Switzerland has the best higher education system in the world
A total of 32 university programmes in Switzerland are each among the ten best in the world. This means that Swiss universities are home to 6 percent of all top ten subjects and have the most subjects in which they are leaders. This is shown by the current ranking of the British higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).
Switzerland has the best higher education system in the world. This is one result of this year’s ranking by global higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS). The 13th edition of the QS World University Rankings by Subject identified the world’s best university offerings in 54 academic disciplines.
A total of 32 Swiss university programmes are among the ten best in the world in their respective disciplines. That is 15 percent of all Swiss university programmes – the highest proportion worldwide. The country is thus home to 6 per cent of all the world’s top ten subjects. This share is only surpassed by the USA with 47 percent and the UK with 27 percent. The ranking assessed a total of 1594 universities from 93 countries in 54 academic subject areas.
Switzerland came out on top in four of these subject areas. The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH) combines three of them: Earth and Ocean Sciences, Geophysics and Geology. No other university in continental Europe holds first place more often. In addition, Switzerland leads the way in the hospitality university programme with the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne. Seven of the world’s ten leading hotel management schools are located here. ETH Zurich is among the top ten with numerous degree programmes such as Architecture (ranked 3rd), Engineering – Mechanical, Aeronautical & Manufacturing (ranked 5th), Chemistry (ranked 7th) as well as in Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy (each ranked 8th). Two of the world’s top ten courses in dentistry are in Switzerland: the University of Bern is ranked 7th here, and the University of Zurich 8th. The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) is represented in the world’s top 10 with two subjects: Data Science (9) and Civil Engineering (10). The biggest leap forward in Switzerland was made by the life sciences at the University of Geneva. They improved by 18 places to 62nd place. Mathematics at EPFL also climbed into the top 20.