This week, two university rankings are published, each assessing how universities worldwide fulfil their mission.
In the QS World University Rankings, which includes 1500 universities, DTU moves up two places and is now ranked 107.
In the U.S. News Best Global Universities Rankings, which includes 2,250 universities, DTU moves up six places and is now ranked 178.
"It is gratifying that DTU maintains its strong position in two recognised university rankings - and even moves up slightly. It testifies to our stable and targeted efforts to strengthen our international profile and research impact," says Provost Christine Nellemann.
The two rankings use different criteria to determine how they rank individual universities.
The QS World University Rankings emphasises academic reputation, employer ratings and the ratio of faculty to students. The Best Global Universities Rankings from U.S. News, on the other hand, focus more on research achievements such as publications, citations and international collaboration.
Focus on reputation
The rise to number 107 in the QS World University Rankings 2026, where DTU is ranked number 42 in Europe and number two in Denmark, is due to significant improvements in several key indicators, including the number of international researchers, where DTU receives top marks and achieves a global ranking of number 52.
There has also been progress in the proportion of international students, academic reputation, and how graduates fare after graduation. Despite a slight decrease in the ratio of lecturers to students and citations per researcher, DTU remains among the top 100 universities in the world in these areas.
Focus on research
In the Best Global Universities Rankings, DTU moved up two places among European universities and is now number 64 in Europe while maintaining its position as number 3 in Denmark. This improvement in the global and European rankings reflects stable and broad performance across research indicators, with DTU excelling in areas such as marine and freshwater biology, biotechnology/applied microbiology, sustainable technology, and energy.
"DTU continues to rank among the leading technical universities in Europe, and we see excellent results in areas such as sustainability, energy and biotechnology, where we contribute knowledge and solutions to some of the biggest global challenges," says Christine Nellemann.
