ELTE is the leading Hungarian university in five fields of study

The organization published its 2025 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects on November 18, evaluating the performance of the world’s top universities across five broad academic fields (Natural Sciences, Engineering, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences, and Social Sciences) and within these, 57 individual subjects. A new feature this year is that Artificial Intelligence and Robotics have been added to the list of subject fields. In total, nearly 2,000 universities from almost 100 countries were included in the ranking.

Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) was ranked in 7 out of the 57 subjects (Mathematics, Physics, Metallurgical Engineering, Biology, Veterinary Science, Education, and Psychology). In Physics, Metallurgical Engineering, and Psychology, ELTE was listed as the only Hungarian institution.

The results achieved by ELTE are summarized in the table below.

It is important to emphasize that the ranking is based primarily on research and publication performance, which means that universities are classified in subject fields mainly according to their scholarly output. As a result, ELTE is listed in several fields in which it does not offer dedicated degree programs - such as Veterinary Science and Metallurgical Engineering -, however, the research of its colleagues also extends to this field.

Considering the international top field, on the Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS) list, out of the 57 narrower subject fields, American institutions performed best in 27, and Chinese universities finished in first place in 21. The most victories (in 11 subject fields) were secured by Harvard; Tsinghua University by 7, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) by 4, while Stanford and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University proved to be the best in 3–3 subject fields.

The ranking was started to be published in 2003 by Shanghai Jiao Tong University; since 2009, the survey has been prepared by an independent organization, ShanghaiRanking, on the basis of a transparent methodology and data collected from external partners. Among the examined indicators are the number of publications and highly cited researchers, and the number of scientific awards won by the institutions’ former students and current instructors. Detailed information about the methodology of the survey can be read on this page in English.

The results can be browsed on the ShanghaiRanking website by country and institution, while ELTE’s results achieved in national and international rankings are collected on this link.