Asia overtakes Europe for the first time in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2027

Asian institutions have overtaken those of continental Europe for the first time in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings 2027, with China’s Tsinghua University overtaking Switzerland’s ETH Zurich in 11^th place, meaning Asia’s top-ranked institution now ranks above mainland Europe’s leading university.

Meanwhile, the UK and the US keep their hold on the top three, unchanged from 2026: University of Oxford (UK) is ranked first for the eleventh year, followed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Princeton University (US).

In Europe, the Netherlands returns to the top 50, Hungary returns to the top 250, Poland is back in the top 500, and Ireland has had a strong year, with five universities moving up the table. In total, 710 European universities are ranked, up 10…