U of A places fourth in Canada in global rankings

On October 9, the 2025 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings placed the University of Alberta in the top six per cent worldwide. The U of A also tied for fourth in Canada with McMaster University. 

The U of A has improved its national ranking, after placing fifth and sixth in previous years. “We continue to climb in the ranks in Canada, which is great news for [the] U of A,” U of A President and Vice-chancellor Bill Flanagan said. 

“We consistently rank among the very best universities in the world,” he said. “To place among the top six per cent is a great outcome for [the] U of A.” 

According to Flanagan, the rankings are an important indicator of the quality of education and research offered at the U of A. “It’s a signal of the caliber of the teaching and research happening at the U of A so I think it’s something that we can all be very proud of,” he said. 

“It’s something that continues to attract talented researchers, talented students, research funding, and all of those good things that enable the U of A to be the university that it is.” 

“We’re a university with great industry impact,” Flanagan says  

The U of A tied with 34 other institutions for first in the world in the industry pillar. This pillar includes industry outcomes as well as patents. The U of A has improved in this sector by 0.01 per cent since 2024 to achieve a perfect score of 100.

“It really highlights the research that has been conducted by our colleagues in collaboration with industry, which has a big impact here in Alberta, Canada, and around the world,” Flanagan said. 

According to Flanagan, over 75,000 companies founded by U of A graduates generate over $250 billion per year in revenue. “We’re a university with great industry impact and research impact,” he said. 

The U of A was also able to improve in all three metrics for the research environment pillar. Flanagan attributed these improvements to Forward with Purpose: A Strategic Plan for Research and Innovation. The plan was introduced in 2023 and outlines a strategy for research and innovation at the U of A.

Strengths highlighted in the plan include artificial intelligence (AI); health and well-being; energy and environment; agriculture and food; Indigenous research; and social transformations. 

“This strategic plan for research is all about continuing to invest in those areas, continuing to build our excellence, attracting great researchers and interested students, and continuing to distinguish the U of A as one of the world’s great universities in those six areas,” Flanagan said. 

The U of A will focus on research impact moving forward 

Since the 2024 rankings, the U of A has decreased overall from 109th to 116th in the world. According to Flanagan, the U of A will combat this by continuing to invest in its research output. 

“Telling our story about our research impact is also a big part of what we do at the U of A,” Flanagan said. 

Additionally, the U of A recently published an annual report of its 2023–24 research impact. “It’s a great summary of some of the incredible research happening at the U of A,” he said. 

The U of A plans to continue to highlight the “great research” going on at the university, according to Flanagan.

“I’m really grateful for all of the hard work that our faculty, staff, and students do to sustain and make the U of A one of the world’s great universities.”