The 10 best global universities of 2022, according to U.S. News and World Report

On Tuesday, U.S. News & World Report released its eighth annual ranking of the best global universities around the world. 

The 2022 ranking assesses 1,750 institutions from more than 90 countries across 13 different metrics, including research reputation, faculty publications and international collaboration. 

“These rankings stand out from our other education rankings due to their emphasis on academic research,” says Robert Morse, chief data strategist at U.S. News in a statement. “The Best Global Universities feature an overall ranking of more than 1,700 universities, as well as subject rankings of additional 255 universities, for a total of 2,005 schools, providing even more information for prospective students interested in schools where research is a top priority.”

As in previous years, universities from the United States dominated the ranking, claiming eight of the top ten spots — which remain largely unchanged from the previous year with the exception of the University of Washington, Seattle, and Cambridge University each rising one spot. California Institute of Technology fell two spots. 

However, the ranking also shines a light on topuniversities across the globe. The University of Cape Town was named the best institution in Africa, Tsinghua University in Beijing, China was named the best institution in Asia, The University of Melbourne was named the best institution in Australia and The Universidade de São Paulo was named the best institution in Latin America. 

Here are the top 10 best overall global universities of 2022, according to U.S. News: 

1. Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts — United States

Highlight: Top-ranked university in many categories including biology & biochemistry and economics & business.

2. Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts — United States

Highlight: MIT was ranked the best university for mathematics in the world.

3. Stanford University

Location: Stanford, California — United States

Highlight: U.S. News identified Stanford as having the best chemistry program in the world.

4. University of California, Berkeley

A general view of the University of California Berkeley campus including Sather Tower. The Haas School of Business is visible in foreground and the San Francisco Bay in the background.

David Madison/Getty Images

Location: Berkeley, California — United States

Highlight: This year, UC Berkeley was recognized for having the second-best chemistry program.

5. University of Oxford

The U.K. is home to three of the world’s top 10 universities, according to Times Higher Education, including Oxford University.

Joe Daniel Price | Getty Images

Location: Oxford, England — United Kingdom 

Highlight: Oxford was found to have the best arts & humanities program, worldwide.

6. Columbia University

Columbia University

Education Images | Getty Images

Location: New York City, New York — United States

Highlight: Columbia University was recognized by U.S. News for being among the best places to study cardiovascular systems.

7. University of Washington, Seattle

University of Washington

Nikko Hellstern | Getty Images

Location: Seattle, Washington — United States

Highlight: The University of Washington, Seattle was found to have one of the world’s best clinical medicine programs.

8. University of Cambridge

Students walk through Cambridge University in Cambridge, east of England, on March 14, 2018.

TOLGA AKMEN | AFP | Getty Images

Location: Cambridge, England — United Kingdom

Highlight: Cambridge’s faculty has included some of history’s most famous mathematicians. This year, the university earned fifth place for its mathematics program.

9. Johns Hopkins University (tie)

Johns Hopkins University

JHU Sheridan Libraries/Gado/Getty Images

Location: Baltimore, Maryland — United States

Highlight: Known for its medical research, Johns Hopkins was found to have the second-best infectious disease program, as well as the second-best surgical program, in the world.