Purdue recognized among world’s best in latest QS rankings and rises to No. 8 among U.S. public universities

Purdue ranked in top 25 in America and top 90 globally in the 2025 QS World University Rankings

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University has once again earned praise as one of the world’s best academic institutions. In the latest 2025 QS (Quacquarelli Symonds) World University Rankings, released Tuesday (June 4), Purdue came in No. 89 globally, a gain of 10 spots from last year.  

Purdue is again a top 10 U.S. public university, coming in at No. 8 overall, an improvement of two spots from last year. Since QS started its independent global ranking, this is the highest Purdue has been ranked among U.S. public universities.

Among U.S. institutions overall, Purdue landed in the top 25, scoring a No. 24 placement, up from both 2024 (No. 27) and 2023 (No. 32). Purdue also was up among Big Ten universities, rising to No. 6 among 18 universities in the conference (including four new institutions joining this summer), and is the only university in Big Ten to rise in QS rankings this year. Purdue is also the only Indiana university to be among the global top 300 universities.

“Even the most widely used rankings are partial and noisy, but they also represent some of the impact produced by our faculty, staff and students in a competitive manner,” Purdue President Mung Chiang said. “The continued elevation of Purdue’s American and global rankings is yet another reflection of excellence at scale and brings positive visibility to our state.” 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

• Purdue University Online continues to achieve high national rankings
• Purdue University jumps to No. 33 nationally and to world’s top 100 in 2024 Times Higher Education World University Rankings
• Purdue University undergraduate national ranking jumps 8 spots, with 13 undergraduate programs in top 10 in the U.S.

Several of the Purdue University scores in the individual metrics that feed the cumulative QS World University Rankings are on an upward trajectory, including academic reputation, international research network and sustainability. The methodology also includes employer reputation; employment outcomes; faculty/student ratio; and other measures of undergraduate, graduate and research excellence. Now in its 21st year, the QS World University Rankings evaluate over 1,500 institutions in its methodology, which combines both quantitative and reputation survey results.

“At Purdue, we continue to strive to be the most consequential public university in the country and one of the most impactful institutions in the world,” said Patrick J. Wolfe, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs and diversity. “We are creating, disseminating and deploying knowledge in areas making the most significant difference in society and are proud to see efforts get deserved recognition in these rankings.”

Purdue continues to earn stellar rankings from various publications in a wide range of areas, using a broad variety of methodologies. This latest acclaim from the QS World University Rankings joins these recent highlights for the university:  

• Purdue captured its best-ever undergraduate ranking in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report undergraduate ranking, climbing to No. 43 among the 400-plus universities ranked.
• U.S. News & World Report also named Purdue as a top 10 Most Innovative school for the sixth consecutive year, placing the university as No. 7 Most Innovative in the nation.
• Purdue was also in the top 100 of the 2024 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, coming in at No. 9 among U.S. public land-grant universities.
• Purdue recently placed fifth internationally and in the top four for U.S. universities in U.S. patents received for the second year in a row.
• In the most recent Global University Visibility rankings, Purdue was ranked the No. 3 most recognized public university in the U.S. and No. 10 worldwide.

About Purdue University 

Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, including nearly 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the new Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, and Purdue Computes — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives. 

Writer/Media contact: Derek Schultz, dcschultz@purdue.edu 

Sources: Mung Chiang, Patrick J. Wolfe