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RankingMultiple Bests in Shanghai Subject Ranking

9 July 2019

Medical technology, clinical medicine and public health first in Germany – biosciences also fare extremely well

The Global Ranking of Academic Subjects 2019 rated Heidelberg University as Germany's top institution in a total of three subjects in the medical sciences field: medical technology as well as clinical medicine and public health (jointly with another university from Germany). In the international comparison, Heidelberg placed ninth in medical technology (up from eleventh), by far Ruperto Carola's best-scoring subject, while clinical medicine ranks 35th internationally. As in 2018, public health placed in the 51-to-75 ranking group worldwide, as did the biological sciences in the life sciences category. In the latter subject ranking group, Heidelberg University placed second in Germany (likewise together with another German university). The human biological sciences rank 45th internationally. 

The subject ranking list, which is part of the Academic Ranking of World Universities, also known as the Shanghai Ranking, was published in June 2019. It comprises five broad fields of academic study to which the individual subject areas evaluated are assigned. The ranking is largely based on the number of publications, and most subjects also take into account the awards won by an institution. There are a total of five indicators, each of which is weighted differently depending on the discipline. In the Academic Ranking of World Universities published last year, Heidelberg University ranked number one in Germany for the fifth year in a row, maintaining its top position from 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. Ruperto Carola placed twelfth in Europe in the Shanghai Ranking and 47th internationally.