British centers are the most prominent in Europe and in Spain the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona stands out, according to the QS World University Ranking 2024.
If the prestige of the university where you will study your degree is one of the most important factors for you when choosing where to study, you will be interested to know that 5 of the 10 best universities in the world are located in Europe, according to the QS World University Ranking 2024. In fact, 4 of them are in the UK, and 1 in Switzerland.
In total, 501 European universities are among the best in the world, according to the aforementioned classification, roughly a third of those analyzed there. Among them, the United Kingdom stands out in particular, as it is the country with the most internationally ranked universities in Europe (90), ahead of Germany (49) and Italy (42).
It should also be noted that for the preparation of the twentieth edition of the QS World University Rankings 2024, 1,500 institutions from 104 locations have been taken into account. Methodological improvements have also been implemented by introducing three new metrics to the existing ones: sustainability, work results and the international research network.
British universities, the best in Europe
The University of Cambridge is the leader of the ranking of the best university centers in Europe and is also the second in the world, surpassed only by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States, which takes the first place in the world for the twelfth year in a row.
This British university has achieved an overall score of 99.2 and stands out with the highest score (100) in the following indicators: academic reputation, reputation among employers, student-teacher ratio, international teaching ratio and employment outcomes, Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) international higher education consultancy according to this ranking.
In second place, at the European level, is the University of Oxford with an overall score of 98.9, which also places it as the third best university in the world. The European top 5 includes Imperial College London (97.8), ETH Zurich (93.3) and London’s Global University (UCL) (92.4).
Below, we show you the rest of Europe’s universities that make up the Top 10 best on the continent, according to the QS World University Ranking 2024.
Autonomous University of Barcelona, the most prominent in Spain
The Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) is the best located in Spain. In fact, this organization located in Bellaterra (Barcelona) has risen for three consecutive years improving its position in the aforementioned ranking, having gone from 213th position in 2021 to 149th in 2024 worldwide, the best result of the last decade.
In addition, UAB ranks among the top 100 in Europe, ranking 63rd in the ranking that ranks the best universities in Europe. The entity has particularly stood out in sustainability indicators (94.6) and international search networks (84.2).
Close behind is another Catalan university, the University of Barcelona (UB), with an overall score of 49.7, ranking 70th in Europe and 164th worldwide. UB also excels in the same indicators as its predecessor: sustainability (98.1) and international search networks (97.8).
Likewise, two other Spanish universities have managed to place themselves among the top 100 in Europe. The Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) (73rd place) and the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM) (84th place). Both organizations are also noted for their sustainability indicators and international search networks.
It should be noted that the Complutense University of Madrid has made great progress in the world ranking compared to the previous year, going from 226th to 171st place.
Below, we show you the 10 best-placed Spanish universities in Spain and the world according to the QS World University Ranking 2024; Remember that the prestige of a university should not be the only factor in choosing where to study your university degree. Here we tell you what other criteria should be taken into account when choosing where to study a university degree, such as its facilities, faculty, additional services offered, the number of students in the classroom, among others.
- QS World University Ranking
The QS World University Ranking is released annually to help prospective students identify the top universities in the world.
This edition of the QS World University Ranking 2024 was the twentieth and counted 1,500 institutions from 104 locations to prepare the ranking. In addition, three other indicators have been added to the existing ones: sustainability, work results and the international research network.
The overall score of each university in the ranking is based on the following indicators: academic reputation, reputation among employers, student-teacher ratio, citations in research articles, international faculty ratio, international student ratio, international network of research, work results and sustainability.
The results are based on an analysis of 17.5 million academic articles and expert opinions from more than 240,000 teachers and business leaders.
