Shanghai Ranking
“ShanghaiRanking Consultancy is a fully independent organization dedicating to research on higher education intelligence and consultation. It has been the official publisher of the Academic Ranking of World Universities since 2009.” Learn more at their website.
MIT’s relative position in ARWU Rankings:
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| World Rank | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| National Rank | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Global Ranking of Academic Subjects
| Subject | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Natural Sciences | |||||||
| Mathematics | 4 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 |
| Physics | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Chemistry | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Earth Sciences | 9 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 7 |
| Geography | 151-200 | NR | 101-150 | 101-150 | 76-100 | 151-200 | 101-150 |
| Ecology | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 151-200 | 151-200 | 201-300 | 201-300 |
| Oceanography | 7 | 7 | 12 | 12 | 5 | 6 | |
| Atmospheric Science | 19 | 20 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 13 | |
| Engineering | |||||||
| Mechanical Engineering | 4 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 25 | 9 | 4 |
| Electrical & Electronic Engineering | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Automation & Control | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Telecommunication Engineering | 25 | 49 | 76-100 | 101-150 | 13 | 8 | 8 |
| Instruments Science & Technology | 23 | 27 | 28 | 20 | 101-150 | 101-150 | 101-150 |
| Biomedical Engineering | 8 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Computer Science & Engineering | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Civil Engineering | 76-100 | 76-100 | 76-100 | 76-100 | 101-150 | 151-200 | 201-300 |
| Chemical Engineering | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 19 |
| Materials Science & Engineering | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 4 |
| Nanoscience & Nanotechnology | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 22 | 24 | 48 |
| Energy Science & Engineering | 2 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 22 | 31 |
| Environmental Science & Engineering | 9 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 51-75 | 51-75 |
| Water Resources | 76-100 | 48 | 51-75 | 47 | 51-75 | 101-150 | 151-200 |
| Biotechnology | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 |
| Aerospace Engineering | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 8 | 6 |
| Marine/Ocean Engineering | 50 | NR | 44 | 48 | NR | 17 | 43 |
| Transportation Science & Technology | 10 | 10 | 7 | 11 | 27 | 40 | 42 |
| Remote Sensing | NR | 76-100 | 51-75 | 76-100 | 76-100 | NR | 101-150 |
| Mining & Mineral Engineering | NR | NR | 51-75 | NR | NR | NR | NR |
| Metallurgical Engineering | 47 | 20 | 22 | 23 | 15 | 20 | 51-75 |
| Artificial Intelligence | 49 | ||||||
| Robotic Science & Engineering | 1 | ||||||
| Life Sciences | |||||||
| Biological Sciences | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Human Biological Sciences | 14 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 21 |
| Agricultural Sciences | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR |
| Veterinary Sciences | NR | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | NR | NR | NR |
| Medical Sciences | |||||||
| Clinical Medicine | 15 | 16 | 76-100 | 76-100 | 101-150 | 19 | 21 |
| Public Health | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 201-300 | 101-150 | 201-300 | 201-300 |
| Medical Technology | 35 | 35 | 51-75 | 46 | 41 | 101-150 | 101-150 |
| Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences | 4 | 27 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 301-400 | 151-200 |
| Social Sciences | |||||||
| Economics | 6 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Statistics | 30 | 30 | 27 | 20 | 19 | 16 | 17 |
| Law | NR | NR | NR | NR | 76-100 | 101-150 | NR |
| Political Sciences | 26 | 30 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 37 | 45 |
| Sociology | NR | NR | NR | NR | 48 | 101-150 | 151-200 |
| Education | 151-200 | 201-300 | 301-400 | 301-400 | 301-400 | 401-500 | 301-400 |
| Communication | NR | 201-300 | 201-300 | 151-200 | 151-200 | NR | NR |
| Psychology | 51-75 | 51-75 | 51-75 | 51-75 | 51-75 | 76-100 | 51-75 |
| Business Administration | 25 | 30 | 37 | 101-150 | 201-300 | 151-200 | 201-300 |
| Finance | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 12 | 22 | 22 |
| Management | 10 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 2 |
| Public Administration | NR | NR | 151-200 | 101-150 | 151-200 | 151-200 | NR |
| Library & Information Science | 76-100 | 51-75 | 44 | 43 | 51-75 | 51-75 | 76-100 |
NR is Not Ranked.
The ShanghaiRanking Consultancy collects data from institutions as part of the materials used for their ranking dataset. In 2026, the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy requested institutions post their submission for public access. You may view our 2026 submission.