American universities continue to dominate top spots in QS World University Rankings 2020

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) continues to reign supreme, claiming top spot in the latest QS World University Rankings 2020, launched yesterday (June 19). This makes it the eighth consecutive year that this private American institution has achieved this feat. QS notes that this years’ ranking “sees relatively little movement at the very top”; the top three positions remain unchanged from last year, with Stanford and Harvard taking second and third place respectively.Five American institutions make up half the top 10, while four UK institutions and one Swiss university round off the list. QS notes: “However, outside of this good performance there are worrying signs for both the US and the UK. The majority of universities from both the US and UK have fallen in rank this year. In most cases, this is because of a weaker score for international student ratio, one of the indicators used to compile the ranking. “Whether the impact of Donald Trump and Brexit is beginning to be felt or other factors are at play is unclear. However, it may not be long before other universities begin to overtake the traditional heavyweights from the UK and US.”