QS World University Ranking by Subject 2019 Released

KU places the most disciplines in the top 100 among private universities in Korea.

According to the QS World University Ranking by Subject 2019 released on February 27 by Quacquarelli Symonds, the British rating agency of universities in the world, Korea University reaffirmed its status as a global university, placing the most disciplines in the top 100 among private universities in Korea for 3 consecutive years.

The rating agency assessed 500 universities in the world for 48 different disciplines that were grouped into 5 broad subject areas: Arts and Humanities, Social Sciences and Management, Engineering and Technology, Life Science and Medicine, and Natural Sciences.

This year, KU had 26 disciplines in the top 100, 4 more than the previous year. The university has continued its upward momentum, placing 20 disciplines in 2015, 23 in 2016, 24 in 2017, and 22 in 2018.

Unlike other universities, KU demonstrated a balanced placement in its entries, having 12 disciplines in the humanities and 14 in the sciences that placed in the top 100. It proved that the university succeeded in avoiding disproportionate developments in different subjects. It was noteworthy that the number of disciplines in the sciences area that were placed in the top 100 increased from 9 in 2018 to 14 in 2019. Taking long strides, the university had more disciplines placed than two Korean universities specialized in sciences: KAIST (11) and POSTEC (5).

▲ Year-on-year comparison of the number of disciplines placed in the top 100 

by major universities in Korea

In terms of the broad subject areas, KU outperformed other private universities in Korea for 3 years consecutively in the following 3 areas: Social Sciences and Management, Engineering and Technology, and Natural Sciences. Increases in the Citations per Faculty index were the driving force behind the university’s excellent performance in those 3 areas.

In terms of individual disciplines, it was noteworthy that the university has seen a rapid increase in its ranking for Anatomy and Physiology. While it has always ranked below the top 200 until last year, this is the first year the university had its name on the top 100 list. Outrunning other universities in Korea, the university proved itself as a matchless player in the field. Furthermore, the university also showed quite a development in the ranking for Art and Design. In 2018, it first entered the top 200, and this year, the university made it within the top 150, taking 3rd place among private universities in Korea.

The disciplines entering the top 50 were Modern Languages (41), Social Policy and Administration (44), Accounting and Finance (45), and Business and Management (50).

In the QS World University Ranking released last June, the university ranked 86th, making a remarkable achievement by entering the top 80 for the first time as a private university in Korea. Furthermore, in the QS Asia University Rankings unveiled last October, the university ranked 12th following Tokyo University. In both rankings, Korea University received the highest score among private universities in Korea for three years in a row.