Europe is the second-smallest continent, it is heavily stuffed with many of the world’s best educational institutions. In the QS World University Rankings® 2018, a total of 369 European universities is recommended among the world’s best.
The UK blusters Europe’s highest number of internationally ranked universities with 84 entries, lined up by Germany (46) and France (31). However, it’s Switzerland that joins the UK in having a university ranked among the world’s top 10.
To help you in the wide selection of top universities in Europe, we’ve compiled a list of the top universities in Europe categorized by country.
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Top universities in Austria
Austria, a landlocked country in central Europe, shares borders with eight other European nations, including Germany, to the north and Italy to the south. It has 7 top European universities currently added in the QS World University Rankings. Amongst these, the top universities in Austria are:
1. University of Vienna (154th in the world, 63rd in Europe)
2. Vienna University of Technology (joint 182nd in the world, joint 80th in Europe)
3. Universität Innsbruck (286th in the world, 126th in Europe)
4. Johannes Kepler University Linz (471-480 in the world, jointly 207th in Europe)
5. Karl-Franzens–Universität Graz (471-480 in the world, jointly 207th in Europe)
Top universities in Belgium
Belgium , the land of fine chocolate and beer, is also a home to some excellent educational establishments. It claims eight of the top universities in Europe to be internationally ranked, out of eight, two are placed within the top 300 worldwide. The top universities in Belgium are:
1. K U Leuven (joint 71st in the world, 21st in Europe)
2.Ghent University (joint 125th in the world, joint 47th in Europe)
3. Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) (153rd in the world, 62nd in Europe)
4. Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) (joint 182nd in the world, joint 80th in Europe)
5. Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) (joint 205th in the world, 93rd in Europe)
Top universities in France
France boasts a very broad selection of top European universities, and an impressive presence in the international rankings, with the major part of its top 10 universities situated in the capital city of Paris. The top universities in France are:
1. Ecolé Normale Supérieure, Paris (43rd in the world, 11th in Europe)
2. Ecolé Polytechnique (59th in the world, 16th in Europe)
3. Université Pierre et Marie Curie (UPMC) (131st in the world, 50th in Europe)
4. Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon (157th in the world, 65th in Europe)
5. CentraleSupélec (177th in the world, 77th in Europe)
Top universities in Germany
Germany is one of the world’s most popular non-Anglophone destinations for international students, which is offering free tuition to undergraduate students. The top universities in Germany are:
1. Technische Universität München (64th in the world, 17th in Europe)
2. Ludwig-Maximilians–Universität München (66th in the world, 19th in Europe)
3. Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg (68th in the world, 20th in Europe)
4. Kit, Karlsruher Institut Für Technologie (107th in the world, 38th in Europe)
5. Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin (120th in the world, 45th in Europe)
Top universities in Ireland
Ireland, a small country in western Europe, is home to eight world-ranking universities, of which half is in the capital city, Dublin. The top universities in Ireland are:
1. Trinity College Dublin (88th in the world, 29th in Europe)
2. University College Dublin (168th in the world, 73rd in Europe)
3. National University of Ireland, Galway (joint 243rd in the world, 107th in Europe)
4. University College Cork (joint 283rd in the world, jointly 124th in Europe)
5. Dublin City University (joint 391st in the world, 177th in Europe)
Top universities in Italy
Italy, located in the southern peninsula of the continent, is the sixth most populous country in Europe, it is very well known for its weather, cuisine and beautiful settings. It boasts 30 internationally ranked universities. The top universities in Italy are:
1. Politecnico di Milano (170th in the world, 74th in Europe)
2. University of Bologna (joint 188th in the world, joint 83rd in Europe)
3. Scuola Normale Superiore DI Pisa (new this year, ranked joint 192nd in the world and joint 85th in Europe)
4. Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa (new this year, ranked joint 192nd in the world and joint 85th in Europe)
5. Sapienza University of Rome (215th in the world, 95th in Europe)
Top universities in the Netherlands
This Dutch-speaking country towards the north of the continent blusters 13 globally ranked universities. The top universities in the Netherlands are:
1. Delft University of Technology (54th in the world, 13th in Europe)
2. University of Amsterdam (58th in the world, 15th in Europe)
3. Eindhoven University of Technology (104th in the world, 37th in Europe)
4. Leiden University (joint 109th in the world, joint 39th in Europe)
5. Utrecht University (joint 109th in the world, joint 39th in Europe)
Top universities in the Nordic countries
Europe’s Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) offer 27 internationally ranked universities. Finland in the Nordic region demands the highest number of rank institutions, inspite of being the most densely populated countries in Europe, while Denmark offers the highest-ranked university in the group. The top universities in the Nordic countries are:
Denmark
1. University of Copenhagen (joint 73rd in the world, joint 22nd in Europe)
2. Technical University of Denmark (joint 116th in the world, 43rd in Europe)
Finland
1. University of Helsinki (joint 102nd in the world, joint 35th in Europe)
2. Aalto University (joint 137th in the world, joint 54th in Europe)
Norway
1. University of Oslo (joint 142nd in the world, 57th in Europe)
2. University of Bergen (joint 164th in the world, joint 70th in Europe)
Sweden
1. Lund University (joint 78th in the world, joint 24th in Europe)
2. KTH Royal Institute of Technology (joint 98th in the world, joint 32nd in Europe)
Top universities in Russia
Russia, the largest country in the world, performed very well in the latest QS World University Rankings, with 24 universities and only 3 dropping down the ranking since the previous year. The top universities in Russia are:
1. Lomonosov Moscow State University (joint 95th in the world, 31st in Europe)
2. Saint-Petersburg State University (joint 240th in the world, 105th in Europe)
3. Novosibirsk State University (joint 250th in the world, 108th in Europe)
4. Bauman Moscow State Technical University (291st in the world, 129th in Europe)
5. Tomsk State University (joint 323rd in the world, 145th in Europe)
Top universities in Spain
Renowned for its buzzing cities and attractive Mediterranean coast, Spain is popular among tourists and students alike, and claims 23 amongst the top European universities with respect to the QS World University Rankings. The top universities in Spain are:
1. University of Barcelona (156th in the world, 64th in Europe)
2. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (187th in the world, 82nd in Europe)
3. Universitat Autonóma de Barcelona (joint 195th in the world, joint 88th in Europe)
4. University Complutense, Madrid (UCM) (233rd in the world, 100th in Europe)
5. University of Navarra (joint 270th in the world, jointly 115th in Europe)
Top universities in Switzerland
Switzerland, a home to a large portion of the Alps mountain range, is the only country other than US or UK to claim a university in the world’s top 10. All but one of its 9 internationally ranked universities are in the global top 400. The top universities in Switzerland are:
1. ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology) (10th in the world, fifth in Europe)
2. Ecolé Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) (12th in the world, sixth in Europe)
3. University of Zurich (UZH) (joint 73rd in the world, joint 22nd in Europe)
4. University of Geneva (joint 98th in the world, joint 32nd in Europe)
5. University of Lausanne (146th in the world, 59th in Europe)
Top universities in the UK
The UK is the most popular destination to study in Europe, and second only to the US in the number of total universities included in the ranking. It present blusters 4 of the world’s top 10 universities, and 8 of the 10 top universities in Europe. The top universities in the UK are:
1. University of Cambridge (fifth in the world, first in Europe)
2. University of Oxford (sixth in the world, second in Europe)
3. UCL (University College London) (seventh in the world, third in Europe)
4. Imperial College London (eighth in the world, fourth in Europe)
5. King’s College London (joint 23rd in the world, joint seventh in Europe)
6. University of Edinburgh (joint 23rd in the world, joint seventh in Europe)
Top universities in Greece
1. National Technical University of Athens (401-410 in the world, jointly 180th in Europe)
2. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (501-550 in the world, jointly 217th in Europe)
Best of the rest…
The list above talks about the best-known places to study in Europe as an international student. Many other European countries are home to one or more institutions added in the QS World University Rankings. Here’s a quick round-up of the rest:
Belarus
1. Belarus State University (joint 334th in the world, 149th in Europe)
2. Belarusian National Technical University (751-800 in the world, joint 305th in Europe)
Bulgaria
1. Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski (701-750 in the world, jointly 286th in Europe)
Croatia
1. University of Zagreb (651-700 in the world, joint 263rd in Europe)
Czech Republic
1. Charles University (joint 314th in the world, joint 142nd in Europe)
2. Czech Technical University in Prague (491-500 in the world, jointly 214th in Europe)
Estonia
1. University of Tartu (joint 314th in the world, joint 142nd in Europe)
2. Tallinn University of Technology (601-650 in the world, jointly 255th in Europe)
Hungary
1. University of Szeged (501-550 in the world, jointly 217th in Europe)
2. Eötvös Loránd University (651-700 in the world, jointly 272nd in Europe)
Latvia
1. Riga Technical University (new this year, ranked 651-700 in the world and joint 272nd in Europe)
2. University of Latvia (701-750 in the world, jointly 286th in Europe)
Lithuania
1. Vilnius University (401-410 in the world, jointly 180th in Europe)
2. Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (551-600 in the world, jointly 237th in Europe)
Poland
1. University of Warsaw (411-420 in the world, jointly 187th in Europe)
2. Jagiellonian University (461-470 in the world, jointly 201st in Europe)
Portugal
1. University of Lisbon (joint 338th in the world, 134th in Europe)
2. University of Porto (joint 353rd in the world, jointly 146th in Europe)
Romania
1. University of Bucharest (801-1000 in the world, joint 386th in Europe)
2. Alexandru loan Cuza University (801-1000 in the world, joint 385th in Europe)
Serbia
1. University of Belgrade (801-1000 in the world, joint 352nd in Europe)
Slovakia
1. Comenius University in Bratislava (751-800 in the world, joint 330th in Europe)
2. Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava (751-800 in the world, joint 331st in Europe)
Slovenia
1. University of Ljubljana (591-600 in the world, joint 258th in Europe)
2. University of Maribor (751-800 in the world, joint 322nd in Europe)
Ukraine
1. V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University (491th in the world, joint 218th in Europe)
2. Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv (541-550 in the world, joint 246th in Europe)
Read the complete table of the Universities as per the ranking for year 2019 and 2020.
Sl.No | WORLD RANKING | TOP UNIVERSITIES IN EUROPE | Country |
1 | 4 | University of Oxford | United Kingdom |
2 | 6 | ETH Zurich – Swiss Federal Institute of Technology | Switzerland |
3 | 7 | University of Cambridge | United Kingdom |
4 | 8 | UCL | United Kingdom |
5 | 9 | Imperial College London | United Kingdom |
6 | 18 | EPFL – Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne | Switzerland |
7 | 20 | The University of Edinburgh | United Kingdom |
8 | 27 | The University of Manchester | United Kingdom |
9 | 33 | King’s College London | United Kingdom |
10 | 44 | The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) | United Kingdom |
11 | 49 | University of Bristol | United Kingdom |
12 | 50 | Delft University of Technology | Netherlands |
13 | 53 | Université PSL | France |
14 | 55 | Technical University of Munich | Germany |
15 | 60 | Ecole Polytechnique | France |
16 | 62 | The University of Warwick | United Kingdom |
17 | 63 | Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München | Germany |
18 | 64 | University of Amsterdam | Netherlands |
19 | 66 | Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg | Germany |
20 | 67 | University of Glasgow | United Kingdom |
21 | 76 | University of Zurich | Switzerland |
22 | 77 | Sorbonne University | France |
23 | 78 | Durham University | United Kingdom |
24 | 78 | The University of Sheffield | United Kingdom |
25 | 80 | KU Leuven | Belgium |
26 | 81 | University of Copenhagen | Denmark |
27 | 81 | University of Birmingham | United Kingdom |
28 | 83 | The University of Auckland | New Zealand |
29 | 84 | Lomonosov Moscow State University | Russia |
30 | 92 | Lund University | Sweden |
31 | 93 | University of Leeds | United Kingdom |
32 | 96 | University of Nottingham | United Kingdom |
33 | 97 | University of Southampton | United Kingdom |
34 | 98 | KTH Royal Institute of Technology | Sweden |
35 | 100 | University of St Andrews | United Kingdom |