By Ashlea Hickin,Jasmine Norden,PA Education Correspondent
Copyright cambridge-news
Three UK universities have secured spots in the top 10 of the esteemed Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026.
The University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, and Imperial College London have clinched some of the highest rankings, with Oxford maintaining its first place for the 10th consecutive year.
Cambridge ascended to joint third from fifth position in 2025, while Imperial rose one spot from ninth to eighth.
In total, 11 UK universities were listed in the Times Higher Education’s (THE) top 100 worldwide.
These annual global university rankings, which have been compiled since 2004, are based on an analysis of nearly 19 million research papers, 1.5 million votes in a survey and data from over 30,000 universities, according to THE.
Factors such as teaching reputation, research reputation and strength, and institutional, research and industry income are considered in the rankings.
Out of the 2,191 institutions ranked by THE, 109 were UK institutions. Of these, 13 improved their positions, 64 maintained their 2025 positions, and 28 fell in the rankings.
This is the first time since 2016 that fewer than 50 UK universities have made it into the top 500, though the number is just slightly below this at 49.
THE stated that the UK shares fourth place for the most represented country in the rankings, trailing behind the United States, India and Japan.
The UK performed well in terms of teaching reputation and improvement in research excellence, according to THE. However, there was a decline in scores for research strength, and the student-staff ratio increased from 16.8 to 20.5 students per teacher.
THE noted that these ratio figures “predate the latest developments in the UK higher education funding crisis, but the ratio is only likely to worsen as jobs cuts continue and institutions’ resources dwindle”.
The University of Leeds celebrated its best year ever as it ascended from 123rd to 118th, while the University of Liverpool leapt from joint 160th to 143rd.
City St George’s, University of London, which merged last year, is among the top three new mergers to join the rankings, and made the 351-400 range.
Conversely, both the London School of Economics (LSE) and Political Science and the University of Warwick experienced their worst performances in these rankings. The former dropped out of the top 50 to come 52nd, and the latter fell from 106th to joint 122nd.
The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2026 ranked London School of Economics and Political Science first in the country for the second consecutive year in September.
A spokesperson for LSE stated that universities like it, which specialise in social sciences, are disadvantaged by the methodology of some rankings if they favour “broader institutions with science, engineering and medicine faculties”.
THE said the rankings are “expressly designed” not to disadvantage smaller or social science-led institutions, and the rankings are size-independent and normalised across subject areas.
Phil Baty, THE’s chief global affairs officer, said: “This year’s rankings highlight a dramatic and accelerating trend – the shift in the balance of power in research and higher education excellence from the long-established, dominant institutions of the West to rising stars of the East.
“The US and much of western Europe have suffered significant lost ground in the world rankings, while East Asian nations, led by China, continue to thrive and surge up the table.
“This clear trend is set to persist as research funding and international talent attraction continue to be stymied in the West.”
Apart from the three UK institutions, THE’s global top 10 comprises entirely of American universities, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology securing second place and Princeton University achieving joint third alongside Cambridge.
The US also commands much of the top 30.
Meanwhile, Ireland’s highest-ranked university – Trinity College Dublin – has witnessed its position drop from 139th to 173rd, marking its poorest showing.
A spokesperson for Trinity College Dublin said the university remains the top-ranked Irish university in this ranking and others and “fluctuations are to be expected” given the list of universities covered by the ranking is growing every year.
“It’s important to note that methodologies differ and in the recent 2026 QS World University Ranking, Trinity improved its position to rank 75th in the world,” they added.
Chinese universities secured 12th and 13th positions, the National University of Singapore claimed 17th place, and the University of Tokyo climbed two spots to 26th.