Three Israeli universities ranked among top 100 worldwide

Three of Israel’s research universities — the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, and the Weizmann Institute of Science — are among the top 100 universities in the world, according to the 2024 Shanghai Ranking, released on Thursday.

The Hebrew University, widely considered Israel’s premier research university, was ranked 81st in the world, up from 86th place in 2023. The Technion was ranked 85th, down from 79th place last year, and Weizmann came in at 69th, down from 68th in 2023.

In a statement, Hebrew University president Prof. Asher Cohen said that “the presence of three Israeli universities in the list of the top 100 universities globally is an exceptional achievement in such a challenging and complex year.”

Cohen attributed Hebrew University’s rise in the rankings to “the groundbreaking research and commitment to excellence that we uphold as a way of life” and credited “the university’s researchers, academic staff, and administrative team, who continue to promote excellent research daily.”

In a separate statement, the Technion noted that moreover, among “technological universities, the Technion placed 11th in the world,” even as “around 3,500 students and administrative and academic staff members from the Technion were called up for extended reserve duty.”

“The Technion’s position in the Shanghai Ranking… is certainly a source of great pride, and an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of this prestigious institution since its inception. The Technion will continue to play a crucial role in the rebooting of the State of Israel and the rebuilding of Israeli society. This is a central part of our national mission,” said Technion president Prof. Uri Sivan.

The Academic Ranking of World Universities, compiled annually by the Shanghai Ranking Consultancy in Shanghai, China, is considered an especially accurate ranking of academic excellence. Some 2,500 universities worldwide are considered, and they are ranked based on several indicators, especially the number of faculty and alumni who have received international prizes and the volume and quality of their publications in peer-reviewed journals.

In the 2024 Shanghai Ranking, the top 10 spots were held by universities from the United States and the UK: Harvard University was number one, followed by Stanford, MIT, University of Cambridge, UC Berkeley, Oxford, Princeton, Caltech, Columbia and the University of Chicago.

Three other Israeli universities — Tel Aviv University, Bar-Ilan University and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev — were ranked in the top 500.