Academic Ranking of World Universities
The Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU, resp. "Shanghai Ranking") is a global university ranking that has been released since 2003 and is published by the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy. Since 2009, the ShanghaiRanking Consultancy has published the Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS).
In the current Academic Ranking of World Universities 2026 the University of Cologne is ranked place 6-11 nationally and place 151-200 internationally.
Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS)
Approximately 2.000 universities are ranked in five different disciplines and in 57 subjects. Depending on the subject, between 200 and 500 universities are ranked each year.
Current results GRAS Ranking 2026:
• "Sociology" ranked 3rd - 5th place nationally and place 101 - 150 internationally
• "Economics" ranked 3rd - 6th place nationally and place 101 - 150 internationally
• "Management" ranked 3rd - 8th place nationally and place 201 - 300 internationally
• "Business Administration" ranked 4th - 8th place nationally and place 201 - 300 internationally
• "Political Sciences" ranked on 12th - 22nd place nationally and place 201 - 300 internationally
Indicators and weighting
The GRAS uses five to nine indicators, depending on the subject, in five different categories (see here). It measures and compares research output (Q1), the scope of the research, mapped by citations (CNCI), international cooperations (IC) and research quality, measured as the number of publications in TOP journals (TJ) and the prestige of researchers (TOP awards). The new category for world class Faculty introduced in 2024 will be measured in terms of award winners (laureates), the list of highly cited researchers (HRC), editor positions (editor), and leadership positions in international organizations (leadership).
Subject Weights
| World-Class Faculty | High Quality Research | Research Impact | International Collaboration | World-Class Output | |||||
| Subject | Laureate | HCR | Editor | Leadership | Q1 | CNCI | IC | TJ | Award |
| Economics | 40 | 20 | 60 | 10 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 100 | 100 |
| Statistics | 40 | 20 | 40 | 0 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 100 | 80 |
| Political Sciences | 60 | 20 | 60 | 20 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 80 | 100 |
| Sociology | 0 | 0 | 60 | 0 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 60 | 0 |
| Business Administration | 0 | 20 | 60 | 0 | 100 | 20 | 20 | 100 | 0 |
| Finance | 20 | 20 | 40 | 20 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 100 | 20 |
| Management | 0 | 20 | 60 | 10 | 100 | 20 | 10 | 100 | 0 |
More information on the Website of the: Academic Ranking of World Universities