Baty drew attention to the notable rise in the sheer number of Indian universities taking part in international rankings
The Times Higher Education World University Rankings, sometimes known as the THE Rankings, are an annual release of university rankings by the Times Higher Education magazine. Phil Baty, Chief Global Affairs Officer at Times Higher Education, discussed India’s improvement in global university rankings since the World University Rankings were established in 2004. Baty expressed his enthusiasm over the previous two decades as he witnessed India’s tremendous progress in higher education.
Baty was quoted by ANI as saying that he developed the world’s most thorough and balanced rating system for global research universities. Observing how the global ranking of Indian colleges changed over the past 20 years has been interesting. “We’ve seen an extraordinary growth in participation from India. When I first came to India 15 years ago, there was a sense that India didn’t want to be on the world stage and didn’t want to worry about global rankings and global metrics,” Baty added.
Baty drew attention to the notable rise in the sheer number of Indian universities taking part in international rankings. Additionally, he said that the rankings we have been seeing for the past ten years are the result of “global levelling,” adding that twenty years ago, Indian universities were hardly included in the rankings at all. In contrast, India will have an unprecedented 107 universities in the upcoming October 2025 ranking, matching the United Kingdom and ranking third best-represented in the world.
According to ANI, Baty commended PM Modi’s ambitious vision and dedication to modernising India’s education system, stating that he has achieved an impressive mix of expansion and quality. Indian colleges are increasingly making a stronger social and economic effect by focusing on the country’s economic demands.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Indian colleges’ success in THE World University Rankings in June of this year. According to current Times Higher Education figures, Indian university enrolment has surged dramatically since 2016. In 2016, 31 universities participated, and the number has since climbed to 133. The worldwide rankings featured participation from up to 124 universities in 2024. This places India as the fourth-most represented country in the rankings.
