9 Indian Universities Among Top 50 in QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025

Edited By Prabhjyot Kaur | Updated on Mar 17, 2025 03:41 PM IST

India made a strong mark in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025, as nine of its universities placed in the world top 50 list in various fields of study. This indicates increasing international recognition of Indian institutions as centers for education and research. Indian School of Mines (ISM), Dhanbad, ranked 20th internationally for Engineering-Mineral and Mining, becoming the country’s top-performing subject field.

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Indian Universities in the Top 50 QS World University Rankings by Subject
List of 9 Indian Universities in the QS Subject-Wise Rankings 2025
Factors Behind India’s Rise in Global Rankings
QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025: Engineering & Technology

9 Indian Universities Among Top 50 in QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025

The 2025 QS World University Rankings by Subject include 55 subjects grouped into five major categories: Arts & Humanities, Engineering and Technology, Life Sciences & Medicine, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences & Management.

171 new institutions have been added to the rankings, making this year the largest edition. Subjects such as medicine, computer science, and materials science have more ranked institutions than ever.

Indian Universities in the Top 50 QS World University Rankings by Subject

The rankings included 79 Indian universities this year, 10 more than the previous year. Overall, Indian institutions featured 533 times in the rankings, a 25.7% rise. 156 of these institutions rankings were improved, whereas 101 saw a drop. India also made the fifth-largest number of new entries worldwide after China, the US, the UK, and Korea.

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New additions to the top 100 include IIT Madras and Vellore Institute of Technology for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, and IISc Bangalore and IIT Kanpur for Engineering-Mineral and Mining. Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay and Kharagpur were ranked at 28th position and 45th position in Engineering-Mineral and Mining. However, both institutions rankings dropped.

IIT Delhi and Bombay, which were tied at the 45th rank for engineering and technology, have moved up to secure the 26th and 28th positions, respectively.

Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmedabad and Bangalore remained in the world's top 50 for Business and Management Studies, but their rank has fallen compared to last year. While the rank of IIM Ahmedabad fell to 27 from 22, that of IIM Bangalore fell to 40 from 32.

IIT Madras (Petroleum Engineering) and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) (Development Studies) remained in the world's top 50, but their positions also fell by few ranks.

The below table shows the list of 9 Indian universities in the QS Subject-wise Rankings 2025:

List of 9 Indian Universities in the QS Subject-Wise Rankings 2025

Institute	Rank	Specific Subject Category
Indian School of Mines (ISM), Dhanbad	20	Engineering - Mineral and Mining
IIT Bombay	40	Engineering - Mineral and Mining
IIT Kharagpur	=45	Engineering - Mineral and Mining
IIT Delhi	=47	Engineering - Electrical and Electronic
IIT Bombay	=50	Engineering - Electrical and Electronic
IIM Ahmedabad	27	Business and Management Studies
IIM Bangalore	=40	Business and Management Studies
IIT Madras	31	Engineering - Petroleum
Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)	=29	Development Studies

*Note: (=) shows that the rank is shared by some other institute as well.

Factors Behind India’s Rise in Global Rankings

Research Output and Citations
- Indian institutions are publishing more high-impact research articles, resulting in greater global recognition.
Improved Faculty-Student Ratio
- Initiatives to hire best-in-class faculty and enhance the quality of teaching have contributed to the global improvement in rankings of many universities.
Government Investments in Higher Education
- The Indian government has boosted funding for research and innovation, favoring IITs, IIMs, and central universities.
International Collaborations
- Several universities also have collaborations with international institutions, including faculty exchange, collaborative research, and student mobility.

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QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025: Engineering & Technology

The table below shows the list of QS world subject-wise rankings 2025 for engineering and technology:

University	Rankings
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA	1
University of Oxford, UK	2
Stanford University, USA	3
University of Cambridge, UK	4
ETH Zurich, Switzerland	5
University of California, Berkeley (UCB), USA	6
Tsinghua University, China	7
Imperial College London	8
Harvard University, USA	9
EPFL (École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne), Switzerland	10

The QS Subject-wise Rankings 2025 reflect India's increasing academic reputation globally. With 79 universities ranked and 9 in the top 50, Indian universities are establishing themselves as leaders in engineering, business, natural sciences, and social sciences. Investment in research, faculty, and student growth will further enhance India's global position in education.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the QS World University Rankings by Subject?

Every year, universities around the world are ranked according to their academic reputation, faculty reputation, research impact, and faculty-to-student ratio in particular fields by the QS World University Rankings by Subject. It gives information about which universities are best at certain subjects, such as business, science, engineering, and social studies.

2. How many Indian universities made it into the QS Subject-wise Rankings 2025?

79 Indian universities have been ranked in the QS Subject-wise Rankings 2025, with 12 subject-wise entries making it to the top 50 of the world. This indicates the increasing strength of India in higher education and research

3. How do Indian universities compare to global institutions in the QS Rankings?

Though Indian universities are becoming well known, they still stand behind US, UK, and Chinese universities in world rankings. But when it comes to areas such as engineering, business, and development studies, Indian institutions are among the best. The IITs and the IIMs are slowly increasing their rankings based on better research and global acclaim.

4. What steps can Indian universities take to further improve their rankings?

To compete with the best global universities, Indian universities must focus on:

Improving research funding and faculty development programs
Recruiting international students and faculty
Building stronger international partnerships with world-ranked universities
Enhancing infrastructure and e-learning programs

5. What are the main ranking criteria used by QS for subject-wise rankings?

QS ranks universities on the basis of the following major factors:

Academic Reputation: On the basis of surveys among academics globally.
Employer Reputation: On the basis of responses from international employers.
Citations per Paper: Indicates the research impact.
H-index: assesses research productivity and impact.
International Collaboration: Assesses collaborations with international institutions