Six Philippine universities have made their mark in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings by Subject 2026, highlighting the country’s growing presence in global higher education.

The latest rankings, released on January 21, evaluate universities across 11 subject areas using rigorous performance indicators, including teaching, research quality, industry income, and international outlook.

The six Philippine universities featured are the University of the Philippines (UP), Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle University (DLSU), Mapua University, University of Santo Tomas (UST), and Mindanao State University–Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU-IIT).

In Arts and Humanities, UP, Ateneo, and DLSU entered the 601–800 band. UP also ranked in the 801–1000 bracket for Business and Economics, while DLSU appeared in the 1001+ category.

In Computer Science, Mapua secured a spot in the 801–1000 band, while UP and DLSU were placed in the 1001+ range.

UP and DLSU performed strongly in Education Studies, ranking 401–500, while UST ranked 501–600.

Other notable subject placements include Life Sciences - UP and UST (801–1000); Medical and Health - UP (501–600), UST (601–800); Physical Sciences - Mapua (1001–1250), MSU-IIT (1001–1250), Ateneo (1251+), DLSU (1251+), UP (1251+); Psychology - DLSU (401–500), Ateneo and UP (501–600); and Social Sciences - Ateneo, DLSU, Mapua, UP (801–1000), UST (1001+).

No Philippine university ranked in Law this year.

Globally, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) topped Arts and Humanities, Business and Economics, and Social Sciences, while Oxford, Cambridge, Stanford, Harvard, and Caltech led in other subject areas.

UP ranked in 10 of the 11 assessed subject areas, with its strongest performance in Education Studies (401–500) and Medical and Health (501–600).

It maintained most of its previous standings and strengthened its global presence, particularly in research quality.

De La Salle University emerged as a top Philippine institution across five fields: Arts and Humanities (601–800), Education Studies (401–500), Engineering (1251+), Psychology (401–500), and Social Sciences (801–1000).

DLSU also leads private universities in Business and Economics (1001+), with additional placements in Computer Science (1001+) and Physical Sciences (1251+).

Ateneo was featured in four subject areas: Psychology (501–600), Social Sciences (801–1000), Physical Sciences (1251+), and Arts and Humanities (601–800).

The university said this consistent performance in global rankings reflects its commitment to academic excellence and research impact.

THE’s subject rankings evaluate universities discipline by discipline, using five pillars: teaching, research environment, research quality, industry income, and international outlook.

These rankings provide students, academics, and policymakers with a clearer picture of a university’s strengths in specific fields, guiding academic and career decisions.