The QS World University Rankings by Subject is one of the highlights of our rankings calendar, showcasing over 1,500 institutions across 55 different subjects, grouped into 5 faculty (broad subject) areas. The following dashboard is a useful guide to this ranking, and contains information on the subjects and subject areas we rank, the weights of indicators, the ASJC codes we use as well as the nominations we receive: QS World University Rankings by Subject Dashboard.
Eligibility criteria for QS World University Rankings by Subject
| 1 | Degree level | A university should offer undergraduate or postgraduate degrees in the given subject. Where an institution only provides degrees at either undergraduate or postgraduate, it is classified as single-level institution. Single-level is permitted in our QS World University Rankings by Subject. |
| 2 | 3-year cohort | There must have been at least three graduating classes for the specific degree (e.g. BA in History or MSc in Microbiology) before eligibility is conferred. |
In order to be included in our analysis by subject, an institution should also meet our paper thresholds for each individual subject (see 'Research Metrics' tab of this dashboard) and attract a minimum level of recognition through our surveys (the sum of Academic and Employer Reputation scores is 5 or higher).
Eligibility criteria for rankings by faculty area
The university must provide full degree programs (e.g. BA, BSc, MA, MSc) in the corresponding faculty (broad subject) area. Further, in each faculty area, at least two narrow degree programs should be offered. There must have been at least three graduating classes in those narrow subjects before eligibility is conferred. Single-faculty and single-level institutions are eligible for our rankings by faculty area.
Every indicator in the rankings by faculty areas depends on the performance in the corresponding narrow subjects, and so the overall performance of an institution in the rankings by faculty areas depends on the number of narrow subjects it is eligible for. However to be featured in the rankings by faculty areas, there is no specific pre-requisite for the performance in narrow subjects.
In the 2022 edition of the rankings by 5 broad faculty areas, we introduced our International Research Network metric to our Broad Faculty ranking, which is used in our regional rankings.
In the 2023 edition, we expanded International Research Network as an indicator into many of the science-related subjects.
The indicator weights of the faculty-area rankings can be found below:
| Faculty Area | Indicators | ||||
| Academic Reputation | Employer Reputation | Citations per Paper | H-Index | IRN | |
| Arts & Humanities | 60% | 20% | 7.5% | 7.5% | 5% |
| Engineering & Technology | 40% | 30% | 10% | 10% | 10% |
| Life Sciences & Medicine | 40% | 10% | 20% | 20% | 10% |
| Natural Sciences | 40% | 20% | 15% | 15% | 10% |
| Social Sciences & Management | 50% | 30% | 7.5% | 7.5% | 5% |