UCT fourth in emerging-economy universities

Here's something to consider in the future funding of higher education in South Africa: the Times Higher Education BRICS & Emerging Economies University Rankings 2017 has placed UCT fourth in its top 300.

Sandwiched between Chinese and Russian institutions, UCT is the only African university among the leading five. The University of the Witwatersrand was placed eighth.

According to the rankings, the developing world's top three institutions are Peking University, Tsinghua University, both in China, and Lomonosov Moscow State University. The University of Science and Technology of China is in fifth spot.

The survey shows that China, Russia and India are making big strides in world rankings. China leads with the highest density of leading universities in the developing world, reports the Independent. The country dominates the list with 52 spots in the top 300.

Peking and Tsinghua universities have kept the top two spots for the fourth year running. China's Fudan University rose 11 places to sixth this year. Brazil's University of São Paulo came in 13th while the Indian Institute of Science was placed at 14, breaking into the top 15 for the first time. This was ascribed to “boosts in its teaching environment and research influence”. Turkey's Koc University came in 15th.