Australian universities have consolidated the nation’s overall position as a top-quality education system in the latest results from QS World University Rankings by Subject, released overnight.
This year, over 50% of Australia’s total subject listings moved up at least one position compared to last year.
QS results also show Australia’s performance was third globally in showing year-on-year improvement, behind the United Kingdom and the United States.
Importantly, Australia is fourth globally in the proportion of subjects listed among the world’s top 100 at 46.2%; behind the Netherlands (47.0%), Hong Kong (61.4%), and Singapore (88.6%).
Interestingly, 71.5% of Australian universities’ listed subjects are ranked in the world’s top 200, compared to 63.9% for universities from the United States and 69.4% for universities from the United Kingdom.
These results bode well for Australian universities in gaining momentum for continued improvement, following the relative weakened results seen when QS released its 2026 World University Rankings (WUR) last June; where 22 Australian universities moved down in overall institutional rank.
This is the sixteenth edition of the QS WUR By Subject. To produce the rankings for this year, QS analysed the reputation and research output of over 6,277 institutions globally. The published listings include 1,912 institutions (up from 1,747 last year) from 166 countries across 55 subject areas and five broad faculty areas.
Overall, 37 Australian institutions have a published ranking for at least one subject – one less university compared to last year, given the merger of Adelaide and UniSA to establish Adelaide University.
Australia’s vulnerability
Australian universities face limited scope to increase both the number and proportion of subjects ranked in the top 50, largely due to a lack of public investment in tertiary education and research, alongside declining productivity across the broader economy.
The final report of the Strategic Examination of Research and Development (SERD) notes that Australia’s productivity has stagnated, and Australia now ranks 105 out of 145 economies for economic complexity.
The SERD report also makes the case clear that tweaking around the edges is sustainable, and serious reforms are needed to address Australia’s shortcomings and continue building enduring economic prosperity and reducing social inequalities.
Australian universities have become adept at expanding their volume of scholarly output, supported by strong publication quality and steadily improving citation performance. However, these gains reflect scale rather than systemic strength.
In the absence of sustained improvements in productivity and deeper inter‑ and intra‑sectoral collaboration, Australia risks stagnating as a middle‑tier knowledge nation.
This vulnerability is likely to intensify as emerging economies in Asia continue to strengthen the quality, coherence, and global competitiveness of their higher education and research systems.
Without substantial increases in public investment and structural improvements in productivity, Australian universities are unlikely to achieve meaningful growth in the number or proportion of subjects ranked in the global top 10, top 20 and even top 50.
While Commonwealth expenditure on tertiary education rose by 9.0% to $16.1 billion in 2023–24, this increase largely reflects inflation and population growth rather than real funding growth. Over the past decade, tertiary education spending as a share of total Commonwealth expenditure has declined and remained below 3% since 2016–17.
Restoring expenditure to at least 3%, alongside productivity reforms and effective implementation of the Accord, would materially strengthen prospects for improved global subject‑level performance.
However, it is unlikely that the federal government will increase its expenditure on tertiary education at the level of the 1990s or mid-2010s. Universities will need to focus on strengthening the quality and effectiveness of educational delivery instead of building mass.
Against a backdrop of geopolitical volatility and economic uncertainty, Commonwealth spending priorities are increasingly shaped by competing pressures, including national security, border protection, demographic ageing, and environmental challenges, limiting the policy emphasis on tertiary education.
Global context
Australia remains fourth globally in the number of subject listings with 820, compared to 843 last year or 797 in 2024.
The United States continues to have the highest number of subject listings (3,208) across 228 institutions, followed by the United Kingdom (1,690) across 115 institutions. China remains third with 1,195 listings across158 institutions. Germany also remains fifth with 808 listings across 72 institutions, and Canada is sixth with 684 listings across 33 institutions. It is worth noting that there are 34 more institutions listed from China and 11 more from Germany than last year.
Australia also remains third globally on the ratio of subject listings per institutions (22.2, unchanged compared to last year), behind Hong Kong (23.6) and New Zealand (23.6). Following Australia are Canada (20.7), Ireland (17.8), and Belgium (17.5) – the same countries as last year, but in a different order.
Although the United States and the United Kingdom have the most subject listings and the highest number of top ranked institutions, they lag behind Australia on the ratio of subject listings per institution (14.1 and 14.7, respectively).
Unsurprisingly, universities from the United States top the rankings in 33 subjects, with Harvard and MIT leading in 14 and 11 subjects, respectively. Then, universities from the United Kingdom top the rankings in 14 subjects, with Oxford leading in four and Cabridge and UCL leading in two each. Switzerland leads in 4, the Netherlands in 2, Italy and Sweden in 1 each.
China does not rank first in any subject ranking but has 15 listings in the top 10. Tsinghua has 7 listings, Peking has 2 listings, and China Agricultural University, China University of Geosciences, Fudan University, Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and Sichuan University have one each.
Interestingly, China has 51 listings in the top 20 (or 3.8% of its total listings), compared to 77 (or 6%) last year or 22 (or 3%) in the 2019 edition. These results were influenced by weakened scores in academic reputation among China’s top leading institutions.
Methodological construct
Five indicators are combined to achieve rankings: academic reputation, employer reputation, citations per paper, h-index, and International Research Network. QS uses a variable approach to the weighting for different subjects.
Most listings in Australia
Sydney has the highest number of total subject listings at 53 and is followed by Melbourne with 52, Queensland with 51, Monash with 48, and UNSW with 47.
Outside the Go8, Macquarie, Deakin, Curtin, UTS, Newcastle, RMIT, and Wollongong have between 31 and 42 listings each. Notably, Macquarie is equal sixth overall, tied with the new Adelaide University with 42 listings.
Top 10
There are 11 instances (two fewer compared to last year) across eight Australian universities (1.3% of all the subject listings). Australia’s top listings are:
- 2nd for Monash’s Pharmacy & Pharmacology
- 2nd for Queensland’s Sports-related subjects
- 3rd for UNSW’s Engineering – Minerals & Mining
- 3rd for Sydney’s Sports-related subjects
- 4th for ANU’s Philosophy
- 4th for Curtin’s Engineering – Minerals & Mining
- 5th for Queensland’s Engineering – Minerals & Mining
- 6th for Wollongong’s Philosophy
- 9th for ANU’s Anthropology
- 9th for Western Australia’s Engineering – Minerals & Mining
- 10th for ANU’s Archaeology.
Top 20
There are 48 instances across 16 Australian universities in the top 20, representing 5.9% of total subject listings. Although there are 18 more entries than last year, it is lower compared to 51 in 2025 or 68 in 2019, in part influenced by weaker scores in reputation surveys.
Melbourne has the most listings (11), followed by ANU with 9, Sydney with 6, and Monash and Queensland with 4 listings each.
Australia has a lower proportion of ranked subjects in the top 20 compared to Canada (8.0%), the United States (13.4%), and the United Kingdom (14.3%), but Australia has a higher proportion compared to China (3.8%) and Germany (1.7%).
Top 50
The number of times Australian universities are listed in the top 50 increased by two from last year to 193 listings. As a proportion of total subject listings, Australia’s performance increased from 22.7% in 2025 to 23.5% this year, but below 2024’s proportion of 25.5%.
There are 23 Australian universities which have at least one subject listed in the top 50, two more than last year and the same as 2024. Melbourne continues to have the highest number of top 50 listings (42), followed by Syndey (31). Other institutions with top 50 listings include ANU, Monash, and UNSW. Each of these institutions have at least 20 listings.
Australia has a lower proportion of ranked subjects in the top 50 compared to the United States (26.0%) and the United Kingdom (25.5%), but Australia has a higher proportion compared to China (13.3%), Germany (11.6%), and Canada (23.0%).
Top 100
Australian universities were listed 379 times in the top 100, an increase from 367 last year. As a proportion of total subject listings, Australia’s performance improved from 43.5% in 2025 to 46.2% this year.
Once again this year, 28 Australian institutions have at least one subject listed in the world’s top 100.
Melbourne and Sydney continue to stand out globally as they have more listings in the top 100 than any other institution worldwide. Melbourne has 51 listings followed by Sydney with 50, then Toronto and British Columbia have 49 listings each.
Monash and Queensland also stand out globally as they have 46 and 45 listings, respectively.
Australia continues to have a higher proportion of ranked subjects in the top 100 compared to the United States (41.1%), the United Kingdom (42.6%) and well above China (27.9%), Germany (25.2%), and Canada (34.9%).
Top 200 and beyond
Australia also continues to have a higher proportion of ranked subjects across the other bands in which QS publishes subject rankings (i.e., top 200, top 300, top 400, and top 500) than the United States, the United Kingdom, and all other key competitor countries. These results highlight the esteem by which Australian universities are viewed across the globe.
Parting thoughts
This year’s subject rankings reflect historical conditions and a global higher education environment that no longer prevails. The results are largely based on responses to reputation surveys conducted between December 2024 and March 2025.
It remains to be seen whether the responses collected in the current survey cycle will translate into further improvements for universities in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other liberal economies experiencing financial pressures and rapidly changing policy settings. Given these constraints, it is far from certain that recent gains will be sustained.
Moreover, universities across liberal economies are undergoing a period of reputational reassessment, requiring renewed efforts to rebuild trust with society, including policymakers. Against this backdrop, university leaders will need to pursue tailored and multifaceted strategies to deliver enduring improvements and strengthen the sector’s connection with communities.
Addressing these challenges will require a stronger focus on enhancing the student experience, equipping graduates with the skills needed to succeed beyond study, and deepening engagement with industry to ensure education and research remain relevant and impactful. Collectively, these efforts should strengthen institutional reputation and enhance the standing and esteem of the academic profession.
Angel Calderon is Director, Strategic Insights at RMIT University, and a member of the QS Rankings Advisory Board.