South African universities are among the best in the world for these subjects
The Center for World University Rankings (CWUR), has published its inaugural subjects ranking, which features South African universities in several subjects.
The ranking features the top global universities in 227 subjects covering all academic disciplines in the sciences and social sciences.
Harvard University leads the way globally, achieving Top-10 placements in 112 subjects, including 72 top places.
Institutions with the most Top-10 placements worldwide are:
- Harvard University, USA (112 Top-10 subjects)
- University of Toronto, Canada (66 Top-10 subjects)
- University of Michigan, USA (57 Top-10 subjects)
- University of Pennsylvania, USA (54 Top-10 subjects)
- Johns Hopkins University, USA (51 Top-10 subjects)
- University of California, Berkeley, USA (50 Top-10 subjects)
- Stanford University, USA (48 Top-10 subjects)
- University of Oxford, United Kingdom (47 Top-10 subjects)
- University of Washington, USA (45 Top-10 subjects)
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA (41 Top-10 subjects)
South African universities feature in several subjects, including: Anthropology, Area Studies, Mycology (the scientific study of fungi), and Ornithology (the scientific study of birds).
Wits University was ranked as the top university in South Africa in the 2016 CWUR ranking.
The CWUR list was determined by looking at how many university alumni and faculty members have won international awards, and who currently hold top executive jobs.
Wits again ranked highest on the list for South Africa, at 176th with a score of 48.11. This is down from its position in 2015 (149th), and a far reach from its highest point in 2014 (114th).
These are the best universities in the country
| 2015 Rank | 2014 Rank | University | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 176 | 149 | University of the Witwatersrand | 48.11 |
| 265 | 248 | University of Cape Town | 46.51 |
| 329 | 306 | Stellenbosch University | 45.81 |
| 467 | 478 | University of KwaZulu Natal | 45.04 |
| 697 | 678 | University of Pretoria | 44.54 |
The universities are ranked relative to the top university, which scores 100.0 points.
Harvard University was again ranked as the best in the world, followed by Standford and MIT.
Aside from two UK universities – University of Cambridge and Oxford – the top 10 list is dominated by US institutes.
How the universities were ranked
The CWUR claims to be the only global university ranking that measures the quality of education and training of students, as well as the prestige of the faculty members and the quality of their research, without relying on surveys and university data submissions.
Here is the full breakdown of its indicators:
- Quality of Education – [25%] – the number of a university’s alumni who have won major international awards, prizes, and medals relative to the university’s size;
- Alumni Employment – [25%] – the number of a university’s alumni who currently hold CEO positions at the world’s top companies relative to the university’s size;
- Quality of Faculty – [25%] – the number of academics who have won major international awards, prizes, and medals;
- Publications – [5%] – the number of research papers appearing in reputable journals;
- Influence – [5%] – the number of research papers appearing in highly-influential journals;
- Citations – [5%] – the number of highly-cited research papers;
- Broad Impact – [5%] – the university’s h-Index;
- Patents – [5%] – the number of international patent filings.
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