Ranking QS Ranking by Subject: First Place in Life Sciences & Medicine
7 May 2024
Heidelberg University takes top position Germany-wide
In the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024, Heidelberg University has taken first place in Germany with the subject area Life Sciences & Medicine. Ranked 38th internationally, Ruperto Carola again comes out on top ahead of Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU) and Munich’s Technical University (TUM) at the national level. In the ranking of individual disciplines, Medicine in Heidelberg also takes first place in Germany, as happened last year – once again ahead of LMU and TUM. With an improvement of five places, it is now ranked 31st internationally. Two more Heidelberg University disciplines in the subject area Life Sciences & Medicine have likewise attained top places: Heidelberg’s Pharmacy and Pharmacology take 46th place internationally and first Germany-wide. Biology is ranked 27th and comes second in Germany.
The best result of all subjects at Heidelberg University – taken together – was achieved by Classics and Ancient History, improving from sixth to fourth place in the global comparison and taking top position in Germany (second place last year). In the subject area Arts & Humanities, Theology is also excellently placed: with an improvement of seven places, it ranks 13th internationally. Archeology (from 25th to 21st place) and History (from 48th to 40th place) are among the Top 50 in their respective disciplines internationally. This puts Theology in second place at the national level, while Archeology and History both occupy fourth position. Taken as a whole, Arts & Humanities are ranked 72nd internationally and fourth in Germany.
In the overarching ranking of subject areas, Natural Sciences take 50th place internationally and fourth place nationwide. In the individual subject rankings, Physics and Astronomy – taken together – occupy position 31 in the global comparison, moving up one place to rank second in Germany. Law in Heidelberg – located in the subject area Social Sciences & Management – is ranked 62nd internationally and third at the national level.
The assessments of subject areas and rankings by subject – published in April 2024 – are primarily based on data from academic and employer surveys carried out for the QS World University Rankings and evaluated in terms of specific subjects. Citation analyses are likewise taken into account. The results are weighted differently depending on the subject areas and the individual subjects.