The University of Alberta is listed among the world’s Top 100 universities for the third year in a row in the latest QS World University Rankings.
The U of A came in 96th worldwide and fourth in Canada in the 2027 QS rankings, among more than 1,500 institutions and 30 Canadian universities included in the published results.
“Ranking among the world’s Top 100 for a third consecutive year reflects the hard work of our researchers, faculty and students,” says U of A president Bill Flanagan. “It’s a strong signal that the University of Alberta’s impact continues to grow, here at home and around the world.”
The university’s highest-ranked indicator this year was sustainability, coming in at 74th worldwide based on the 2026 QS Sustainability Rankings. The U of A’s 10-year strategic plan of impact, Shape, identifies sustainability as a core commitment, and its dedicated Sustainability Council leads learning opportunities and supports research aimed toward achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
The university also improved its global rankings in the Academic Reputation and Employer Reputation indicators, and made a slight gain in its ranking for International Faculty Ratio.
These results follow a strong showing by the U of A in the 2026 QS World University Rankings by Subject released in March. The university was ranked among the Top 10 in the world in four subjects — Petroleum Engineering, Mineral and Mining Engineering, Sports-Related Subjects, and Nursing. In all, 21 individual subjects were ranked among the global Top 100, up from 18 the previous year. The university also ranked among the world’s Top 100 and fifth in Canada in the broader subject areas of Life Sciences and Medicine, and Natural Sciences.
The QS World University Rankings have been released annually since 2004 by Quacquarelli Symonds, an international higher education consultant agency. For the 2027 ranking, QS evaluated 8,808 institutions in 106 locations with 21 million recorded academic publications.