UIC has once again placed among the world’s top 1,000 universities in the 2027 edition of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE WUR), one of the leading international university rankings.

The University features in the 801–1,000 band globally, an improvement on the previous edition, in which it was ranked in the 1,001–1,200 band. In Spain, UIC placed in the 12–25 band out of the 54 Spanish universities included in the ranking.

This improvement comes in an edition that also saw an increase in the number of institutions assessed worldwide: 2,297 universities were included in the 2027 ranking, compared with 2,191 in the previous edition.

One of the most notable results in this edition is the University’s performance in Research Quality, in which UIC earned a score of 61.9 points, up from 50.2 in 2026.

Equally notable was the progress made in Research Environment, with the University’s score rising from 11.2 to 19.2, reflecting improvements in indicators related to research activity and capacity.

The Industry indicator, which relates to knowledge transfer and engagement with the business community, also improved, climbing from 21.3 to 25.7 points.

International Outlook remains one of UIC’s strongest-performing areas. In this edition, UIC Barcelona placed third nationally among the 54 Spanish universities included in the ranking, with a score of 75 points, up from 69.9 in 2026. This is UIC’s best result since it first joined THE WUR.

This indicator takes into account factors such as the presence of international students and teaching staff, as well as international research collaboration.

UIC has featured in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (THE WUR) every year since 2021. With its 2027 result, the University returns to the 801–1,000 band, matching the position it held between 2022 and 2025.

Over this period, the scope of the ranking has expanded significantly, increasing from 1,526 universities in 2021 to 2,297 in 2027, a sign of the growth in international participation.

This result reflects the work and commitment of the entire university community, whose daily efforts help strengthen the University’s performance in teaching, research, internationalisation and knowledge transfer.

The Times Higher Education World University Rankings assess university performance across five main categories: Teaching, Research Environment, Research Quality, International Outlook and Industry, which evaluate teaching, the research environment, research impact, international outlook and knowledge transfer, respectively.