DU slips 11 places to 106th in QS Asia Rankings 2027 despite improvement in overall score

New Delhi: The University of Delhi has slipped 11 places to the 106th position in the QS Asia University Rankings 2027, despite recording an improvement in its overall score, according to a comparative assessment of its performance, the university said on Wednesday. Its overall score increased from 68.5 in 2026 to 70 in 2027, while its position in the regional rankings declined from 95th to 106th.

The proportion of institutions it surpassed remained largely unchanged at 93.9 per cent, compared to 93.8 per cent last year. Of the 11 indicators assessed, nine recorded an improvement in scores, with the strongest gains in international student ratio, papers per faculty and international faculty ratio.

The score for international student ratio increased from 9.2 to 16.8, while that for international faculty ratio rose from 3.4 to 9.2. Papers per faculty recorded an improvement from 87.7 to 95, according to the assessment. The university also registered gains in citations per paper, with its score increasing from 19.5 to 24.6, while the score for staff with PhD rose from 94.7 to 99.4.

Also read QS Asia Rankings 2027: India adds 34 universities, leads in research output; IIT Delhi slips to 66th

DU records mixed ranking gains

Employer reputation improved from 86.1 to 88.6, while the faculty-student ratio score increased from 15.1 to 16.3. However, the academic reputation score marginally declined from 91.1 to 90.8, while the international research network score fell from 99.4 to 99.3. In terms of individual indicator rankings, the university improved 17 places in papers per faculty to 101st and 54 places in staff with PhD to 118th.

Its employer reputation ranking also improved by three places to 96th. However, its international research network ranking slipped seven places to 27th, while academic reputation declined four places to 61st.

The assessment also flagged citations per paper, faculty-student ratio and indicators relating to international mobility and composition as areas requiring improvement, with several of these indicators remaining in the 501-plus ranking bracket. The comparative assessment noted that research productivity and faculty qualifications were among the university's stronger areas, while citation impact and internationalisation continued to remain key challenges.