Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi) has once again proven its unmatched leadership in quality and innovation. IIT Delhi has retained its position as India's highest-ranked institution for the fifth consecutive year in the QS World University Rankings: Asia 2026.

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¨     The 2026 edition of the QS Asia University Rankings, released by global higher education analyst QS Quacquarelli Symonds, reveals a decline in ranks for most top Indian institutions, even as their overall performance improved.

¨     Of the top 10 Indian universities, including seven IITs, all but one slipped in position, while China, Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore outperformed them.

¨     The report also highlights India’s expanding academic presence in Asia, marked by faculty qualifications and research productivity, but constrained by weak internationalisation.

Key Findings

Global Insights

¨     The University of Hong Kong topped the 2026 Rankings, followed by Peking University, while Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) shared third place.

¨     The rankings show a strong eastward concentration of top performers across East and Southeast Asia, with China, Hong Kong, and Singapore dominating the top 10.

¨     Malaysia and South Korea climbed significantly in rankings due to increased investments in research collaboration and global engagement.

India’s Insights

¨     India has become Asia’s second most represented higher educational system with 294 universities, up from 24 in 2016.

¨     China (mainland) remains first, with 395 universities in the 2026 edition.

¨     India’s representation growth reflects the impact of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, focusing on global engagement and research development.

¨     Performance of Top Indian Institutions: Despite greater representation, nine of the top ten Indian institutions, seven of them IITs, declined in their rankings due to intensified competition.

¨     IIT Delhi: 59th (down from 44th in 2025) – remains India’s top-ranked institute.

¨     IISc Bengaluru: 64th (down from 62nd).

¨     IIT Madras: 70th (down from 56th).

¨     IIT Bombay: 71st (down from 48th, sharpest fall of 23 ranks).

¨     IIT Kanpur and IIT Kharagpur: both 77th (down from 67th and 60th respectively).

¨     Delhi University: 95th (down from 81st).

¨     The only top-10 Indian institution to improve was Chandigarh University (109th), up from 120th.

Strength in Research Output

¨     Indian universities performed strongly in research productivity.

¨     Five Indian universities rank among Asia’s top 10 and 28 among the top 50 for Papers per Faculty.

¨     Shoolini University ranked first in Asia for Citations per Paper, and MAKAUT (West Bengal) ranked first in Asia for Papers per Faculty.

¨     India leads Asia in faculty with PhDs, with NIT Nagaland and Mother Teresa Women’s University ranked second in Asia, and nine others (including IISc and several IITs) sharing fourth position.

Weakness in Internationalization

¨     India scored below global averages in international faculty (18.9 vs ~31 globally), International Students, and Exchange Programs.

¨     Limited cross-border engagement and low diversity continue to restrict competitiveness compared to universities in Singapore, Hong Kong, and South Korea.

¨     Rise of Private Indian Universities: Private institutions such as Chandigarh University, BITS Pilani, Shoolini University, and O.P. Jindal Global University achieved their best-ever rankings in 2026.

QS Asia University Rankings 2026

¨     The 2026 rankings feature 1,529 institutions from 25 higher education systems, with 557 new entrants—making it the most extensive edition to date.

¨     Universities were assessed on 11 indicators, including: Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, Faculty–Student Ratio, Citations per Paper, Papers per Faculty, Staff with PhD, International Research Network, International Faculty, International Students, Inbound and Outbound Exchange Students.

¨     The Asia rankings use region-specific weightings, offering a tailored view of higher education priorities in the region, unlike the global QS rankings.

¨     The inclusion of hundreds of new institutions, especially from China and India, has intensified competition, leading to greater rank fluctuations.

¨     The QS Asia Rankings complement India’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) and All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) frameworks in assessing higher education performance through global benchmarks.

¨     QS Quacquarelli Symonds is a London-based global higher education analytics firm known for its internationally recognised ranking systems and analytical expertise.