THE World University Rankings by Subject 2026: IISc emerges as only Indian university in top 100; Asia leads global shift

The THE World University Rankings by Subject 2026 placed IISc Bengaluru in India's top list and the only Indian institution in the global top 100. Asian universities continued to outperform Western coun terparts in STEM fields, while Indian representation remained limited in arts, law and humanities.

THE World University Rankings by Subject 2026. (Image: Getty Images)

Arpita Das | Updated on: Jan 22, 2026 | 05:35 PM

New Delhi: The Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings by Subject 2026 have been released and as per the list, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru has once again emerged as the country’s best-performing institute. IISC Bengaluru is the only university to feature in the global top 100 of any subject category.

As per the latest rankings, Asia continues to strengthen its position in higher education, however, the representation of India at the very top remains limited.

Asian universities continue to outperform their counterparts in Europe and North America specifically in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects. IISc remains India’s highest-ranked institute in computer science, thereby securing the 96th position globally. The institute has also earned a score of 99.7 which reflects its close collaboration with the corporate sector.

Other institutes such as Amity University, Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI), Symbiosis International University and Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology were listed in the broader top 500 band.

As per THE World Rankings by Subject 2026, 'Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) topped in arts and humanities, business and economics and social sciences in a repeat of last year.' In the United States, Stanford University ranked first in education and law, Harvard University led in engineering and life sciences and the California Institute of Technology topped physical sciences.

'The University of Oxford led the way in computer science and medical and health, while the University of Cambridge overtook Stanford in psychology. Only Harvard, Stanford and Cambridge appear in all 11 subject rankings’ top 10s,' the official statement read.

Indian universities continue to have thinner representation in arts, humanities and law. The University of Delhi was placed in the 401 to 500 rank, followed by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in the 501 to 600 range. Other institutions such as Jadavpur University, JMI, OP Jindal Global University, Manipal Academy of Higher Education and Christ University were ranked lower.

OP Jindal Global University made its mark in the rankings therby emerging as India’s top law institution and placing in the top 300 globally. In engineering, IISc led India again but was ranked in the 101 to 125 band. Moreover, private universities like Lovely Professional University and Graphic Era University also featured.

Based on teaching quality, research performance and data credibility the THE Subject Rankings 2026 evaluated 2,191 universities from a total of 115 countries,

THE World University Ranking by Subject 2026 Computer Science

Rank	Name	Overall
96	Indian Institute of Science	59.5
251–300	Amity University, Noida	45.3–47.0
301–400	Jamia Millia Islamia	41.5–45.2
301–400	Symbiosis International University	41.5–45.2
301–400	Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology	41.5–45.2
401–500	Aligarh Muslim University	38.3–41.4
401–500	Indian Institute of Technology Indore	38.3–41.4
401–500	International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad	38.3–41.4
401–500	KIIT University	38.3–41.4
401–500	Lovely Professional University	38.3–41.4
401–500	Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences	38.3–41.4
401–500	VIT University	38.3–41.4
501–600	Bharathiar University	35.5–38.2
501–600	Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani	35.5–38.2
501–600	Chitkara UniversityIndia	35.5–38.2
501–600	Graphic Era University	35.5–38.2
501–600	Indian Institute of Technology Patna	35.5–38.2
501–600	Panjab University	35.5–38.2
501–600	Savitribai Phule Pune University	35.5–38.2
501–600	UPES	35.5–38.2
601–800	Banaras Hindu University	30.0–35.4
601–800	Birla Institute of Technology	30.0–35.4
601–800	Cochin University of Science and Technology	30.0–35.4
601–800	Delhi Technological University	30.0–35.4
601–800	Galgotias University	30.0–35.4

Arts

Rank	Name	Overall
401–500	University of Delhi	27.4–30.9
501–600	Jawaharlal Nehru University	24.6–27.3
601–800	Jadavpur University	16.8–24.5
601–800	Jamia Millia Islamia	16.8–24.5
601–800	Manipal Academy of Higher Education	16.8–24.5
601–800	O.P. Jindal Global University	16.8–24.5
801+	Christ University	11.8–16.7