Harvard University has topped THE World Reputation Ranking for the 14th consecutive year. Running closely Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of Oxford rank on the second place, while Stanford University and University of Cambridge rank on the fourth place. 

University of Oxford has received the highest reputation rank for a UK institution in a decade. The rise is suggesting that its prestige for academic excellence is finally starting to catch up with its performance.

Inside the top 10 are Ivy Leaguers Princeton (seventh) and Yale (ninth) universities, as well as China’s Tsinghua University (eighth) and Japan’s The University of Tokyo (10th) – the latter 18 places higher than its 28th world rankings finish.

LMU Munich, KU Leuven, Sorbonne University, the University of Melbourne, University of Hong Kong and University of Manchester all join the top 50 most powerful university brands. Four new countries Chile, Malaysia, Poland and Portugal have made their World Reputation Rankings debut this year.

The following are the top ten universities as per THE Rankings.

• Harvard University                                     United States
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology      United States
• University of Oxford                                   United Kingdom
• Stanford University                                    United States
• University of Cambridge                            United Kingdom
• University of California, Berkeley              United States
• Princeton University                                  United States
• Tsinghua University                                   China
• Yale University                                          United States
• The University of Tokyo                            Japan

The 2025 edition of the ranking is based on six performance indicators for the first time, to provide a more robust assessment of reputation and reflect the fact that the subject of reputation is gaining a wider audience among the academic community.