In 2025 and 2024, the institute stood at 150 and 197, respectively.
This steady rise is backed by strong scores in Employer Reputation (50th globally), Citations per Faculty (86th), and Academic Reputation (142nd), highlighting its growing stature.
While IIT Bombay slipped to 129th this year from its all-time best rank of 118 in 2025, it remains in the global top 130 and continues to score highly on Employer Reputation, ranking 39th in that indicator. IIT Madras recorded one of the most dramatic improvements in 2026 - leaping 47 places to reach the 180th spot.
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This is the first time it has entered the global top 200.
Other top-performing Indian institutions include IIT Kharagpur (215), IISc Bangalore (219), and IIT Kanpur (222). Among non-IITs, Delhi University (328) and Anna University (465) featured in the top 500. The inclusion of eight new Indian universities in the 2026 edition - more than any other country - signals a broader institutional momentum. However, India's rise has been uneven.
Despite improvements in research strength and academic reputation, challenges remain in areas critical to internationalisation.
The International Students Ratio remains a key concern, with 78% of Indian universities seeing a decline in this indicator. No Indian institution ranks in the top 500 for attracting international students, which affects diversity and global exposure on campuses.
Similarly, the Faculty-Student Ratio presents a structural bottleneck.
OP Jindal Global University is the only Indian university in the global top 350 for this metric.
Moreover, as against 12 Indian universities in top 500 in 2025, there's one less in the latest rankings.
Globally, Massachusetts Institute of Technology topped the rankings for the 14th straight year, followed by Imperial College London (2nd), Stanford University (3rd), University of Oxford (4th), & Harvard University (5th).
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