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ETH Zurich now among global top six universities

ETH Zurich now among global top six universities

Tokyo (SCCIJ) – The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich, has climbed further up the most renowned university ranking to make it into the top six of the world’s best universities and be crowned the second-best university in Europe. By climbing one rank compared to last year, this is ETH Zurich’s best performance in a university ranking. The University of Tokyo was the best Japanese university and the fourth best in Asia at rank #23, the University of Kyoto followed as seventh best in Asia at #35.

ETH Zurich now among global top six universities

ETH Zurich, here its main building, has continuously improved in the QS ranking in recent years.

The leader in continental Europe

This year ETH Zurich has placed sixth in the 2020 QS World University Rankings – better than ever before. ETH has risen one place compared to last year’s QS ranking, continuing the upward trend of previous years. “We are very pleased with this great ranking. It provides yet more proof that ETH Zurich is on the right track in teaching, research, and technology transfer, and it shows that we can hold our own against other top universities in an increasingly competitive environment,” says ETH President Joël Mesot. “Such success is only possible thanks to the excellent skills and high level of commitment of the ETH staff.”

American and British universities have so far taken the top spots in QS rankings. Once again, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has taken first place. Coming sixth in this latest QS ranking, ETH Zurich is the second-best European university after the University of Oxford and ahead of the University of Cambridge. ETH Zurich has been regarded as the best university in continental Europe for some time now. Other university rankings also reflect this judgment.

Financial and political framework

As ETH President Mesot points out, all universities around the globe know that such comparisons should be taken with a pinch of salt. “Nevertheless, we can be very proud. Particularly of the fact that the two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology – ETH Zurich and EPFL – have placed very highly in all the rankings for years.” However, he says that this success cannot be taken for granted. “Switzerland needs to work actively to ensure that the good financial and political framework for the ETH Domain and Switzerland as a science hub remain in place in the coming years,” said Mesot.

The QS ranking is based on the results of surveys among scientists and employers regarding the quality of universities. Factors such as academic publications, the staff-student ratio, and the universities’ international outlook are also taken into account. ETH’s reputation among scientists and employers has improved since last year. As these two aspects hold a particularly substantial weighting in the QS ranking – together they account for 50 percent of the overall rating – this is likely a significant reason for the university’s improved ranking this year.

QS World University Ranking 2020 (published in June 2019)

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) [2019: #1]
2. Stanford University [2019: #2]
3. Harvard University [2019: #3]
4. University of Oxford [2019: #5]
5. California Institute of Technology (Caltech) [2019: #4]
6. ETH Zurich [2019: #7]
7. University of Cambridge [2019: #6]
8. University College London (UCL) [2019: #10]
9. Imperial College London [2019: #8]
10. University of Chicago [2019: #9]

Other Swiss universities in the top 100 of the QS ranking are EPFL in Geneva (new rank #18) and the University of Zurich (new rank #76). These two universities’ rankings have also improved since last year.

Text: © Fabio Bergamin/ETH Zurich; Photo: ETH Zurich

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