{"id":775394,"date":"2024-06-05T10:22:59","date_gmt":"2024-06-05T08:22:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=775394"},"modified":"2024-06-05T10:23:06","modified_gmt":"2024-06-05T08:23:06","slug":"the-11-best-universities-in-south-africa-with-two-climbing-the-global-rankings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/775394\/the-11-best-universities-in-south-africa-with-two-climbing-the-global-rankings\/","title":{"rendered":"The 11 best universities in South Africa &#8211; with two climbing the global rankings"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Quacquarelli Symonds has published its latest QS World University Rankings and has named the University of Cape Town (UCT) as the best university in South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The 2025 edition of the rankings features over 1,500 institutions, drawing on the analysis of 17.5 million academic papers and the expert opinions of over 240,000 academic faculty and employers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the ranking, 11 Southe African universities made the cut into the top 1,500, with many of the top institutions improving their overall scores.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the University of Cape Town and the University of KwaZulu Natal were the only top universities to climb the ranking itself, with UCT moving up two places, and UKZN entering the top 600, placing 587th overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The other local universities slid down the rankings or into a lower ranking range, or stayed within the same broad range.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite this, scores improved between 0.2 and 1.3 points, with the University of Pretoria slipping 0.6 points among the local universities ranked in the top 600.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Below are the rankings of the 11 best South African Universities in South Africa, according to the QS World University Rankings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-regular\"><div class=\"table-responsive\"><table class=\"table\" class=\"has-black-color has-text-color\"><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\"><strong>University<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>2024 Rank<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>2025 Rank<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>2024 Score<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>2025 Score<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of Cape Town<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">173<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">171<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">48.7<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">50.0<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of Witwatersrand<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">264<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">267<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">37.9<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">38.7<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">Stellenbosch University<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">283<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">296<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">36.5<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">36.7<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of Johannesburg<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">306<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">312<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">34.0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">35.0<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of Pretoria<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">323<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">354<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">32.8<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">32.2<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of Kwazulu-Natal<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">621-630<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">587<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">21.1<\/mark><\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">North-West University<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">801-850<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">851-900<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of South Africa<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">851-900<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">851-900<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">Rhodes University<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">901-950<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">951-1000<\/mark><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of the Western Cape<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">951-1000<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">951-1000<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><\/tr><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">University of the Free State<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1001-1200<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">1001-1200<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">&#8211;<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The QS rankings measure performance across five performance lenses broken down into nine indicators in total that carry different weights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Research and Discovery<\/strong>: Accounts for 50% of the ranking, with two indicators: Academic Reputation (30%) and Citations per Faculty (20%), by faculty QS means the academic staff.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Employability and Outcomes<\/strong>: Accounts for 20%, with two indicators: Employer Reputation (15%) and Employment Outcomes (5%).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Learning Experience<\/strong>: Accounts for 10%, with a single indicator: Faculty Student Ratio (10%), which is just the ratio of academic staff to students.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Global Engagement<\/strong>: Accounts for 15%, with three indicators: International Research Network (5%), International Faculty (5%) (again, this refers to the international academic staff), and International Students (5%).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sustainability<\/strong>: Accounts for 5% with a single eponymous indicator: Sustainability (5%).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This global ranking is the first to incorporate both sustainability and employability factors as key measures into its methodology. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Since the 2024 ranking, the group has added a five per cent weight to Sustainability to reflect the crucial role universities play in charting the course and driving change towards a more sustainable future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Global Universities<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Massachusetts Institute of Technology has ranked in the top spot for its thirteenth year, while Imperial College London has climbed to second place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The University of Oxford and Harvard University are in third and fourth place, respectively. The University of Cambridge rounds out the top five.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><a  data-lightbox=\"post-image\" href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/QS-2025-top-10.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"647\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/QS-2025-top-10-647x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-775412\" srcset=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/QS-2025-top-10-647x1024.jpg 647w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/QS-2025-top-10-189x300.jpg 189w, https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/QS-2025-top-10.jpg 655w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 647px) 100vw, 647px\" \/><\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/774204\/what-you-need-to-save-to-send-your-child-to-university-in-south-africa-starting-from-when-theyre-born\/\">What you need to save to send your child to university in South Africa \u2013 starting from when they\u2019re born<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Quacquarelli Symonds has published its latest QS World University Rankings &#8211; listing 11 universities from South Africa among the top in the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":775415,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9876],"tags":[26,14365],"class_list":["post-775394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-headline","tag-qs-quacquarelli-symonds"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/775394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=775394"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/775394\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":775416,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/775394\/revisions\/775416"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/775415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=775394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=775394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=775394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}