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- The top 10 universities in Asia for students looking to land a job, learn from faculty with PhDs, and enroll in small classes
The top 10 universities in Asia for students looking to land a job, learn from faculty with PhDs, and enroll in small classes
- Peking University has overtaken the National University of Singapore as the top university in Asia.
- QS ranked 757 Asian universities this year — its largest ranking for the region so far.
There's a new top university in Asia.
Peking University has dethroned the National University of Singapore – which took pole position the past four years — as the top university in Asia.
That's according to Quacquarelli Symonds, or QS, a British company that analyzes higher-education institutions and releases an annual ranking of the best universities in the world. This year, QS ranked 757 institutions in Asia that have both undergraduate and graduate programs, up from 687 last year. It released its ranking on November 8.
To assemble its ranking, QS examined 11 metrics, including academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty to student ratio, faculty with PhDs, and international students.
Keep reading for a look at the 10 best universities in Asia, arranged in descending order by their total index score.
All prices are in USD, with conversion rates accurate as of November 17. To find out how the remaining universities are ranked, read the full ranking on QS' website.
10. Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
Founded in 1896, Shanghai Jiao Tong University is a public research university funded by China's education ministry.
Students choose from 71 undergraduate programs covering nine major disciplines: economics, law, literature, science, engineering, agriculture, medicine, management, and arts.
The university has produced several prominent alumni, namely former Chinese president Jiang Zemin, the "father" of China's space program Qian Xuesen, and the winner of the Kettering Prize for cancer research, Wang Zhenyi.
Click here to find out more about Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 38,056
Number of faculty staff: 4,492
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $3,500 to $11,300
Annual Master's tuition fee: $4,082 to $23,200
Overall score: 92.2
Previous QS ranking: 10
9. Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Malaysia's oldest university, the University of Malaya was created to tackle a dearth of medical assistants in Singapore and Penang at the end of the 1800s.
The university was divided into two in the 1960s, one in Kuala Lumpur and the other in Singapore. The university in Kuala Lumpur retained its name as the University of Malaya, while the one in Singapore renamed itself as the National University of Singapore.
The university has produced several notable alumni, including two prime ministers of Malaysia.
Click here to find out more about Universiti Malaya.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 19,157
Number of faculty staff: 2,403
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $1,700 to $19,900
Annual Master's tuition fee: $1,675 to $15,000
Overall score: 92.6
Previous QS ranking: 8
8. KAIST — Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon, South Korea
Founded in 1971, Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, or KAIST, is South Korea's first research-oriented science and engineering university. The university is known for its science, engineering, and technology courses.
KAIST houses seven independent research centers: BioCentury, Information Technology Convergence, Design of Complex Systems, Entertainment Engineering, NanoCentury, Eco-Energy, and Urban Space and Systems.
Click here to find out more about KAIST.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 9,974
Number of faculty staff: 1,289
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $7,000
Annual Master's tuition fee: $27,000
Overall score: 93.4
Previous QS ranking: 14
7. Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
Zhejiang University was founded in 1897 as Qiushi Academy. In 2017, the university was selected for the national "Double First-class Initiative," a government project focused on creating world class universities and improving competitiveness at the international stage through sponsors.
The university engages in research involving areas spanning from artificial intelligence to global public health initiatives and agriculture.
Click here to find out more about Zhejiang University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 48,150
Number of faculty staff: 5,084
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $4,338 to $30,706
Annual Master's tuition fee: $4,338 to $11,522
Overall score: 96.3
Previous QS ranking: 6
7. Fudan University, Shanghai, China
Established in 1905 as Fudan Public School, the school was the first tertiary institution to be founded by a Chinese person. In 2000, the school was renamed Fudan University after merging with Shanghai Medical University. "Fudan" comprises two Chinese characters: "fù," meaning "return," and "dàn," meaning "dawn."
The university is known for research in biomedical sciences, physical sciences, and engineering. Students spend the first two years in general education before choosing their study of interest in the next two to three years.
Click here to find out more about Fudan University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 30,385
Number of faculty staff: 4,771
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $3,348 to $23,629
Annual Master's tuition fee: $3,480 to $12,254
Overall score: 96.3
Previous QS ranking: 7
5. Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
One of the largest public universities in Singapore, the university was established in 1991 and has gone on to develop itself as a research-intensive institution.
Its campus is frequently listed among the world's top 15 most beautiful university campuses, housing 57 Green Mark certified buildings.
Click here to find out more about Nanyang Technological University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 25,895
Number of faculty staff: 3,735
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $6,020 to $6,900 (with the exception of renaissance engineering and medicine)
Annual Master's tuition fee: $3,480 to $16,800
Overall score: 96.7
Previous QS ranking: 4
4. The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
The University of Hong Kong is Hong Kong's oldest tertiary institution.
The research-driven university has 10 academic faculties with English as the primary medium of teaching. Many of its scholars rank among the top 1% in their field, according to ISI's Essential Science Indicators.
In 2003, the university led a team of researchers and students to isolate the virus responsible for the SARS outbreak. The team also developed an antibody test to detect the virus in infected patients.
Click here to find out more about The University of Hong Kong.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 36,893
Number of faculty staff: 2,957
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $5,380 to $19,870
Annual Master's tuition fee: $46,000 to $59,000
Overall score: 96.8
Previous QS ranking: 3
3. Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
Tsinghua University in Beijing — often referred to as the "MIT of China" because of its engineering and computer science programs – has ranked as one of the best globally for both disciplines since 2015.
The university started out in 1911 as a preparatory school for Chinese students to study in the US. More than 4,000 international students from over 130 countries enrolled in the university in 2019.
Notable alumni include President Xi Jinping, who graduated from the university in 1979 with a chemical engineering degree.
Click here to find out more about Tsinghua University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 36,893
Number of faculty staff: 6,136
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $4,368
Annual Master's tuition fee: $3,953 to $10,516
Overall score: 97.3
Previous QS ranking: 5
2. National University of Singapore, Singapore
Singapore's flagship university, the National University of Singapore, or NUS, houses 14 faculties and schools across three campuses and is known for its research in engineering, life sciences, and social sciences.
More than 20% of its students are international, hailing from over 100 countries.
Click here to find out more about National University of Singapore.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 30,725
Number of faculty staff: 4,268
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $6,000 to $7,000 (with the exception of law, medicine and dentistry)
Annual Master's tuition fee: $3,500 to $74,000
Overall score: 97.4
Previous QS ranking: 1
1. Peking University, Beijing, China
The oldest tertiary education institution in China, Peking University started out as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898. Today, it focuses on fundamental education and research in humanities and science. The university has produced some of the most distinguished figures in Chinese history, such as Mao Zedong.
Peking University houses six faculties: humanities, social sciences, economics and management, science, information technology, and engineering.
Click here to find out more about Peking University.
Number of undergraduate and postgraduate students: 31,873
Number of faculty staff: 5,361
Annual Bachelor's tuition fee: $3,998
Annual Master's tuition fee: $3,864 to $12,526
Overall score: 100
Previous QS ranking: 2
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