Madison Reporter

The University of Wisconsin–Madison has climbed to 56th place in the 2025 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, as announced last week. This improvement is attributed to strong performance in teaching and research environment categories, along with the university's patents and increasing research expenditures.

"UW–Madison fosters a research environment that supports innovation and drives discovery," stated Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska, UW–Madison vice chancellor for research. She emphasized the institution's commitment to leveraging research advances for societal benefit, as evidenced by the high number of patented inventions each year.

The World University Rankings evaluate universities based on three main areas: research, impact, and teaching. These are assessed through five pillars supported by 18 performance indicators. According to the Times Higher Education website, "We create university rankings to assess university performance on the global stage and to provide a resource for readers to understand the different missions and successes of higher education institutions."

In these rankings, UW achieved its highest position in teaching at 43rd worldwide. This was bolstered by a 90.8 percentile ranking in institutional income, which indicates the infrastructure and facilities available to students and staff.

The university also ranked 54th in research environment, highlighted by a 94.2 percentile ranking in research income. Data from the National Science Foundation showed that UW–Madison's research expenditures exceeded $1.5 billion—a 10 percent increase—placing it 8th among surveyed public and private universities.

In terms of industry engagement, UW received a perfect score for patents. The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation was ranked 12th nationwide and 16th globally for U.S. Utility patents issued in 2023 by the National Academy of Inventors.

Times Higher Education also evaluated universities across specific subjects where UW performed notably well: ranking 17th in education, 25th in social sciences, 43rd in psychology, 44th in life sciences, and 50th in physical sciences.