Japan Data

Tōhoku University Tops Japanese Higher Education Ranking for Third Straight Year

Education Culture

A ranking of Japanese universities found that the former imperial universities still display their brand power. The top three universities are Tōhoku University, the University of Tokyo, and Osaka University.

Tōhoku University topped the overall ranking for the third consecutive year in the World University Rankings Japan 2022, compiled by the British magazine Times Higher Education. The University of Tokyo moved up one spot from the previous year to second place, while Osaka University and Tokyo Institute of Technology tied for third place. The top places were dominated by national and public universities, with the seven former imperial universities lining up alongside Tokyo Institute of Technology in the top eight. The top-ranked private universities were Keiō University (11th), International Christian University (12th), and Waseda University (13th).

The Japanese edition of the survey was compiled with the cooperation of Benesse, evaluating universities according to four categories: resources, engagement, outcomes, and environment.

Top 20 Japanese Universities

Overall score University
Resources Engagement Outcomes Environment
85.6 Tōhoku University
78.6 84.5 98.6 88.6
81.7 University of Tokyo
81.3 82.7 96.9 69.0
81.6 Osaka University
72.2 83.7 96.6 82.7
81.6 Tokyo Institute of Technology
72.9 84.1 95.9 81.2
80.7 Kyoto University
76.8 78.0 98.8 76.6
79.0 Hokkaidō University
67.6 81.2 98.7 79.1
78.8 Kyūshū University
69.4 81.9 96.2 76.1
78.1 Nagoya University
71.4 80.5 97.2 70.8
77.5 University of Tsukuba
68.2 83.7 92.0 72.3
72.3 Hiroshima University
60.2 81.1 77.3 75.9
71.7 Keiō University
56.4 78.6 93.2 70.1
71.3 International Christian University
44.8 91.3 57.9 97.1
71.1 Waseda University
45.6 78.8 94.6 84.1
70.4 Kōbe University
60.3 78.3 77.6 70.0
69.0 Tokyo Medical and Dental University
80.7 61.5 56.6 70.3
68.3 Hitotsubashi University
43.6 81.0 78.0 83.8
67.6 Akita International University
44.0 92.1 43.2 90.6
65.8 University of Aizu
57.7 81.1 38.0 78.6
64.6 Kanazawa University
59.8 74.9 49.9 69.3
64.3 Sophia University
37.1 82.7 56.1 89.4

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Times Higher Education.

National universities, particularly the former imperial universities, ranked high for resources and outcomes. In contrast, private universities dominated the environment category, which is defined to focus on internationalization, including such criteria as the ratio of foreign faculty members and students. The only public university ranking in the top 10 for this category was Tōhoku University in ninth place.

Top 10 Japanese Universities for Resources

Rank (2021 rank) University
1 (4) University of Tokyo
2 (1) Tokyo Medical and Dental University
3 (2) Hyōgo College of Medicine
4 (3) Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine
5 (6) Hamamatsu University School of Medicine
6 (5) Tōhoku University
7 (7) Nara Medical University
8 (10) Kyoto University
8 (11) Tokyo Medical University
10 (9) Shiga University of Medical Science

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Times Higher Education.

Top 10 Japanese Universities for Engagement

Rank (2021 rank) University
1 (1) Akita International University
2 (2) International Christian University
3 (3) Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University
4 (8) Tōhoku University
4 (6) Tokyo University of Foreign Studies
6 (5) Tokyo Institute of Technology
7 (17) Osaka University
7 (4) University of Tsukuba
9 (13) Kanda University of International Studies
9 (10) Sophia University
9 (16) University of Tokyo

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Times Higher Education.

Top 10 Japanese Universities for Outcomes

Rank (2021 rank) University
1 (1) Kyoto University
2 (4) Hokkaidō University
3 (2) Tōhoku University
4 (5) Nagoya University
5 (8) University of Tokyo
6 (6) Osaka University
7 (3) Kyūshū University
8 (7) Tokyo Institute of Technology
9 (10) Waseda University
10 (11) Keiō University

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Times Higher Education.

Top 10 Japanese Universities for Environment

Rank (2021 rank) University
1 (2) Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University
2 (3) International Christian University
3 (4) Osaka Jogakuin University
4 (8) Miyazaki International College
5 (9) Sōka University
6 (1) Akita International University
7 (5) Kansai Gaidai University
8 (12) Sophia University
9 (15) Tōhoku University
10 (10) Kōbe City University of Foreign Studies

Created by Nippon.com based on data from Times Higher Education.

(Originally published in Japanese. Banner photo: Katahira Campus, Tōhoku University. © Pixta.)

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