University of Žilina (UNIZA) took joint first place among Slovak universities in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2026 (THE WUR 2026). This result confirms the long-term development of the university's quality in the areas of research, education, and industry cooperation.
Globally, UNIZA ranked between 1201st and 1500th place, retaining its solid position among the world's top universities. Apart from UNIZA, the ranking also included additional Slovak universities – Comenius University in Bratislava, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice and Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra.
THE WUR university ranking 2026 encompassed 2,191 universities from 115 countries and regions. It is regarded as one of the most comprehensive global evaluations of academic institutions.
UNIZA received the strongest evaluation in the Research Quality and Industry parameters, which belong to the main pillars of the WUR 3.0 assessment model.
THE WUR methodology evaluates universities according to 18 indicators in five key areas:
- teaching (29.5%)
- research environment (29%)
- research quality (30%)
- cooperation with the industry (4%) and
- international outlook (7.5%).
This success confirms that UNIZA belongs among the leading Slovak universities with significant international reach, high-quality research, and a strong connection to practice.
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