Shanghai ranking 2018: three French institutions in the Top 100

France keeps its rank

The 2018 edition of the Shanghai ranking shows a “sharp growth of French universities ranked in the Top 100”. Frédérique Vidal, Minister for Higher Education, Research and Innovation, said the new ranking “confirms the stability of French universities playing their cards well in an ever-growing and highly competitive international context”. 

Sorbonne University went up 4 ranks to reach the 36th place of the ranking; University of Paris Sud kept the 42th rank; Ecole Normale Supérieure went up 5 ranks to reach the 64th rank. 

Criteria in relation with research

The Shanghai ranking was implemented in 2003 by a team from the Jia Tong university. It’s based on several criteria, mainly in relation with research, such as the number of prestigious awards (Nobel and Field medals), the number of researchers most quoted in their field of study or the number of publications in major scientific journals. 

According to the minister, the criteria “are not in favour to French universities”, which is a good reason to “dialogue with the supervisors of the ranking throughout the months to come, so the ranking reflects more the reality of the French university landscape”.