University of Amsterdam’s subject tops in QS World University Rankings
For the sixth year in row, the UvA occupies 1st place worldwide in the field of Communication & Media Studies in the QS World University Rankings by Subject. ACTA, the joint dentistry faculty of the UvA and VU, also scored highly once again: Dentistry at ACTA is ranked 2nd the world. This year there are a total of seven subject areas at the UvA with a top 20 position. The QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023 were published on Wednesday, 22 March.
Top 20
The UvA has seven subject areas holding a top 20 position:
Subject area 2023 position 2022 position
Communication & Media Studies 1 1
Dentistry 2 2
Psychology 10 9
Geography 10 14
Sociology 15 7
Anthropology 20 19
Data Science and Artificial Intelligence* 20 –
* The subject area Data Science and Artificial Intelligence is appearing for the first time in the rankings
Top 50
There are thirteen other disciplines at the UvA that are listed in the top 50:
Vakgebied Position 2023 Position 2022
Development Studies 22 21
Politics & International Studies 23 18
History 24 31
Linguistics 29 27
Medicine 30 28
Computer Science & Information Systems 34 34
Law 36 30
Library & Information Management 37 27
Philosophy 37 39
Education 42 38
Social Policy & Administration 40 16
English Language & Literature 42 36
Physics & Astronomy 48 39
Top 100
From place 51 onwards, QS ranks at some subject areas at individual university level and some by group (51-100). Nine subject areas at the UvA are in the range of 51 to 100:
Vakgebied Position 2023 Position 2022
Accounting & Finance 54 55
Modern Languages 55 53
Biological Sciences 58 55
Economics & Econometrics 67 61
Business & Management Studies 85 79
Mathematics 94 80
Theology, Divinity & Religious Studies 51-100 51-100
Statistics & Operational Research 51-100 51-100
Archeology 51-100 51-100
Broad subject areas
QS also ranks five broad subject areas each year. The UvA is in the global top 100 in four of these areas:
Broad subject area 2023 position 2022 position
Arts & Humanities 29 21
Social Sciences & Management 29 23
Life Sciences & Medicine 44 34
Natural Sciences 61 68
Engineering & Technology 187 148
About the rankings
QS ranks subject areas according to five criteria: reputation among employers, reputation among peers, citations, H-index and IRN (International Research Network).