Hyderabad: The Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IIT-H) has climbed 19 places in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Asia University Rankings 2027, moving from 270th position last year to 251st this year. The National Institute of Technology-Warangal (NIT-W) also made a significant jump to 624th position from the 771-780 band in the previous edition.IIT-H attributed its improved ranking to stronger research output and institutional reputation, with research productivity emerging as a key driver of its performance.Saurabh Shandilya, QS rankings coordinator at IIT-H, said improvements in papers per faculty member and citations per paper were the biggest contributors to the institute’s rise, followed by academic and employer reputation. The institute ranked 30th in Asia for papers per faculty member and 41st for staff with PhDs. It secured 209th position in employer reputation and 226th in academic reputation.“It is not just that we are publishing papers; we are publishing good-quality papers,” Shandilya told TOI, highlighting the institute’s focus on improving research quality alongside publication output.He said attracting international faculty and students, as well as increasing outbound student exchanges, remained areas that needed attention.“Attracting international faculty is a challenge for us, as we are a relatively young institution. We also need to improve the number of international students and outbound exchange students. Funding constraints are among the factors limiting student exchange programmes,” he said.IIT-H director Prof. BS Murty said the improvement reflected the sustained efforts of the institute’s faculty, students, researchers and staff.“At IIT-H, we are building an environment where strong fundamentals in education and research connect with technology, deep-tech innovation and real-world problem-solving. We will continue to encourage our students and faculty to pursue ambitious ideas and translate them into meaningful contributions,” he said.NIT-W director Prof Vidyadhar Subudhi attributed the institute’s improved ranking to the strengthening of its research ecosystem. He said the institute had focused on encouraging faculty members to become more proactive in research and development activities.“We sensitised our faculty to be very active in R&D. Almost all faculty members are now proactive in securing sponsored projects and publishing in high-quality journals. We have also recruited 120 faculty members from different parts of the country, many with impressive academic backgrounds, including PhDs from IITs and IISc Bangalore, as well as international exposure,” he told TOI.Subudhi said the institute had also witnessed improvements in research publications, technology transfers and start-ups. It has introduced programmes in emerging fields such as quantum technology, artificial intelligence, VLSI and e-mobility.Other universities in Telangana have also featured in the QS Asia University Rankings 2027. Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad (JNTU-H) has made its debut in the rankings, securing a place in the 1201-1300 band.However, only IIT-H and the University of Hyderabad (UoH) have retained their positions in the top 300. UoH was placed 270th this year.The University of Hyderabad, meanwhile, slipped 24 places to 270th position from 246th, despite improving its academic reputation ranking by 11 places, from 176th to 165th.The university said it outperformed 84.4% of the institutions ranked, its highest share in nine editions of the rankings. Nearly 93% of its faculty members hold PhDs, and the university ranked 130th in Asia for staff with PhDs.Among other public institutions in Telangana, Osmania University (OU) fell 180 places to 650th position from 470th. Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) remained in the 1101-1200 band, while the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) slipped to the 1501+ band from 1401-1500.Among private institutions, Woxsen University improved its position to 499th from 694th, while the ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education was placed in the 1101-1200 band.
