World’s Best Universities Revealed

Arab Region soars as 21 universities in top-500 and 24 achieve record ranks

#QSWUR 

LONDON, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Global higher education experts QS Quacquarelli Symonds have released the QS World University Rankings 2027. 

MIT is crowned first for 15^th consecutive year. Imperial College London stays second, tied with Stanford University, up from third. University of Oxford and Harvard University come fourth and fifth.

This edition features 109 universities from 15 higher education systems in the Arab Region. KFUPM is the highest ranked and the only in the global top-100. All four of the region’s top universities achieve record ranks.

QS Senior Vice President Ben Sowter said: “Higher education across the Arab–speaking world is one of the big stories of the last decade. Ambitious national strategies are translating into measurable global gains, highlighted by KFUPM’s rise into the world’s top–100 and the UAE’s first–ever top–150 institution. However, performance remains uneven, underlining the need to strengthen research reputation and faculty investment to sustain momentum.”

• Saudi Arabia: KFUPM achieves the region’s highest–ever rank while King Saud University takes the second-highest. Eight Saudi institutions reach historic highs.
• United Arab Emirates: Khalifa University enters the top–150 for the first time. With 75% of UAE universities rising and eight recording best–ever positions, UAE is the Arab Region’s most improved system among those with three or more entries.
• Qatar: Qatar University reaches a historic high, though slips to third in the region. HBKU also rises 213^th, boasting outstanding Faculty per Student Ratio.
• Egypt: Second most represented higher education system in the Arab Region. Cairo University remains the system leader (363^rd), despite overall sector decline.
• Jordan: Performance stabilises with four universities achieving historic highs, though overall competitiveness pressures persist.
• Lebanon: The American University of Beirut remains the country’s flagship despite sector–wide volatility.
• Oman: Sultan Qaboos University achieves country’s highest ever rank (306^th) as two Omani institutions debut, bringing total to seven from one in 2024.
• Tunisia: Université de Tunis El Manar reaches a historic high (655^th), signalling growing international visibility.

Find the full Arab Region report here: Arab_Region_WUR2027_EN_D1.1_E1.0_MEDIA

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