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Bella Cariaso - The Philippine Star
March 27, 2026 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The University of the Philippines (UP), De La Salle University (DLSU) and Ateneo de Manila University entered the 2026 Quacquarelli-Symonds (QS) World University Rankings by Subject.
The QS evaluated more than 21,000 academic programs offered by around 1,900 institutions across 100 countries. The rankings span 55 individual disciplines grouped into five broad faculty areas.
UP placed among the world’s top 100 universities for Library and Information Management, marking a significant milestone as UP was not ranked in this particular subject in the previous year.
It was also included in the top 200 globally in Hospitality and Leisure Management. It retained its position in the top 200 in Agriculture & Forestry, Anthropology, Archaeology and English Language & Literature.
UP was globally recognized in 16 other subject areas, bringing its total to 22 ranked subjects. These include Biological Sciences, Business & Management Studies, Communication & Media Studies, Computer Science & Information Systems, Economics & Econometrics, Education, Environmental Sciences, Geography, History, Law, Linguistics, Medicine, Mathematics, Physics & Astronomy, Politics & International Studies, and Sociology.
UP climbed 58 places in Social Sciences and Management and 74 places in Arts and Humanities. The UP also registered significant advances in Life Sciences and Medicine as well as Engineering and Technology, reflecting strengthened international recognition in both fields.
“The results show our continued efforts to strengthen programs across a wide range of subject areas, delivering the quality of education expected of a national university. Through our academic and research achievements, we aim to make valuable contributions to society,” UP vice president for academic affairs Lorraine Symaco said.
UP ranked first among the universities in the Philippines in the QS World University Rankings 2026, placing 362nd out of over 1,500 universities in more than 100 locations around the world.
Meanwhile, DLSU is the country’s top university in Business & Management Studies (401-450) and Education and Training (351-400).
It is the leading private university in the Philippines in the areas of Computer Science & Information Systems (551-600), Economics & Econometrics (451-500), English Language & Literature (201-250) and Politics (301-400).
DLSU also improved its rankings in the broad subject areas of Arts & Humanities (=365) and Social Sciences and Management (=382).
Ateneo de Manila University in the meantime was among the top institutions in seven subject areas, and among the top 100 for theological and religious studies.
Ateneo was among the world’s best in Theology, Divinity & Religious Studies, 51-100; Anthropology 101-200; English Language & Literature 201-250; Politics & International Studies 301-400; Sociology, 301-375; Business & Management Studies, 451-500 and Economics & Econometrics, 551-700.
Ateneo was also ranked in two broad subject areas, Arts and Humanities (=333); Social Sciences & Management, 401-450.
According to the QS, Southern Asia is the most improved region proportionally, with the largest share of subjects moving up in the rankings.
It said that Computer Science & Information Systems and Medicine are the most widely ranked subjects globally, and recorded the highest number of upward movements overall. Linguistics had the largest proportional improvement and Data Science and Artificial Intelligence was the subject area with the most new entries.
The QS said Southern Asia recorded the highest share of institutions improving their position (40 percent), followed by Southeast Asia (38 percent) and Australia and New Zealand (37 percent), indicating strong upward momentum across the Asia-Pacific region.
Latin America and the Caribbean showed a relatively balanced pattern of movement, while Northern Africa stands out for its high proportion of new entries (32 percent), pointing to increased participation in the rankings.
It said in contrast, more established regions such as Eastern Europe and East Asia record the largest share of institutions moving down the rankings (both 43 percent), while Western Europe and North America also see notable downward movement.
