Harvard University named world’s best for engineering

By Phong Ngo February 24, 2026 | 03:58 pm PT

Harvard University has been named the world’s leading institution for engineering, securing first place among 1,555 universities in the 2026 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings by subject.

A graduation ceremony at Harvard University, U.S. Photo courtesy of Harvard

Harvard has held the top position since 2021, with particularly strong scores for its research environment, according to Times Higher Education (THE).

The U.S. dominated the top 10 with six universities, while the U.K. was represented by University of Oxford in second place and University of Cambridge in fifth position.

From Asia, China’s Peking University climbed to eighth from 11th last year, while the National University of Singapore slipped one place to 10th.

THE evaluated 1,555 universities from 98 countries and territories using 18 performance indicators for the engineering rankings.

It assessed universities across five disciplines: general engineering, electrical and electronic engineering, mechanical and aerospace engineering, civil engineering, and chemical engineering.

In positions 11 to 20, U.S. institutions occupied four places, while three European universities from Switzerland and Germany and two Asian universities, from China and Singapore, also featured in the list.