NTU and NUS top Asia university rankings

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Two Singapore-based universities, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and National University of Singapore (NUS), emerged at the top of the latest QS Asia University Rankings released today, reaffirming the country's excellence in tertiary education.

The two Singapore-based universities were followed by The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) [located in Hong Kong] which was ranked third, while Universiti Malaya (UM) [located in Malaysia], was ranked 24th, and the Singapore Management University [located in Singapore] came in at 71st place.

Top 10 Universities in Asia

1. Nanyang Technological University (NTU) [location: Singapore] 2. National University of Singapore (NUS) [location: Singapore] 3. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) [location: Hong Kong] 4. KAIST - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology [location: South Korea] 5. University of Hong Kong (HKU) [location: Hong Kong] 6. Tsinghua University [location: China] 7. Fudan University [location: China] 8. City University of Hong Kong [location: Hong Kong] 9. Peking University [location: China] 10. The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) [location: Hong Kong]

Featuring 450 of the top universities in Asia, the ranking released by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) is based on a methodology which considers 10 performance indicators, including factors considered particularly important in this part of the world, such as the number of staff with a PhD, and each university’s proportion of inbound and outbound exchange students.

Along with the rankings, QS also provided a deeper analysis of the top 10 universities, here are the top five.

1. Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Climbing two places and knocking the National University of Singapore out of the top spot this year, Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is now the highest-ranked university both in Singapore and Asia. The tertiary institution received the highest score in the whole ranking for citations per faculty member (a measure of research impact). A young university, NTU was established in 1991, and has consistently been ranked first in the QS Top 50 Under 50. NTU was also featured among the world’s best for 31 subjects, including top 10 positions for chemical and civil engineering. The university has a student population of about 32,400 and has the largest university campus in Singapore, at 200 hectares.

2. National University of Singapore (NUS) Despite dropping a place to rank second in Asia in 2018, National University of Singapore (NUS) has nonetheless received the highest score in the entire ranking for employer reputation, and is only one place behind NTU for citations per faculty member. NUS was featured among the world's best for 36 subjects, including positions in the top 10 for chemical and civil engineering, chemistry, materials science, architecture and statistics. Founded in 1905 as the King Edward VII College of Medicine, today NUS has around 38,600 students, almost 10,000 of whom are studying at postgraduate level.

3. The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) Up one place this year, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) is another one of the youngest top universities in Asia in this list, having been founded in 1991. The university was also featured in the QS Top 50 Under 50, ranked in second place, just after NTU.  HKUST has around 14,200 students and boasts an attractive 60-hectare campus in an area of natural beauty on the Clear Water bay peninsula, a short drive from central Hong Kong.

4. KAIST - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Climbing two places this year, Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology was founded in 1971 as the first research-orientated science and engineering university in South Korea. It’s located in Daejeon, a city known for its innovation in science and education, and also has a campus in capital city Seoul. KAIST currently has around 10,600 students, with a larger proportion of postgraduates than undergraduates.

5. University of Hong Kong (HKU) Despite dropping three places to rank fifth in Asia this year, the University of Hong Kong (HKU) is nonetheless consistently one of the top universities in Asia. HKU is Hong Kong’s oldest university, having been established in 1911, and has since gained international recognition for its achievements as a research-led comprehensive university. HKU has an enrollment of 28,744 students, including 9,215 international students.

Photo caption: NTU Singapore is No. 1 in the QS Asia University Rankings. The Hive at NTU is the centrepiece of the university’s flipped classroom pedagogy, a new model of education in the digital age. Photo / NTU Singapore