UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State ranked in 49 out of 55 subjects in the 2024 World University Rankings by Subject, released April 10 by London-based QS, one of the major three international organizations that annually rank academic institutions.
For 2024, QS ranked 1,559 institutions across 55 subjects in five broad disciplines. Penn State does not offer programs in all of the 55 subjects that QS reviewed.
Penn State had a strong showing worldwide, ranking in the top 25 in seven subject areas and in the top 50 in 17 areas. The subject areas in which Penn State ranked in the top 25 worldwide are:
- Mineral and mining engineering (13)
- Sports-related subjects (15)
- Earth and marine sciences (17)
- Geophysics (21)
- Hospitality and leisure management (22)
- Geology (23)
- Archaeology (25)
Penn State also showcased its interdisciplinarity, ranking in the top 75 in the world in the broad subject areas of natural sciences, social sciences and management, and engineering and technology.
“Penn State offers interdisciplinary excellence across a broad range of subject areas,” said Sabine Klahr, interim vice provost for Penn State Global. “This is due to the quality and engagement of faculty across all colleges, campuses and institutes, and is one of the many reasons for Penn State’s well-deserved reputation as a top-tier university worldwide.”
The QS subject rankings are based on academic and employer reputation surveys; research output, sourced from information analytics company Elsevier; and international research network, which examines a university’s sustained international research collaboration.
Penn State receives 5 star-rating from QS Stars
In addition, for the first time Penn State participated in the QS Stars rating process, receiving 5 stars. Developed by QS to provide universities with an additional avenue to publicly highlight their strengths, the highest rating is awarded to those universities that, according to QS, “display exceptional performance and quality standards.” The goal of the QS Stars process is to offer potential students an innovative way to help narrow down their choice of schools via the QS system. Each institution receives an overall rating of 0 to 5+ Stars, as well as 0 to 5 Stars in at least eight of 13 key categories, including cost, housing, study abroad, research and job placement, among other variables. The data is then able to be compared by students based on what they choose as their own priorities.
The release of the QS World University Rankings by Subject follows the June 2023 release of the 2023 QS Overall World University Rankings, in which Penn State ranked No. 83 in the world, placing the University in the top 6% worldwide among the 1,500 institutions ranked by QS.
Of the three major international rankings organizations, QS is the most widely read by prospective students and parents. The two other organizations are the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU, also known as the Shanghai ranking) and Times Higher Education.
For more information, contact Richard Spicer, assistant director for Global Outreach, at rks5111@psu.edu.