VSB-TUO improves in 13 out of 18 indicators in prestigious THE World University Rankings
VSB – Technical University of Ostrava has strengthened its position in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings. Among 2,191 universities from 115 countries, it maintained its 1201–1500 band while improving its overall score and advancing in 13 of 18 indicators. Among Czech universities, it shares seventh place, and ranking fifth nationally in Research Environment and Teaching.
“I am pleased with the positive trend and improvement in a number of indicators. The beneficial effects of the changes we initiated in recent years through strategic projects are gradually becoming apparent. Dozens of new scientists from both home and abroad have joined existing teams, we have succeeded in a number of international projects, and interest from prospective students is also increasing. Therefore, I believe that we will continue to improve in the coming years, and I thank everyone who has contributed to this,” said Igor Ivan, Rector of VSB – Technical University of Ostrava (VSB-TUO).
Best result in internationalisation
Out of the five main pillars of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026 (THE WUR), VSB-TUO achieved its best placement in the International Outlook category, ranking 742nd with a score of 55.4, which represents a significant year-on-year improvement of 104 places (last year 846th place, score 50.6). Nationally, it ranks ninth. This area focuses on the proportion of international students, the proportion of international staff, and international collaboration (measured by the proportion of publications with international co-authors).
The second-best ranked area is Research Environment, in which VSB-TUO placed 878th with a score of 20.9, while a year ago it achieved 830th place with a score of 21.1. In the national comparison, it ranks 5th. This category monitors three indicators: research productivity (number of publications per academic staff member), research reputation survey, and the volume of research and development income.
“The University also improved its position in the Industry area, which tracks the volume of industry income and the number of patents from any source that cite research conducted by the university. With a ranking of 972nd and a score of 48.5 (last year 1014th place, score 43.3), it saw an improvement of 42 places year-on-year. Nationally, it ranks sixth,” said Kateřina Angus, International Evaluation and Rankings Officer at VSB-TUO.
VSB-TUO also moved up one position nationally, to fifth place, in the area of Teaching, which evaluates teaching reputation, staff-to-student ratio, doctorate-to-bachelor’s ratio, doctorates-awarded-to-academic-staff ratio, and institutional income. Globally, it ranks 1115th.
Significant improvement in Research Quality
A notable improvement compared to the previous year occurred in the area of Research Quality, which tracks citation impact, research strength, research influence, and research excellence. VSB-TUO improved its position by 71 places in this area, ranking 1469th with a score of 38.5.
The methodology for the 22nd edition of THE WUR uses 18 indicators grouped into 5 areas (pillars). Across all 18 evaluated indicators, VSB-TUO recorded a year-on-year improvement in 13 of them. Particular attention deserves, for example, the Patents indicator (the number of patents from any source that cite research conducted by the university), for which VSB-TUO recorded a score increase of 29.1 since 2023, when this indicator was first included in the methodology.
(Source: Web THE)
The source of bibliometric data for the THE WUR 2026 evaluation is the Scopus database by Elsevier. The data includes over 28,700 active peer-reviewed journals indexed in Scopus and all publications between 2020 and 2024. Citations of these publications for the period 2020 to 2025 are also included. Statistical data, such as the number of staff, students, graduates, and financial information (total institutional income and research income), are provided by the evaluated universities themselves.
Further details are available here.