THE UNIVERSITY broke into the top 2,000 of the global rankings but slipped to sixth among Philippine schools in the January 2026 Webometrics Ranking of World Universities.
In the latest rankings, which measure schools’ online presence and research productivity, UST rose to 1,570th worldwide, 836 spots higher than its previous ranking of 2,406th.
UST previously placed fifth in the Philippine rankings.
University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman maintained its position as the top-ranked school in the country, rising to 693rd from 938th in the previous iteration of the rankings.
De La Salle University retained the No. 2 spot in the country with an improvement to its global rank (1,122nd from 1,514th).
UP Manila was declared the third-highest ranking institution in the country with its 1,261st global placement, followed by the Ateneo de Manila University and the UP system, which ranked 1,395th and 1,441st, respectively.
Webometrics ranks the UP System, or the network of the campuses of the state-funded university, as a separate entity from other autonomous constituent universities such as UP Diliman and UP Manila.
Asst. Prof. Nestor Ong, director of the Office of QS/THE Rankings, said that while the University does not submit its data to Webometrics for official ranking, the placement still shows UST’s global recognition.
“The Big 4 Philippine universities have been ranked in Webometrics 2026. Most importantly, UST appears in every ranking table,” Ong stated.
Harvard University, Stanford University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology remained the top three universities in the world.
Webometrics said its ranking reflects a university’s web presence, research output, scholarly impact, openness, and global visibility.
“Our mission is to support the advancement of higher education by highlighting institutions that are not only academically excellent but also engaged with society and accessible through the web,” it said on its website.
Webometrics assessed over 32,000 higher educational institutions from over 200 countries in the latest edition.
It measures schools’ research performance and online impact using three indicators: visibility (50%), transparency (10%), and excellence (40%).
