IISc tops Indian universities in THE World University Rankings 2027, ranks 254 globally

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru has emerged as the highest-ranked Indian institution in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2027, securing the 254th position globally.

The latest edition includes 2,297 universities across 118 countries and territories. India has 143 institutions in the ranking, an increase of 15 from the previous edition, making it the most represented country in Asia for the second consecutive year.

Despite the increase in the number of Indian institutions featured, no university from the country entered the global top 200 this year. IISc had been placed in the 201–250 band in the 2026 rankings before receiving an exact rank of 254 this year.

IISc remains India's highest-ranked institution

IISc recorded an overall score of 57.0 in the 2027 rankings. Its strongest score among the reported performance indicators was in research environment, at 98.0, followed by 62.1 in teaching and 58.6 in research quality.

Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences was the next-highest Indian institution, placed in the 326–350 global band. Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences featured in the 451–500 band, while Jamia Millia Islamia and KIIT University were placed in the 501–550 band.

Saveetha improved from the 351–400 band last year to 326–350, while KIIT moved from 601–800 to 501–550. Jamia Millia Islamia, however, moved from the 401–500 band to 501–550.

India expands its presence

The increase to 143 ranked Indian universities places the country ahead of other Asian nations in terms of representation. Turkey, which has 124 universities in the rankings, is the second-most represented country in the latest edition.

More than 1,000 Asian universities feature in the 2027 rankings, compared with 929 in the previous edition. THE said Asian institutions have also made gains near the top of the global table, with China’s Tsinghua University ranked 11th, Peking University 13th and the National University of Singapore 15th.

Oxford retains top position

The University of Oxford retained the number one position globally for the 11th consecutive year. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) was ranked second, while Princeton University and Stanford University shared third place. The University of Cambridge was fifth.

THE’s World University Rankings assess research-intensive universities using indicators covering areas such as teaching, research environment, research quality, international outlook and industry. The 2027 edition is the largest so far, covering 2,297 institutions.