Biological Sciences
QS

Biological Sciences 2021

QS World University Rankings · · Methodology · Source: QS World University Rankings official website · Editorial Standards

Ranks universities globally for research output and academic impact in biological sciences.

QS is the only major ranking system that weights employer reputation at 15%, with academic and employer reputation together accounting for nearly half the total score.

How does Biological Sciences evaluate universities?

Biological Sciences, published by QS World University Rankings, evaluates universities worldwide using key indicators such as Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation, each assigned a distinct weight according to a publicly documented methodology. Data sources combine academic peer reviews, employer surveys, bibliometric databases such as Scopus and Web of Science, and institutional self-reported statistics, all independently verified by the publisher's research team. The 2021 edition assessed 619 universities from 14 countries and regions, covering teaching quality, research output, internationalization, and graduate employability across undergraduate, master's, and doctoral programs. QS World University Rankings recollects raw data annually and cross-checks results to ensure the rankings reflect each institution's most current performance in faculty strength, scholarly productivity, global reach, and student outcomes, providing a reliable reference for prospective students, parents, and education researchers.

Which are the top universities in Biological Sciences 2021?

The top universities in Biological Sciences 2021 are: Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Cambridge, Stanford University, University of Oxford. This edition, published by QS World University Rankings, evaluated 619 universities from 14 countries and regions using indicators such as Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation. Rankings reflect weighted performance across multiple dimensions; students should consider methodology differences and their own academic priorities when interpreting results.

How does Biological Sciences differ from other ranking systems?

QS World University Rankings, published by Quacquarelli Symonds since 2004, are defined by their heavy emphasis on reputation surveys: academic reputation (30%) and employer reputation (15%) together account for nearly half of the total score, directly reflecting how scholars and employers worldwide perceive each institution. Additional indicators include faculty/student ratio (10%), citations per faculty (20%), international faculty (5%), international students (5%), plus newer dimensions such as sustainability and employment outcomes. In contrast, THE emphasizes teaching environment and research quality, ARWU relies entirely on objective research output (Nobel Prizes, publications), and US News focuses on research reputation and citation impact. QS is therefore particularly useful for applicants concerned with institutional prestige, graduate employability, and cross-border recognition.

Current edition: published 2021-03
No results found
🇦🇷 Argentina
🇦🇺 Australia
🇦🇹 Austria
🇧🇪 Belgium
🇧🇷 Brazil
🇨🇦 Canada
🇨🇱 Chile
🇨🇳 China
🇨🇴 Colombia
🇨🇷 Costa Rica
🇭🇷 Croatia
🇨🇿 Czech Republic
🇩🇰 Denmark
🇪🇬 Egypt
🇪🇪 Estonia
🇫🇮 Finland
🇫🇷 France
🇩🇪 Germany
🇬🇷 Greece
🇭🇰 Hong Kong
🇭🇺 Hungary
🇮🇳 India
🇮🇩 Indonesia
🇮🇷 Iran
🇮🇪 Ireland
🇮🇱 Israel
🇮🇹 Italy
🇯🇵 Japan
🇱🇧 Lebanon
🇱🇹 Lithuania
🇱🇺 Luxembourg
🇲🇾 Malaysia
🇲🇽 Mexico
🇳🇱 Netherlands
🇳🇿 New Zealand
🇳🇴 Norway
🇵🇰 Pakistan
🇵🇭 Philippines
🇵🇱 Poland
🇵🇹 Portugal
🇶🇦 Qatar
🇷🇺 Russia
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
🇷🇸 Serbia
🇸🇬 Singapore
🇸🇰 Slovakia
🇸🇮 Slovenia
🇿🇦 South Africa
🇰🇷 South Korea
🇪🇸 Spain
🇸🇪 Sweden
🇨🇭 Switzerland
🇹🇼 Taiwan
🇹🇭 Thailand
🇹🇷 Turkey
🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
🇺🇸 United States
🇺🇾 Uruguay
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Total 619 universities

Per page

10
20
50
100
University
Country
1 Harvard University logo Harvard University 🇺🇸 United States 99.2 100.0 100.0
2 Massachusetts Institute of Technology logo Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) 🇺🇸 United States 96.4 94.7 95.0
3 University of Cambridge logo University of Cambridge 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 95.6 99.1 96.0
4 Stanford University logo Stanford University (SU) 🇺🇸 United States 95.1 95.0 93.5
5 University of Oxford logo University of Oxford 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 94.1 98.0 95.5
6 University of California, Berkeley logo University of California, Berkeley (UCB) 🇺🇸 United States 90.9 93.1 87.9
7 ETH Zurich logo ETH Zurich 🇨🇭 Switzerland 90.5 98.0 87.2
8 Yale University logo Yale University 🇺🇸 United States 89.4 88.8 88.2
9 University of California, Los Angeles logo University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) 🇺🇸 United States 88.7 89.0 85.6
10 University of California San Diego logo University of California San Diego (UCSD) 🇺🇸 United States 88.2 89.3 74.2
11 California Institute of Technology logo California Institute of Technology (CIT) 🇺🇸 United States 87.9 90.5 81.6
12 Cornell University logo Cornell University (CU) 🇺🇸 United States 87.5 84.5 83.5
13 = Imperial College London logo Imperial College London 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 87.4 88.5 84.4
13 = University of California, San Francisco University of California, San Francisco 🇺🇸 United States 87.4 83.9 68.3
15 University College London logo University College London (UCL) 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 87.2 85.4 83.6
16 University of Toronto logo University of Toronto 🇨🇦 Canada 87.1 83.3 89.5
17 National University of Singapore logo National University of Singapore (NUS) 🇸🇬 Singapore 86.8 87.3 91.0
18 The University of Tokyo logo The University of Tokyo (UT) 🇯🇵 Japan 86.2 89.4 86.4
19 Columbia University logo Columbia University (CU) 🇺🇸 United States 86.0 82.0 78.1
20 University of Edinburgh logo University of Edinburgh 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 85.6 85.9 75.5
21 = Princeton University logo Princeton University 🇺🇸 United States 85.2 84.7 83.6
21 = University of Copenhagen logo University of Copenhagen (UCPH) 🇩🇰 Denmark 85.2 82.9 74.9
23 University of Pennsylvania logo University of Pennsylvania 🇺🇸 United States 85.0 79.3 78.0
24 Johns Hopkins University logo Johns Hopkins University (JHU) 🇺🇸 United States 84.8 78.2 84.4
25 EPFL – École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne logo EPFL – École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne 🇨🇭 Switzerland 84.3 83.6 80.9
26 = Kyoto University logo Kyoto University 🇯🇵 Japan 83.7 88.3 79.4
26 = Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München logo Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) 🇩🇪 Germany 83.7 84.6 70.9
26 = Tsinghua University logo Tsinghua University (THU) 🇨🇳 China 83.7 84.9 83.1
29 = University of Chicago logo University of Chicago (UC) 🇺🇸 United States 83.4 78.9 74.3
29 = University of Michigan logo University of Michigan (UM) 🇺🇸 United States 83.4 76.9 78.3
31 Peking University logo Peking University (PKU) 🇨🇳 China 83.0 82.9 82.4
32 Karolinska Institutet logo Karolinska Institutet (KI) 🇸🇪 Sweden 82.7 76.6 77.7
33 = Nanyang Technological University logo Nanyang Technological University (NTU) 🇸🇬 Singapore 82.5 82.0 82.3
33 = University of British Columbia logo University of British Columbia (UBC) 🇨🇦 Canada 82.5 79.8 86.6
33 = University of Washington logo University of Washington (UW) 🇺🇸 United States 82.5 76.8 68.6
36 McGill University logo McGill University 🇨🇦 Canada 82.4 78.9 80.8
37 = Rockefeller University logo Rockefeller University 🇺🇸 United States 82.1 79.5 42.8
37 = Sorbonne Université logo Sorbonne Université 🇫🇷 France 82.1 78.9 76.7
39 = Universität Heidelberg Universität Heidelberg 🇩🇪 Germany 81.8 80.2 74.1
39 = Seoul National University logo Seoul National University (SNU) 🇰🇷 South Korea 81.8 83.5 81.4
41 Duke University logo Duke University 🇺🇸 United States 81.6 76.2 75.5
42 Wageningen University & Research Wageningen University & Research 🇳🇱 Netherlands 81.3 82.3 77.6
43 The University of Melbourne logo The University of Melbourne 🇦🇺 Australia 81.0 75.5 77.8
44 New York University logo New York University (NYU) 🇺🇸 United States 80.9 73.3 70.2
45 = University of California, Davis logo University of California, Davis (UCD) 🇺🇸 United States 80.6 79.1 73.2
45 = Washington University in St. Louis logo Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) 🇺🇸 United States 80.6 72.7 61.3
47 Uppsala University logo Uppsala University 🇸🇪 Sweden 80.3 78.4 70.7
48 Technical University of Munich logo Technical University of Munich (TUM) 🇩🇪 Germany 79.8 77.6 68.6
49 University of Zurich logo University of Zurich (UZH) 🇨🇭 Switzerland 79.6 73.9 66.2
50 The University of Queensland logo The University of Queensland (UQ) 🇦🇺 Australia 79.4 74.2 75.8