January 24, 2026

The strong performance of Turkish universities continues in the “2026 World University Rankings by Subject” announced by Times Higher Education (THE).

This increase is regarded as a concrete result of quality-oriented transformation policies in higher education and efforts to strengthen research capacity.

The most successful field for Turkish universities in THE rankings was “Education Studies.” The number of universities represented in this field increased from 35 last year to 44. In this field, Middle East Technical University (METU) ranked 93rd globally in the top 100. It was followed by Boğaziçi University in the 201–250 band, Hacettepe University in the 251–300 band, and Ankara University, Gazi University, İnönü University, and Yıldız Technical University in the 401–500 band.

Türkiye ranked 3rd among European countries in terms of the total number of universities in the “Top 1000” in the field of education, surpassing countries such as Germany, France, and Italy with a total of 44 universities.

Globally, Türkiye ranked 4th in terms of the number of universities in the “Top 1000” in the field of education.

THE 2026 subject rankings demonstrated that Turkish universities have achieved global competitiveness in certain disciplines and have shown a steady rise in international visibility and academic impact in many fields, serving as a concrete indicator of the transition from quantity to quality in higher education.

Strong Presence in Education and Engineering Continues

With six Turkish universities entering the engineering rankings, the number increased from 26 last year to 32.

Compared to last year, the number of universities in the “Top 1000” increased from 25 to 26 in “Medicine and Health,” from 24 to 25 in “Social Sciences,” from 19 to 22 in “Physical Sciences,” from 17 to 18 in “Computer Science,” from 11 to 16 in “Arts and Humanities,” and from 5 to 7 in “Psychology.” Türkiye was represented by 20 universities in “Business and Economics.”

Turkish universities maintained a particularly strong presence in education studies and engineering.

 “Türkiye Has Entered a New Stage in Academic Competition”

An analysis of the global regional distribution indicates a rising presence of Asian universities, particularly those in China, in the rankings.

Despite the increase in the number of Asian universities, the continued rise of Turkish universities in the rankings was highlighted as evidence of their competitive structure.

It was stated that the THE 2026 rankings revealed three main facts:

• Turkish universities are represented in global rankings in all 11 fields, achieving broad academic coverage.
• The number of universities in the top 1000 has increased in many fields.
• High-band achievements, especially in “Education Studies”, have become permanent.

The THE 2026 data indicate that Türkiye now has a higher education structure that is not only growing but also strengthening and deepening on a subject basis.

The high-level success achieved in Education Studies is considered the result of focused and long-term strategies.

 “We Are Very Pleased with the Success of Our Universities”

President of the Council of Higher Education, Erol Özvar, said: “The rise of our universities in international rankings is gratifying.”

Noting that the progress made by Turkish universities in recent years has begun to be reflected in global rankings, Özvar said: “It is pleasing to see our universities rising in the rankings. We want Turkish universities to be among the world’s top 100. As long as our universities remain focused on these goals, we fully believe that they will enhance their quality and achieve success.”

Drawing attention to the high performance of Turkish universities especially in education studies and engineering, Özvar stated:

“The long-standing experience and human capital of our higher education institutions are undoubtedly the most important reasons for this success. We are very pleased with the success of our universities in all fields, especially Education Studies. As the rankings show, our universities are not only part of global developments but are also leading global trends. While we are satisfied with the results, we are aware that the potential of our universities is even greater.

We will continue our efforts with the vision of making Turkish higher education globally competitive, inclusive, and high-quality.”