Representation now spans 19 states and union territories, up from nine a decade ago, and ranked non-IIT institutions have grown from seven in 2017 to 43 today. Since the launch of NEP 2020, 29 Indian universities have reached their highest-ever ranking.

Dr Ashwin Fernandes Vice President, Strategic and International Engagement QS Quacquarelli Symonds, says, “India’s rise is no longer driven by isolated pockets of excellence but by a broader strengthening of the higher education ecosystem. The path aligns with the country’s wider ambition towards research, innovation, employability and international competitiveness.”

This year, universities across multiple states, including public, private and multidisciplinary institutions, are increasingly improving their performance and achieving record positions.

“One of the major turning points has been the growing importance of employability and research impact. Indian universities are increasingly being recognised for academic output and for producing graduates who are valued by employers,” says Dr Fernandes.

The widening base of performance is also being reflected at the institutional level. Professor Suman Chakraborty, Director, IIT Kharagpur, says that Indian institutions were recognised primarily for producing outstanding human capital earlier. “Today, they are being recognised for creating new knowledge, driving innovation, nurturing entrepreneurship and addressing grand societal challenges at a global scale,” he adds..

Professor Chakraborty points to a conscious shift at the institution from being a centre of excellence to becoming an ecosystem of impact as the reason for its progress.

“We are strengthening interdisciplinary research, expanding global partnerships, and accelerating deep-technology translation, fostering startups, and building solutions in areas such as healthcare, sustainability and artificial intelligence. The objective is not merely to improve ranking metrics, but to enhance the real-world relevance and global visibility of our contributions,” Professor Chakraborty tells QS Insights.

In this year’s edition of the QS World University Rankings, IIT Kharagpur improved 10 places from the previous year and ranked 205.

Similar trends are being observed at other institutions. Professor Amit Patra, Director of IIT (BHU) Varanasi, says his institute’s improved rankings performance has been driven by investments in research, international visibility and academic partnerships.

“The academic landscape in India has shown steady progress towards being among the top 100 globally, with some institutions coming increasingly closer to that target,” he says.

Reflecting on the performance of the institute in the QS World University Rankings, Professor Patra says it shows a steady upward trend from the first appearance in 2023 where it was ranked in 651-700 band to a rank of 531 in the 2026 edition.

This year, IIT BHU’s rank has improved 56 places to 510 from last year.

From expansion to quality

While earlier efforts by institutions, governments and higher education bodies focused largely on expanding access, recent reforms have increasingly emphasised quality, research, innovation and competitiveness internationally.

Professor Dhirendra Pal Singh, former Chairman of the University Grants Commission and former Director of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council, believes the development of a more competitive environment has played an important role in improving institutional performance.

“Students and parents see rankings as a key indicator of quality, and there is prestige attached to institutions that perform well on them. All stakeholders have realised that quality pays in the long run,” Professor Singh says tells QS Insights.

“The improving performance of Indian universities in the QS World University Rankings reflects a greater focus on quality and on indicators such as citations per faculty, international faculty and international research networks.”

He highlights a series of policy initiatives that have helped shape this progress, including accreditation reforms, the Institutes of Eminence initiative and the introduction of India’s own National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF).

Dr Fernandes argues that the NEP 2020 has encouraged multidisciplinary learning, institutional autonomy and stronger research cultures, while increasing focus on international benchmarks.

“Universities are becoming part of the national development story rather than operating separately from it,” he says.

He also notes that the geographical spread of success is becoming increasingly significant. Institutions across states are performing well, which suggests Indian higher education is no longer confined to a few established centres of excellence.

Sustaining momentum

This year, all of India’s top 10 universities improved on employer reputation, while the University of Mumbai rose to 25 globally for employment outcomes.

Dr Fernandes identifies research impact, employer reputation and graduate employability as areas where Indian institutions have recorded some of their strongest gains.

Yet internationalisation remains a structural challenge. While many institutions are producing high-quality research and graduates, these strengths are not always matched by levels of international faculty recruitment, student enrolment and global academic recognition seen in leading higher education systems.

For Professor Singh, sustaining momentum will require improvements beyond India’s top-performing institutions. He says that improving the quality of affiliated colleges and strengthening teaching, learning and research across state universities will be critical.

The next phase of India’s ascent will not be defined by incremental improvements in rankings alone. “It will be defined by our ability to advance our institutions to globally respected universities that combine excellence with accessibility, high-quality research with societal impact,” says Professor Chakraborty.