The UAE has climbed to sixth place in an international league table of most improved countries for quality of university subjects offered.
According to the QS Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings by Subject 2025 released on Wednesday, almost half (49 per cent) of the UAE's 60 ranked entries improved, with only 14 per cent scoring lower than last year.
The UAE was the sixth most improved country when ranked by subject, although no university made the overall top 200 list of international universities according to data released in June. Coming in at number one on the most improved table was Hong Kong, followed by mainland China, Singapore, South Korea and Oman. Kuwait ranked as seventh most improved.
Universities in the Emirates submitted 19 new subject entries this year, with five of them achieving debut rankings in; linguistics, dentistry, communication and media studies, politics and international studies, and data science & AI.
World class
The UAE is one of only 20 countries and territories with two or more subjects ranked in the global top 10.
Khalifa University of Science and Technology’s petroleum engineering programme climbed one place to 7th globally.
The Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management remains among the world’s best in hospitality and leisure management, ranking 10th worldwide, despite falling one position.
Ajman University's data science and artificial intelligence course entered the top 100 for the first time, along with dentistry at the University of Sharjah. Meanwhile, all nine entries from Al Ain University improved on their rankings from last year.
Global results
Several factors were considered to grade each university, from learning experience to academic reputation, employability and global engagement.
The US Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge ranked first with an overall score of 100, followed by Imperial College London, UK with a score of 98.5.
The top five university list was completed by the University of Oxford (96.9), Harvard University in the US (96.8) and the University of Cambridge, UK (96.7).
In the UAE, the highest ranked university was Khalifa University with a score of 46.1, ranking it in 202nd place, followed by UAE University ranked 261 with a score of 39.4.
“The UAE's higher education ecosystem is making remarkable strides, as evidenced by the 49 per cent of its 122 ranked entries improving in the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2025,” said Ben Sowter, senior vice president at QS. “This progress aligns with the nation's ambitious National Strategy for Higher Education 2030.
“The advancements in two of our key indicators such as Citations per Paper and H-Index reflect the UAE's commitment to fostering a robust research culture and enhancing global academic collaborations.”
Still growing
Experts said university options for students wanting to explore higher education in the UAE are improving.
“There are certain things I'm very happy that we are somewhere in the rankings now, but there are so many subjects that we still don't offer,” said education consultant Rema Menon Vellat. “We are still in our nascent phase and we're growing exponentially. When I first came in here in 1998 it was all about business, and most of the institutions were offering related courses.”
There is now a greater focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, according to the founder of Counselling Point Training and Development.
“There is a trickle-down effect. If government policies indicate a need to focus on logistics and supply chain, then that's where people will start investing their time and energy.
“But I feel we have many areas underserved, such as veterinary science, occupational and behavioural therapies, agriculture and farming.”
Ms Vellat said there was an increase in the number of students in the UAE choosing to study at local universities, rather than travel overseas, a trend also seen elsewhere.
In the Netherlands, the number of foreign student applications dropped significantly last year. Vrije Universiteit (VU) in Amsterdam saw a 23 per cent decline, and Groningen University reported 14 per cent fewer students from the European Economic Area (EEA).
Overall, the Netherlands reported a 6 per cent decline in EU students and 9 per cent fewer non-EEA based applicants.
Reducing foreign student numbers
The drop was largely driven by new government policies to reduce the number of foreign students, including limiting English use in bachelor’s programmes.
“This is happening the world over and so students are also looking at newer options, like Italy or Spain,” said Ms Vellat.
“Young people are looking at where the jobs are. There's a perception that our university systems are not good enough just yet, but new checks and balances have contributed to improving facilities.
“We still need lots more research and investment in our students, the industry and academia partnerships.”
General rankings
In the 2025 league tables published in June last year, the American University of Sharjah was placed in 332 with a score of 33.6, while the University of Sharjah was in 434th place with a score of 27.5. Ajman University completed the top five in the UAE with a score of 25.1, placing it 477 on the list.
The National University of Singapore was the top rated university in Asia, the region in which the UAE is classified, with a score of 93.7 in overall eighth place.
In the Middle East, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Saudi Arabia placed 101st with an overall score of 59.5, with Qatar University in Doha ranked 122, scoring 55.7.
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