To view the latest version of this article based on the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2015, click here, or, read on for last year's results.
The recently released 2014 edition of the QS World University Rankings by Subject ranks the world’s leading universities in 30 subject areas, including the 200 top universities for mathematics. Of the 30 subjects covered, mathematics is one of the most geographically diverse, with 37 countries boasting at least one institution within the top 200 (actually 201 in this case).
As with most subjects covered by the QS World University Rankings by Subject, the lion’s share of top mathematics schools is claimed by the US, which has 47 entries, but beyond this the global spread is very broad. The UK has 15 entries, Germany 14 and China 12, followed by Canada with 9, Australia and Italy with 8 each, and France and Japan with 7 apiece. Read on for more detailed exploration of the top universities for mathematics in each world region…
Top universities for mathematics in the US and Canada
Almost a quarter of this year’s 200 top universities for mathematics are based in the US, with Harvard University taking the number one spot. Also in the global top 10 are Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2nd), University of California, Berkeley (4=), Princeton University (6=), Stanford University (6=), the University of California, Los Angeles (8th) and New York University (10th). Six more US universities are within the top 20, and another six within the top 50.
Meanwhile Canada has nine of the world’s top mathematics schools in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, including three entries in the global top 30: the University of Toronto (15th), University of Waterloo (24th) and University of British Columbia (28th).
Discover more top mathematics schools in the US and Canada >
Top universities for mathematics in Europe
Within Europe, the UK claims the largest number of top mathematics schools, with 15 entries in the top 200. Germany is close behind with 14 entries, while Italy has 8, France 7 and Spain 6. The two top European entries are both claimed by the UK: the University of Oxford is ranked third in the world for mathematics, while the University of Cambridge is joint fourth, alongside UC Berkeley. Also making the top 10 is Switzerland’s ETH Zurich, ranked 9th.
The UK claims a further six universities within the top 50: Imperial College London (11th), the University of Warwick (25th), University of Edinburgh (31=), University of Bristol (34th), University College London (36=) and University of Manchester (50th). Other high-ranking European institutions include France’s Ecole Polytechnique ParisTech (21st) and Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris (45=); Switzerland’s Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (36=); Germany’s Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn (40=) and Technische Universität München (44th); and Russia’s Lomonosov Moscow State University (49th).
See more top universities for mathematics in Europe >
Top universities for mathematics in Asia
Asia’s highest entry in the mathematics ranking comes from Singapore, with the National University of Singapore ranked 13th in the world. Fellow Singaporean institution Nanyang Technological University is also in the top 50, in 48th place. China claims the largest number of top-200 places, with 12, of which the highest entries go to Peking University (30th) and Tsinghua University (35th). Japan also has a strong presence, with seven universities featured among the global top 200, headed by the University of Tokyo (23rd) and Kyoto University (29th).
Densely populated Hong Kong may be small in size, but nonetheless boasts four universities among the mathematics top 50: the Chinese University of Hong Kong (26th), City University of Hong Kong (40=), Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (45=) and the University of Hong Kong (45=). The Hong Kong Polytechnic University is also within the top 150.
Meanwhile South Korea has six of the 200 top mathematics schools, led by KAIST and Seoul National University, both in the upper half of the ranking. India and Taiwan each have five universities listed, with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and National Taiwan University both counted among the world’s 200 top mathematics schools.
Discover more of Asia’s top universities for mathematics >
Top universities for mathematics in Australia and New Zealand
Moving to the southern hemisphere, Australia’s highest entry is Australian National University (20th). ANU is joined in the top 50 by the University of Sydney (31st) and in the top 100 by the University of Melbourne, University of New South Wales and University of Queensland. A total of eight Australian universities are included among the 200 top mathematics schools. New Zealand’s sole representative in this subject ranking is the University of Auckland, which appears within the top 100.
Discover more top mathematics schools in Australia and New Zealand >
More top universities for mathematics
In addition to the countries already mentioned above, nations claiming one or more of the world’s top universities for mathematics include: Israel, the Netherlands, Sweden, Belgium, Brazil, Austria, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Argentina, Greece, Hungary, Malaysia, Mexico, Poland, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. Among these, the highest entry is claimed by Brazil, with the Universidade de São Paulo in 39th place.
