These are the top 5 universities in the world

BusinessToday.In

Dec 3, 2019,
Updated Dec 3, 2019 5:32 PM IST

According to the latest data from Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2020, the US dominates while China's universities have improved. Several institutes have joined the list for the first time. Here are the world's top 5 universities.

5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology

With an overall score of 93.6 MIT stands at the fifth position. Major scientific discoveries and advances can be traced back to this premium institution like the first chemical synthesis of penicillin, invention of magnetic core memory to name a few. Ninety six Nobel laureates, 26 Turing Award winners and 8 Fields Medallists have been affiliated with MIT.

4. Stanford University

Stanford has also dropped to fourth position from third last year. This US institution is again known for academic excellence especially focused on technology. In fact, it has churned out the maximum number of tech entrepreneurs. Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page went to Stanford as did Elon Musk and other famous billionaires. Companies founded by Stanford affiliates and alumni generate more than $2.7 trillion annual revenue. Some of these companies include Google, Nike, Netflix, Hewlett-Packard and Instagram.

3. University of Cambridge

Cambridge is an all-rounder like Oxford but has slipped this year in the rankings. It has slipped to the third place from the second position last year. It has not less than 18,000 students which includes 4000 from 120 countries of the world. From Isaac Newton to Rajiv Gandhi, the university boasts of some famous alumni. Cambridge boasts of 100 libraries which house around 15 million books.

2. California Institute of Technology

This institute has moved up three places to take the second spot this year. "We try to get better, not bigger," says its president, Thomas F. Rosenbaum and that is what the institute strives towards. Its renowned for research and innovation and for constantly setting new standards of excellence. It is the second institution along with MIT, which has managed to score more than 80 out of 100 in all five areas - teaching, research, citation impact, knowledge transfer, and international outlook.

1. University of Oxford

Exceptional teaching and research as well as an 'international character' make this university stand out. Not surprising then that it tops the chart with the highest ranking for the fourth year in a row. Forty per cent of its faculty is from overseas. Some famous alumni include Bill Clinton, Indira Gandhi and the current British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.