Elite universities of tomorrow Far East

29 mei 2012 - Where are tomorrow’s top universities? QS ranked 50 universities established less than 50 years ago. 6 of the first 10 places go to Asian tigers. One European institution makes it to the top as well. “The West's advantage over Asia may be shrinking more quickly than anticipated,” QS comments.

QS is known for its international university rankings. Now, its researchers had a closer look at the best 50 universities that were established less than 50 years ago. Six of the top 10 institutes are situated in Asian tiger nations.

Top 10 under 50

  1. The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), Hong Kong (est. 1963)
  2. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Hong Kong (est. 1991)
  3. The University of Warwick, Great Britain (est. 1964)
  4. Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore (est. 1991)
  5. KAIST - Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, South-Korea (est. 1971)
  6. University of York, Great Britain (est. 1963)
  7. Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), South-Korea (est. 1986)
  8. Maastricht University, the Netherlands (est. 1976)
  9. City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong (est. 1984)
  10. University of California, Irvine (UCI), United States (est. 1965)

Especially, Hong Kong stands out in the ranking earning both first and second place with CUHK and HKUST, respectively. The city-state is known for its great commitment to education and research as OECD expert Schleicher recently described.

Maastricht University is the only institute from continental Europe represented in the top. Warwick and York universities from the United Kingdom and UCI from the United States also make it to the first 10 places.

Asia quickly catching up

Having a closer look at the type of institutions ranked, it becomes apparent that scientific institutions fare particularly well. Ben Sowter, head of QS research, comments: "New science-based institutions have been established to drive innovation and growth in booming economies such as Hong Kong, Korea and Singapore. Their superior performance compared to Western universities established within the same time frame is testament to Asia's dynamism."

This trend is further strengthened by greater investments into research on behalf of Asian governments. China for instance doubled its research budget between 2009 and 2011. "These rankings suggest the West's advantage over Asia may be shrinking more quickly than anticipated."