Three Samara Universities Make Global Higher Education Ranking
Representatives of the ranking agency Times Higher Education (THE) have published the world university rankings. Three educational institutions from the Samara region were included.
Experts publish the list of educational institutions annually. They take into account more than 10 key aspects of university activities, such as teaching quality, scientific research, and international cooperation.
The 2026 ranking includes 2,191 universities. Of these, 80 are Russian.
The undisputed leaders of the world ranking are England«s Oxford and the American MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). Here are the others in the top 10:
Princeton (USA) and Cambridge share 3rd and 4th place;
American Harvard and Stanford are placed 5th and 6th, also sharing positions;
California Institute of Technology (USA) became seventh;
Imperial College London made it to eighth place in the ranking;
University of California, Berkeley took the ninth position;
Closing the top 10 is an organization deemed undesirable in the Russian Federation, referring to a university in the USA, New Haven (Connecticut).
Experts also identified the world«s underperforming universities. The lowest position in the ranking is held by Pakistan»s Ziauddin University. Slightly higher are two Ukrainian educational institutions: Zhytomyr Polytechnic and Zhytomyr State University named after Ivan Franko.
The Samara universities, however, fell into the «1501+» category. First is Samara University. Following it is Samara State Medical University (SamSMU). And closing the top three is Samara Polytechnic.
Representatives of the universities commented on their inclusion in the ranking.
«The university not only maintained its membership in the prestigious group of 1000+ best universities in the world in the »Medicine and Health« category but also showed improvement in overall results. SamSMU»s composite score increased from the range of 11.8–20.6 last year to 11.2–22.8 this year. Progress is especially noticeable in the criteria «Research quality» and «International Outlook,» where the university«s score increased by several points. This reflects the growing integration of the university into the global scientific and educational space,» stated representatives of SamSMU.
According to the university, confirming its status as one of the leaders in medical education in Russia was achieved through sustainable development in key indicators. This primarily refers to the quality of research, educational environment, and interaction with industry.
As it turns out, Polytechnic has been included in the THE ranking not for the first time. And almost always, as university representatives claim, they hold high positions in the disciplines «Physical Sciences» and «Engineering.»
«In the first direction, Polytechnic maintained its position, entering the list of 52 strongest Russian universities. In the international ranking, our university found itself in the 1251+ category. In the discipline »Engineering,« the university also confirmed a good long-term indicator, finding itself among the 56 best educational institutions in Russia and in the international category 1251+,» explained at Polytechnic.
In the global THE ranking, this university is in the 1501+ category. In the national segment, the university is placed in the group 23-80.
Such rankings of educational institutions appear regularly. Moreover, they concern not only higher educational institutions but also schools.
