Chinese mainland universities continue climb up world rankings

Universities on the Chinese mainland continue to rise up global rankings, making significant strides in the Times Higher Education, or THE, World University Rankings 2025, which was released on Wednesday.

Tsinghua University remains the top-ranked institution from the Chinese mainland, holding steady in 12th place, while Peking University climbs one spot in the latest rankings, to 13th.

This marks the seventh consecutive year that Tsinghua University has led the rankings for the Chinese mainland.

Meanwhile, Fudan University, now joint 36th (up from 44th), and Zhejiang University, rising to joint 47th (up from joint 55th), have surpassed Shanghai Jiao Tong University, which has dropped to 52nd place from 46th.

For the first time, Zhejiang University joins the global top 50.

In Hong Kong, the University of Hong Kong retains its position in 35th and remains the highest-ranked institution in the region, while the Chinese University of Hong Kong jumps from 53rd to 44th.

The Chinese mainland now boasts two universities in the global top 20, four in the top 50, seven in the top 100, and 13 in the top 200. By contrast, in 2018, it had only two universities in the top 100.

During the past five years, universities from the Chinese mainland have shown the most significant improvement globally.

While Tsinghua and Peking Universities receive the most attention, for nearing the global top 10, other leading Chinese institutions, including Fudan University, Zhejiang University, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, the University of Science and Technology of China, and Nanjing University, have all made substantial progress in recent years.

Phil Baty, THE’s chief global affairs officer, said: “The vast majority of mainland Chinese universities have made yet more progress up the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, which is a phenomenal achievement given this is our biggest ranking ever.

“While most people’s attention is focused on Tsinghua University and Peking University, as they knock on the door of a top-10 position, the next tier of Chinese universities — from 30 to 100 — have all made significant gains over the last few years and are definitely ones to watch over the next couple of years.

“Our most comprehensive and rigorous data shows the Chinese mainland is a remarkable case study of exceptional consistent improvement backed by strong political will and a commitment of generous funding over many years. It is a science and research powerhouse, with universities attracting the world’s talent.”

China’s government plans to increase spending on science and technology by 10 percent this year, to 370 billion yuan ($52.7 billion) to increase self-reliance in science and technology.

Funding for research will increase by 13 percent, to 98 billion yuan, to promote the development of high-level research universities, with experts predicting further success in the rankings for the Chinese mainland.

At the top of the global rankings, the United Kingdom’s University of Oxford remains the world’s best university for a record ninth consecutive year, followed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in second place, and Harvard University in third.