Within the intense competition of almost 25,000 global universities, finding what matches your interests can be tough. Several annual university rankings are a good solution to at least navigate among the abundance of educational institutions.
Those rankings make the research process easier, providing a ready list of the best universities based on the deep analysis.
However, practically those lists may still leave you uncertain about what university to choose. Even though there is a filtered list of the best colleges, they may still be inaccessible for a portion of young people because of the high tuition fees, high grades for admission, etc.
An option to combine the university's quality and accessibility is to look at the last rows of the best-ranked universities.
The key point here is that if the university is on the best list, it is already a good one. Inclusion in the top rankings indicates that the university corresponds to the main qualitative and quantitative standards to be considered good. Lower scores just mean they have a place to improve in the industry competition.
It might be easier to find an optimal choice in the lowest-ranked university lists. While there are exceptions, usually the lower are the university's rankings, the more affordable and easier admitting it is.
If you are unsure which rankings to start with, scroll down to the already combined list of 30 lowest-ranked (yet good) universities.
30 universities with the lowest rankings in 2020
The below list is based on the published 2020 world university rankings by the three leading ranking platforms: US news report ranking, Times Higher Education Ranking, and QS University Ranking.
The following three sections present the ten lowest-ranked universities of each publication, along with a summary of their specialization areas.
Note that there are around 1000 universities listed in each of the publications. If you do not find your proper match in the listing below, explore the full list by the provided links to find one.
10 lowest ranked by US news
Main indicators for evaluation: Global research reputation, Regional Research Reputation, Number of 10% most cited publications, etc.
Read more about the ranking methodology.
| University | Specialization areas | Location |
| Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine |
| Shanghai, China |
| Universidade Federal de Alagoas |
| Maceió, Brazil |
| Huaqiao University |
| Xiamen, China |
| Jichi Medical University |
| Shimotsuke, Japan |
| Kyoto Institute of Technology |
| Kyoto, Japan |
| East Tennessee State University |
| Johnson City, United States |
| Henan Polytechnic University |
| Jiaozuo, China |
| Beijing University of Chinese Medicine |
| Beijing, China |
| Grigore T Popa University of Medicine & Pharmacy |
| Iasi, Romania |
| Umm Al-Qura University |
| Makkah, Saudi Arabia |
Explore the full list.
10 lowest ranked in Times Higher Education ranking
Main indicators for evaluation: Teaching, Research, Citations, International Outlook, Industry Income.
Read more about the ranking methodology.
| University | Specialization areas | Location |
| Zhejiang University of Technology |
| Zhejiang, China |
| University of Zanjan |
| Zanjan, Iran |
| University of Zagreb |
| Zagreb, Croatia |
| Zagazig University |
| Zagazig, Egypt |
| Yuan Ze University |
| Taoyuan City, Taiwan |
| Yokohama National University |
| Kanagawa, Japan |
| Yıldız Technical University |
| Istanbul, Turkey |
| Yeditepe University |
| Istanbul, Turkey |
| Yazd University |
| Safavieh, Iran |
| Yarmouk University |
| Irbid, Jordan |
Explore the full list.
10 lowest ranked in QS University ranking
Main indicators for evaluation: Academic and Employer Reputation, Faculty/student ratio, Citations per faculty, International faculty ratio, International student ratio.
Read more about the ranking methodology.
| University | Specialization areas | Location |
| Yeungnam University |
| South Korea |
| Yamaguchi University |
| Japan |
| Xi’an Jiaotong Liverpool University |
| China (Mainland) |
| Wuhan University of Technology |
| China (Mainland) |
| Wroclaw University of Science and Technology |
| Poland |
| Vytautas Magnus University |
| Lithuania |
| Vietnam National University |
| Vietnam |
| Viet Nam National University Ho Chi Minh City |
| Vietnam |
| Verona University |
| Italy |
| Utah State University |
| United States |
Explore the full list.
20 unranked universities
Knowing what to avoid is another way to navigate for the best. That’s why you might also find it useful to look through the list of unranked universities.
The reasons universities may fall out of the ranking system vary from not providing enough evaluation data to not corresponding to the pre-defined ranking standards. Either way, this signals that the university is not very competent or up-to-date in its approaches.
Consequently, being not included in top rankings is perhaps the best definition for the “worst universities.” The following list consists of 20 universities which are not ranked by US news data in 2020.
- American College of Thessaloniki
- American University in Cairo
- American University of Paris
- Brock University
- Chamberlain University
- Florida A&M University -- Florida State University
- Inter American University of Puerto Rico--Guayama
- McGill University
- Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education--Monterrey
- Pennsylvania State University--Harrisburg
- Ryerson University
- Tilburg University
- University of Calgary
- University of Ottawa
- University of Toronto
- Washington State University--Tri-Cities
- Washington State University -- Vancouver
- Western University
- West Virginia University Institute of Technology
- York University
Conclusion
Modern competition is fierce both in the education industry and employment market. Meanwhile, the difference gap between universities is small, offering a wide choice for any quality, budget, location and interests.
The list of university rankings platforms go beyond the above mentioned three. Each ranking has its own methodology, so read the evaluation methods first to find the rankings closer to your priorities.Coming from the opposite end, you can first shortlist universities most appealing to you, and find out whether they are included in the rankings after.
Of course, there are no absolute truths in the question of what brings people to success. You might still get a great employment and career being a graduate of an unranked university.
However, it goes with a good portion of logic that employers usually perceive candidates with ranked university education as more competitive. So, if you have a chance to alternate your choice of unranked university, use it!
Enlisting the help of the best college admissions consultants can be a wise decision for students who want to avoid attending the worst global universities. These consultants have extensive knowledge and expertise in the college admissions process, allowing them to identify reputable institutions and guide students in crafting strong application materials. With their assistance, students can make informed decisions and avoid the risks of attending universities with questionable academic standards or reputations.
Published on Jan 19, 2021
