QS World University Rankings 2027: University of Pavia Ranked 10th in Italy and Climbs the Global Ranking

Ranked 10th in Italy and among the world's top 400 universities, the University of Pavia continues its upward trajectory in the QS World University Rankings 2027, one of the world's most widely recognised and influential higher education ranking systems. Published on 18 June by global higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), the latest edition further strengthens the University's national and international reputation.

This year's analysis evaluated 8,808 institutions across 106 countries, including public and private, specialised and comprehensive universities, representing a 4% increase compared to last year. These institutions were selected from more than 30,000 recognised universities worldwide, with 1,504 universities ultimately included in the final ranking, including 47 Italian institutions.

The University of Pavia is now ranked 10th nationally and 7th among Italy's public comprehensive universities, placing 395th globally. The result confirms a steady upward trend that has seen the University climb approximately 250 positions since 2021, including around 30 places in the last year alone.

Notably, all of Italy's top ten universities improved their positions this year—an achievement that no other major European higher education system can claim.

The QS World University Rankings assess universities using five broad performance areas: research quality (measured through academic reputation and citations), employability (reflecting employer reputation and graduate outcomes), learning experience (based on the faculty-to-student ratio), global engagement (including international students, faculty members, researchers and international research collaborations), and sustainability.

The University of Pavia continues to stand out particularly for the impact of its research. It ranks 4th in Italy for Citations per Faculty, confirming its position among the country's leading research-intensive universities. Nationally, it also ranks 7th for Sustainability and 8th for International Student Ratio. Furthermore, the University's performance in research citations is three times higher than the global average, while it also exceeds the global average in indicators measuring the strength of its international research network and graduate employability.

Commenting on the results, Rector Alessandro Reali said: «The University of Pavia's entry into the world's top 400 universities and the national top ten is a highly significant achievement, also in terms of reputation. It confirms the strength of the growth path our University has been pursuing with consistency and determination. Particularly noteworthy is our performance in research impact, where Pavia continues to rank among the leading universities in the Italian higher education system.

For us, however, this is not a destination but a new starting point—and a clear responsibility. Beyond rankings, and despite the legitimate questions they may raise, we remain committed to investing in the quality of education, frontier research, sustainability and international collaboration, while continuing to value our identity as a historic public university deeply rooted in its local community.

The University of Pavia demonstrates that tradition and innovation can grow together. This is the path we will continue to follow to further strengthen our role within the national and international academic landscape and to offer future generations increasingly valuable opportunities for study, research and professional development.»