The University of the Philippines (UP) has retained its position as the premier higher education institution (HEI) in the Philippines, according to the 2024 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Asia University Rankings, released on Wednesday, November 8.
Climbing nine places from its previous spot, UP now ranks 78th out of 856 HEIs across Asia. Regionally, UP maintained its 18th position in Southeast Asia.
It remains the only Philippine university in the top 100. Catholic universities Ateneo de Manila University (137th), De La Salle University (154th), and the University of Santo Tomas (179th) also featured in the rankings, with Ateneo and UST experiencing slight drops and La Salle moving up 17 places from last year.
UP bested its national counterparts in most ranking criteria, including academic and employer reputation, citations per faculty, and international research network. UST led in international exchange scores, while La Salle excelled in faculty research publications. Ateneo, on the other hand, did not lead in any specific category. All the mentioned universities shared equal scores for faculty with Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) qualifications.
Three other state-run HEIs made it in the QS list. The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) placed in the 551-600 bracket, followed by Mindanao State University (MSU)-Iligan Institute of Technology (701-750) and MSU (801+). Both PUP and MSU made their debut in the QS Asia Rankings this year.
Other Philippine universities such as Adamson University (551-600), University of San Carlos (551-600), Mapua University (601-650), Silliman University (601-650), Ateneo de Davao University (651-700), Far Eastern University (701-750), Saint Louis University (751-800), and Lyceum of the Philippines University (801+) were included in the 2023 rankings.
China’s Peking University remained as Asia’s top school for the second straight year, with the National University of Singapore and Tsinghua University trailing closely.
QS uses eleven indicators to assess the top Asian HEIs, including academic and employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, international research network, and faculty with PhD, among others.
“This set of criteria, developed in consultation with regional experts and stakeholders, is designed to reflect key priorities for universities in Asia, drawing on as much available data as possible,” QS explained.