The Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings by Subject 2026 were released on 21 January 2026, offering a comprehensive snapshot of university performance across 11 major academic subject areas. These subjects include STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), social sciences, arts, and humanities.
The results are based on teaching quality, research environment, citations, industry income, and international outlook.
Institutions from the United States and the United Kingdom continued to dominate many of the top slots. For example, US universities such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford, and Harvard led in subjects including arts and humanities, business, law, and engineering, while British universities maintained strong showings in fields like computer science and social sciences.
However, Asian universities rose more rapidly in the rankings than their Western counterparts in several disciplines, especially in STEM fields and increasingly in humanities and social sciences, signalling a shift in academic momentum.
For India, the rankings present a mixed picture. The Indian Institute of Science Bangalore (IISc Bangalore) was the only Indian institute to break into the global top 100, placing 96th in computer science. While this is a modest drop from its 2025 position IISc still displays a strong showing relative to peers worldwide.
Several other Indian universities appeared in subject bands further down the list, including Amity University, Jamia Millia Islamia, Symbiosis International University and Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, reflecting broad participation but limited top-tier presence.
Notably, OP Jindal Global University made its first appearance in the subject rankings, claiming the top national spot in law with a global top-300 placement and strong showings in psychology and arts.
The 2026 subject rankings, which evaluated over 2,190 universities from 115 countries, highlight persistent global competition and the growing influence of research and international collaboration on academic reputation.