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How IIT Delhi got back to top spot among Indian institutions in QS rankings after 8 yrs
A strategic push to expand global research ties, aggressive faculty hiring, including special drives for SC/ST and women candidates, and a sharpened focus on sustainability and inclusion have propelled IIT Delhi to its highest-ever QS World University Rankings position.
Boosted by an overseas campus in Abu Dhabi and major infrastructure upgrades under the University Grants Commission's Institute of Eminence scheme, the institute this year saw gains across key metrics like employer reputation, citations, and international research network, resulting in a 27-spot leap to rank 123 globally this year.
For the first time in eight years, IIT Delhi has emerged as the highest-ranked Indian institution in the QS 2026 rankings, overtaking IIT Bombay, which had held the top spot in six of the last ten editions.
IIT Delhi now stands at 123rd rank globally, up from 150 last year, while IIT Bombay has dropped from 118 to 129.
Over the past decade, the two IITs, along with IISc Bangalore, have consistently dominated the top three positions among Indian institutions.
According to higher education analytics firm QS, IIT Delhi showed 'notable progress in employer reputation (+23 places), citations per faculty (+40), employer outcomes (+21), and especially in sustainability, where the institution rose by an impressive 252 places.' The agency added that this reflects 'both genuine improvements and more accurate data reporting'.
Speaking to The Indian Express, Prof. Vivek Buwa, Dean of Planning and head of rankings at IIT Delhi, explained how the reputation indicators work. 'QS writes to a large pool of academic referees and employers worldwide and seeks responses on the suitability of IIT Delhi graduates, how market-ready or tech-ready they are, and whether employers would like to hire from IIT Delhi. This year, the responses reflected an uptick in our reputation, which has been improving gradually year on year,' Buwa said.
Among the biggest contributing factors this year was the institute's score in sustainability. 'Sustainability has three verticals: environmental governance on campus, how much of your power comes from renewable sources, and how inclusive and diverse your institution is,' said Buwa.
'We've built up our Office of Diversity and Inclusion, created support systems for physically challenged and socially disadvantaged students, and ensured student representation in academic governance. All of this feeds into the QS sustainability criteria.'
In a separate QS Sustainability ranking published last November, IIT Delhi rose from 386 to 179 — the highest rank among Indian institutions.
IIT Delhi has also intensified its international research footprint. 'In the last five years, we've supported 135 bilateral research projects using institute resources, which have led to joint publications with leading global institutions,' Buwa said. 'About 25–30% of our 4,000-plus annual publications now involve international co-authors. That's helped boost our citation impact and research visibility.'
The faculty-student ratio, another area of improvement, has benefited from aggressive recruitment. 'We've been hiring actively, including through special drives for SC/ST candidates. Hiring is a slow process, but even modest gains here help,' he said.
According to the QS data, IIT Delhi scored better than IIT Bombay on several metrics this year: citations per faculty (93.1 vs 82.9), international student diversity (6.3 vs 1.5), international research network (66.9 vs 46.6), and sustainability (79.9 vs 75.2). IIT Bombay, however, continued to lead in academic reputation, employer reputation, and employment outcomes.
Buwa added that the gains were also the result of better data submission. 'We always had a strong research network, but that wasn't fully captured earlier. This time, we were more careful in providing the right and required information to QS.'
He also credited the institute's enhanced research infrastructure. 'As an Institute of Eminence, we received about ₹1,000 crore, of which ₹200–250 crore was used to set up high-end research facilities,' he said. 'In addition, we generate ₹300–400 crore annually through sponsored R&D with companies and government bodies. These investments are now showing results through stronger publications and research impact.'
Another important milestone has been the launch of the institute's Abu Dhabi campus in 2024. 'With strong support from the UAE and Indian governments, we've been able to develop the campus quickly and launch multiple programmes. While data from that campus doesn't feed directly into our QS scores, it has helped build IIT Delhi's international visibility and reputation,' Buwa said.
All of this, he added, contributes to the institute's strategic goals. 'In my view, these efforts across sustainability, global collaboration, infrastructure, and inclusion are all starting to converge. That's what led to this year's QS rank improvement.'
