Top Engineering Schools in 2017

View the 2019 version of this article here.

Released today, the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2017 covers five different branches of engineering – chemical, civil and structural, electrical, mechanical and mineral and mining, based on a methodology which assesses employer and academic reputations, research impact and more.

Read on for an overview of the top engineering schools for each branch of the subject, starting with a look at the overall top 10 for the subject area:

MIT leads the way in the Engineering and Technology subject area ranking this year – the fifth time in a row it’s taken the top spot. The university has been associated with 87 Nobel Prize winners and also boasts a number of other successful alumni, such as Buzz Aldrin. Elsewhere, three UK universities feature in the top 10, with the University of Cambridge ranked fourth, while Singapore’s two premier institutions also feature. 500 universities around the world are featured in the subject area ranking – view the full results here.

Top universities for chemical engineering

This year’s chemical engineering ranking has been extended from 200 to 300 this year, and the US impressively claims 73 of those places. The next most-represented country with 27 universities is China, including Tsinghua University at 11^th (up from joint 15^th last year).

South Korea also fares well, with 19 top chemical engineering schools featured, including five in the top 50.  Another strong Asian country in the chemical engineering ranking is Japan with 15 entrants, including two in the top 10 – Kyoto University (sixth) and the University of Tokyo (10^th).

See the full chemical engineering ranking >

Top universities for civil and structural engineering

In the civil and structural engineering ranking, MIT is top again, one of 37 US entrants in the ranking (which lists 200 overall). Elsewhere, Australia has 14 universities make the list, with the University of New South Wales (UNSW) the highest-ranked at 16^th. Four other Australian universities feature in the top 50. Also represented 14 times is China, with Tsinghua University its highest-ranked. Staying in Asia, nine top engineering schools in South Korea feature in the 2017 civil engineering ranking, including four in the top 50. KAIST - Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology leads the way in 15^th place.

Canada has 11 representatives in this year’s ranking, with the University of British Colombia and the University of Toronto both included in the top 50. Finally, Germany’s seven entrants are led by Technische Universität München in joint 48^th.

View the full civil engineering ranking >

Top universities for electrical engineering

Extended to feature 400 of the world’s top engineering schools, the 2017 electrical engineering ranking is also dominated by the US with 72 institutions on the list, 17 of which make the top 50. Elsewhere, China’s Tsinghua University climbed from 15^th to seventh, while Malaysia’s Universiti Malaya (UM) jumped from joint 37^th to joint 23^rd. Another impressive improvement has been made by Seoul National University (SNU), which has climbed nine places to rank 20^th this year.

Elsewhere in the world, Latin America has 17 universities in the electrical engineering ranking, including Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) in the top 150, while the Middle East region claims 11 representatives, with two new entrants from Iran and the King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM) up from 151-200 to the 101-150 range.

View the full electrical engineering ranking >

Top universities for mechanical, aeronautical and manufacturing engineering

Also extended to feature 400 engineering schools around the world this year is the mechanical engineering ranking, which the US again dominates with 77 representatives, including 16 in the top 50.  Many Asian universities performed well here – China’s Tsinghua University climbed from 15^th to 10^th, Japan’s Kyoto University has climbed six places to rank 22^nd, Malaysia’s Universiti Malaya (UM) jumped from 51-100 to 33^rd and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has moved up from 39^th to 23^rd.

Of the 19 Latin American universities in the mechanical engineering ranking, Brazil is home to nine. Over in the Middle East, new entrants from Iran, Jordan, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates feature this year, helping to bring the total number of middle eastern universities to 20.

View the full mechanical engineering ranking >

Top universities for mineral and mining engineering

The mineral and mining engineering ranking was introduced for the first time ever last year, and in this second edition of the ranking Colorado School of Mines holds on to the top spot. Australian universities have soared up the table this year, with Curtin University making one of the more impressive jumps from 19^th to second. All of Australia’s nine representatives are now featured in the top 50.

Elsewhere, all six of Canada’s featured universities all improved their positions this year, with three sharing sixth place in the mining engineering ranking – McGill University, Queen's University and the University of British Columbia. Also in the top 10 is Germany’s Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg, which climbed from joint 26^th to ninth, while Chile’s Universidad de Chile is up eight places this year to rank 10^th. Another strong leap comes from Russia, with St.Petersburg Mining University up from 51-100 to 15^th.

View the full mining engineering ranking >