UAE universities on the rise in world education rankings as Harvard leads way

Research capabilities viewed as key to progress of country's institutions on global stage

Students at Khalifa University in Abu Dhabi. Victor Besa / The National

UAE universities have risen up the rankings in a new global higher education league table, in which the US's under-fire Harvard cemented top spot for the 14th consecutive year.

Abu Dhabi's Khalifa University led the way for the country, jumping up 30 places to 846th out of 21,462 higher education institutions assessed in the 2025 Centre for World University Rankings (CWUR), released on Monday morning.

Khalifa University placed in the top 4 per cent of universities worldwide and was the 10th best in the Middle East in the annual list measured on quality of education, employability, quality of faculty and research.

United Arab Emirates University climbed 91 places to 1,022 (in the top 4.8 per cent), ahead of the University of Sharjah – up 161 places to 1,092 (top 5.1 per cent) and New York University Abu Dhabi at 1,116 (top 5.2 per cent).

The CWUR referred to the strong research performance of the universities as being central to their move up the rankings.

Nadim Mahassen, president of the CWUR, hailed the significant progress being made by UAE universities. “With four of its institutions in the rankings, the United Arab Emirates is well represented among the world’s top universities," he said. "Further financial backing, and placing the development of education and science higher on its agenda, will allow the country to be even more competitive in the rapidly evolving global academic landscape."

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology was the top performer in the region, moving up to 237th from 249th position last year.

Fellow Saudi institution King Abdulaziz University broke into the 250, rising from 254th to 249th.

UAE makes its mark

Senthil Nathan, managing director and co-founder of Edu Alliance, a UAE-based higher education consultancy company, said it was significant that this particular ranking places an emphasis on the success of universities in preparing students for the world of work.

“Before reflecting on any world rankings, it is essential to understand their underlying methodologies. CWUR assesses rankings without relying on surveys and university data submissions,” Mr Nathan said.

“A significant weight [50 per cent] of this ranking is given to the success of the university's alumni.”

Mr Nathan – a former deputy vice chancellor of the Higher Colleges of Technology in Abu Dhabi – said the CWUR considers the average number of former students who have held top positions at the world's largest 2,000 public companies since 2011. This performance indicator will frustrate some newer universities, such as those in the Emirates.

“The improvement in the rankings of four of the universities in the UAE is commendable," he said. "On a first glance, their CWUR ranking may seem lower as compared to their ranking in other systems.

“However, this is mainly because of the way CWUR measures success of the alumni. Khalifa University and NYUAD are relatively young universities and have been graduating students only for less than 15 years.”

The UAE government has taken significant steps to drive up higher education standards in recent years in an effort to compete with the world's best seats of learning.

In June 2024, the UAE set out plans for local universities to be subjected to regular assessments and clustered based on performance.

Both public and private higher education institutions are included in the assessment, with rankings based on factors including teaching quality and student life, employability, scientific research and international collaboration.

Recognition for troubled Harvard

A graduating student attends Harvard University’s 374th Commencement last week. Reuters

The Ivy League Harvard University, which is the subject of a controversial plan by the Trump administration to prevent it enrolling foreign students, topped the rankings once again.

Washington has accused the Ivy League university of not doing enough to fight anti-Semitism and change its admissions practices – allegations the university has strongly denied. Harvard said the proposed ban is a “blatant violation” of the law and free speech rights.

Harvard was joined in the top three by two other US universities, MIT and Stanford, with the UK's world renowned Cambridge and Oxford making up the top five.

While US universities make up the rest of the top 10, Mr Mahassen said this dominance was not reflected in the wider global top 2,000 and points to potential challenges ahead as academic competition hots up and universities face up to funding cuts.

“While the United States still boasts the top universities in the world, the decline of the vast majority of its higher education institutions should be of concern to US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and the wider Trump administration," he said.

“At a time when Chinese universities are reaping the rewards of years of generous financial support from their government, American institutions are grappling with slashed federal funding and disputes over academic freedom and free speech.

“With the United States surpassed by China as the country with the most representatives in the rankings, its reputation in the global higher education sector is under serious threat.

“The sharp decline of US universities parallels that of institutions in Japan, France, and Germany, while UK and Russian universities have fared only slightly better. With the extraordinary rise of Chinese institutions, universities in the Western world cannot afford to stand still and rest on their laurels.”