President of the Center for World University Rankings, Nadim Mahassen, says that the main factor for decline is research performance amid the intensified global competition of well -financed institutions
The recent edition of the center ranking for world university rankings (CWUR) revealed on Monday (2) that 87% of presented a drop in their positions. The analysis, which covered 74 million data, stressed that 46 of the country’s 53 institutions listed among the 2,000 best in the world faced a decline, mainly due to the performance in research and the lack of government investment.
Among the universities that stood out, the University of São Paulo (USP) maintained its position as the best in Latin America, although it fell from 117th to 118th place. Other institutions, such as they rose significantly from 401º to 331st place. The State University of Campinas also had a slight improvement, rising a position, while the University of Brasilia advanced from 836th to 833rd place.
CWUR President Nadim Mahassen emphasized that the decrease in universities’ performance is linked to the weakening of the survey and the scarcity of government financial support. He warned that without an increase in funding, Brazil can further distance itself from the best academic institutions in the world, compromising its global competitiveness.
In the international scenario, Harvard University leads the ranking, followed by MIT and Stanford. China, in turn, excelled in becoming the country with the largest number of universities among the 2,000 best, surpassing the United States. This change reflects a growing competition in the global education sector. CWUR classifies universities based on four main criteria: quality of education, employability, faculty quality and research. This year, a total of 21,462 institutions was evaluated, highlighting the scope of the analysis and the importance of each of the factors considered.
The 53 Brazilian universities that appear in the ranking include renowned institutions, such as the Federal University of Minas Gerais and the Getúlio Vargas Foundation, which also faced falls in their positions. The list reveals the diversity and relevance of the country’s universities, even in a context of significant challenges.
In addition to those already mentioned, other universities such as the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul and the Federal University of Santa Catarina are also among those listed, but with decline positions. The current situation raises concerns about the future of higher education in Brazil and the urgent need for investments to reverse this negative trend.
*Report produced with the aid of AI
