The annual global university ranking compiled by the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) has again ranked\u00a0the University of the Witwatersrand as the top tertiary institute in South Africa.<\/p>\n
Aside from two UK-based universities – Cambridge (4th) and Oxford (5th) – and two Japanese universities – Tokyo (13th) and Kyoto (17th) – US based institutes dominate the top 20 positions.<\/p>\n
The CWUR ranked Harvard University as the best university in the world, followed by Standford University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.<\/p>\n
For the second year running, Wits scored the highest in South Africa based on the ranking’s leading criteria.<\/p>\n
The CWUR determines its list\u00a0by looking at how many university alumni and faculty members have won international awards, and who currently hold top executive jobs.<\/p>\n
The Joburg university ranked within the top 100 universities in the world for its quality of education (61st) and the employment of alumni in top executive positions (32nd).<\/p>\n
The institute was also on par with the University of Cape Town – seen as South Africa’s best university – regarding its influence and patent power.<\/p>\n
However, Wits has slipped down the rankings compared to 2014, while the cape based UCT has climbed.<\/p>\n
Other South African institutions which made it into the top 1000 universities include Stellenbosch University (306th), the University of KwaZulu Natal (478th), and the University of Pretoria (678th).<\/p>\n
Despite the various ups and downs in global positioning, all of South Africa’s universities dropped in score from 2014.<\/p>\n
Here are South Africa’s highest-ranked universities:<\/p>\n