UI tops Nigerian universities in 2026 QS Global University Rankings

The University of Ibadan (UI) is ahead of two other Nigerian institutions in the newly released 2026 QS World University Rankings, published by a global higher education analyst.

In the newest edition of the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings, the University of Ibadan (UI), the University of Lagos (UNILAG), and Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, are the only Nigerian institutions to appear on the list.

UI and UNILAG both fall within the 1001–1200 ranking group, maintaining the same position they held in the 2025 rankings, while Ahmadu Bello University is ranked between 1201–1400 in the 2026 edition.

For the third year in a row, no Nigerian university has made it into the top 1,000 of the QS World University Rankings.

Quacquarelli Symonds, a UK-based organization, creates the QS World University Rankings every year by assessing schools using eight criteria: academic reputation, employer reputation, faculty/student ratio, citations per faculty, international faculty ratio, international student ratio, international research network, employment outcomes, and sustainability.

Even though Nigerian universities have long-standing reputations and produce many graduates, they continue to lag in crucial ranking factors like research influence, global partnerships, and how well graduates do in the job market.

Across the African continent, Egypt leads with 20 universities featured in the 2026 rankings, followed by South Africa with 11, and Tunisia with four. Ghana and Morocco each have two, while Kenya, Libya, Sudan, Uganda, and Ethiopia have one university listed apiece.

Notably, South Africa stands out as the only country in Africa with universities ranked among the global top 300.

The University of Cape Town secured the 150th spot, and the University of the Witwatersrand was placed at 291.

Global top 10 of QS World University Rankings 2026;
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA), Imperial College London (UK), Stanford University (USA), and University of Oxford (UK).

Also included are Harvard University (USA), University of Cambridge (UK), ETH Zurich (Switzerland), National University of Singapore (Singapore); University College London (UK), and California Institute of Technology (USA).

These top-ranking schools consistently perform well in areas like research production, academic standing, global involvement, and how employable their graduates are.