Globally, the University of Oxford continues to hold the top position for a record nine consecutive years.
Only 1 Pakistani University Ranks Among Top 500 of World University Rankings 2025 .This year Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2025 ranked over 2,000 institutions from 115 countries and territories, marking a 9.7% year-on-year increase in the number of ranked universities—the largest growth in the past five years—compared to a 6% rise last year.
Pakistan has 47 ranked universities, making it the 14th most-represented nation globally, alongside Taiwan. The country’s top-ranked institution, Quaid-i-Azam University, remains in the 401-500 band, maintaining its position from last year.
Eight Pakistani universities are in the 601-800 band, one more than last year. The University of Malakand has moved up to this band from the 801-1,000 range, swapping places with Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, which has fallen. Sukkur IBA University, a newly-ranked institution, also entered the 601-800 band this year. However, only seven Pakistani universities improved their rankings, while 10 declined.
| University | Rank 2025 | Rank 2024 |
| Quaid-i-Azam University | 401–500 | 401–500 |
| Air University | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| Capital University of Science and Technology | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| COMSATS University Islamabad | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| Government College University Faisalabad | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| National University of Sciences and Technology | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| Sukkur IBA University | 601–800 | NR |
| University of Engineering and Technology, Taxila | 601–800 | 601–800 |
| University of Malakand | 601–800 | 801–1000 |
Globally, the University of Oxford continues to hold the top position for a record nine consecutive years. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranks second, followed by Harvard University in third place.
| University | Country | Rank 2025 | Rank 2024 |
| University of Oxford | United Kingdom | 1 | 1 |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | United States | 2 | 3 |
| Harvard University | United States | 3 | 4 |
| Princeton University | United States | 4 | 6 |
| University of Cambridge | United Kingdom | 5 | 5 |
| Stanford University | United States | 6 | 2 |
| California Institute of Technology | United States | 7 | 7 |
| University of California, Berkeley | United States | 8 | 9 |
| Imperial College London | United Kingdom | 9 | 8 |
| Yale University | United States | 10 | 10 |
In Asia, 853 universities from 35 countries are ranked this year, with Pakistan’s 47 institutions placing it as the 6th most-represented nation on the continent.
The 2025 THE World University Rankings are the most comprehensive, rigorous, and balanced global rankings, assessing research-intensive universities across 18 performance indicators, divided into five key pillars covering teaching, research, knowledge transfer, and internationalization.
