While the overall results showed the UK in decline worldwide, with a 96 per cent rise in the rankings for Chinese universities compared to a concerning domestic picture, Cambridge and Oxford remain some of the world’s top public universities.
In total, 93 UK universities, led by the University of Cambridge, feature in the global rankings but nearly 60 per cent of UK institutions have slipped down the rankings.
The University of Cambridge maintained its spot in fourth place globally, while Oxford also maintained its fifth place, with Harvard leading globally. University College London climbed two places to 19th place, ahead of Imperial College London at number 29 and King’s College London in 40th position.
The results show a mixed picture for the Russell Group of leading UK universities – of the group’s 24 members, 14 ranked lower, including Edinburgh, Birmingham, Leeds, Southampton, Glasgow, Liverpool, Nottingham, Sheffield, Queen Mary University of London, Newcastle, Warwick, York, Durham and St Andrews.
The top three positions are all held by US universities, with Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford in first, second and third place.
You can also use our tool to compare universities’ global and national rankings, as well as which UK universities have soared ahead internationally and which have declined.