MIT tops global rankings for data science and AI research
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranked first in the 2026 QS World University Rankings by Subject for data science and artificial intelligence, according to the annual assessment released in March.
Stanford University placed second, followed by National University of Singapore in third. Nanyang Technological University and Carnegie Mellon University rounded out the top five.
The rankings evaluated more than 21,000 academic programs across 1,912 institutions in 100 countries and territories. Quacquarelli Symonds, the organization behind the rankings, assessed universities using five indicators: academic reputation, employer reputation, citations per paper, research productivity and impact, and international research collaboration.
The U.S. and Singapore dominated the field, occupying the top five positions. Only four countries appeared in the top 10: the U.S., the U.K., Singapore, and China.
Top 10 universities for data science and AI
- 1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology - United States
- 2. Stanford University - United States
- 3. National University of Singapore - Singapore
- 4. Nanyang Technological University - Singapore
- 5. Carnegie Mellon University - United States
- 6. University of Oxford - United Kingdom
- 6. University of California, Berkeley - United States
- 8. Harvard University - United States
- 9. University of Cambridge - United Kingdom
- 10. Tsinghua University - China
University of Oxford and UC Berkeley tied for sixth place. Harvard and Cambridge followed in eighth and ninth positions.
Tsinghua University was the only Chinese institution in the top 10, placing tenth. This marks Tsinghua's first appearance in the QS ranking for data science and AI.
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