International Rankings
THE World University Rankings
Results of the current ranking
In the 2024 edition of the THE (Times Higher Education) World University Rankings, the University of Freiburg came in at 128th worldwide and 11th in national comparison. The University of Freiburg stands out particularly in the ‘Industry’ category, where it achieved the maximum score of 100 points. The indicators of this category are ‘Industry Income’ and ‘Patents’. ‘Industry Income’ rates performance in knowledge transfer, specifically through innovations, inventions, and consultancy. The ‘Patents’ metric evaluates performance in technology transfer and measures the number of patents citing research published by a particular institution.
Methodology
The THE Rankings originated in an educational supplement of the British daily newspaper The Times and has been conducted on a worldwide basis since 2004. The rankings are based on 18 performance indicators in the areas of teaching, research environment, research quality, international outlook, and industry.
QS World University Rankings
Results of the current ranking
The QS World University Rankings currently (2025 edition) list the University of Freiburg as the tenth best German university (212th worldwide).
Methodology
The British agency Quacquarelli Symonds conducted the THE Rankings from 2004 to 2010 and has published its own rankings since 2010. The rankings are compiled on the basis of nine differently weighted indicators, taking into account reputation as well as key figures on research, international aspects, employability, and sustainability.
Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU)
Results of the current ranking
In the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), also known as the Shanghai Ranking, the University of Freiburg comes in at 101st to 150th internationally. (The ranking does not allow for a more precise breakdown of the results.) Nationally, the University of Freiburg is ranked 5th.
Methodology
Published since 2003, the Shanghai Ranking is among the oldest and most renowned research rankings. Since 2009 it has been published annually by Shanghai Ranking Consultancy, an independent organization for information on higher education. The ranking compares universities on the basis of six indicators that consider various aspects to measure the research performance of universities.
Highly Cited Researchers
Results of the current ranking
Eight University of Freiburg researchers are among the ‘Highly Cited Researchers’ for 2023. A survey by Clarivate Analytics reveals that they are among the most frequently cited authors worldwide in their fields of research over the past decade. With nine entries (one researcher is recognized for two disciplines), the University of Freiburg holds fifth place among German universities alongside Bonn and Düsseldorf.
Methodology
Clarivate Analytics identifies the Highly Cited Researchers from an analysis of the most-cited papers in the Web of Science literature database. The list ranks the authors of research papers that are among the top one per cent in their field in the Web of Science citations index. For 2023, the survey looked at papers that were published and cited in the period from January 2012 to December 2022. In total, the list includes more than 6,800 researchers from more than 1,300 institutions across 67 countries and regions.
CWTS Leiden Ranking
Results of the current ranking
Die Open Edition of the Leiden Ranking 2024 lists the University of Freiburg in 11th place nationally in terms of scientific impact, i.e. the relative proportion of publications from the University of Freiburg that are among the top 10% in terms of citation frequency. In the fields of mathematics and computer science, the university is in 4th place.
Methodology
The newly introduced Open Edition of the renowned CWTS Leiden Ranking focuses on data from freely available sources, such as the bibliographic database OpenAlex or the Research Organization Registry (ROR), and exclusively uses open source algorithms to calculate bibliometric indicators. The open source CWTS Ranking is published alongside the traditional ranking, which, as in previous years, is based on bibliographic data from Clarivate Analytics’ proprietary Web of Science database.
National Rankings
CHE Ranking
Results of the current ranking
The 2024 edition of the CHE Ranking included new evaluations of universities in the fields of biochemistry, biology/bioscience, chemistry, geography, earth science, computer science, mathematics, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, physics, political science, sociology, physical education/sports science, and dentistry. Particularly noteworthy are the positive assessments by students in the areas of organization of studies, introduction to academic work, IT infrastructure, and available space, with marks of at least 3.8 stars across many fields. The CHE Ranking also illustrates the strong support students receive when they begin their studies at the University of Freiburg. Here, the University of Freiburg is placed in the top group in many fields of study.
Methodology
The CHE Ranking allows comprehensive comparison of colleges and universities in different fields of study. Facts as well as assessments are collected. The fact indicators are presented in ranking groups, including classification into top, midfield, and bottom of the group. Student assessments are presented as stars, with five stars representing the best and one star the worst score.
DFG Funding Atlas
Results of the current ranking
The University of Freiburg ranks ninth among German universities in terms of the acquisition of third-party funding in the 2021 edition of the German Research Foundation’s (DFG) Funding Atlas. After adjustment by structure of research field and amount of professorships, the University of Freiburg even ranks third on this indicator among all German universities. The DFG awarded a total of around 9.48 billion euros in research funding in the period 2017 to 2019. It is the largest provider of university research funding and is a self-governing body. DFG research grants are considered an expression of research excellence due to the predominantly research-driven and competitively organized approval procedures. As approval is contingent on regular positive peer evaluation, the grants are regarded as proof of particularly high competitiveness. In the 2019 fiscal year, DFG funding accounted for 42 per cent of the total amount of third-party funding raised at the University of Freiburg (including the University Medical Centre).
Methodology
The German Research Foundation (DFG) publishes its Funding Atlas every three years. The Funding Atlas presents various key figures on publicly funded research on the basis of data from all major public research funding bodies in Germany and the European Union.
Humboldt Ranking
Results of the current ranking
The University of Freiburg comes in at tenth place nationally in the current Humboldt Ranking. A total of 113 holders of Humboldt Foundation fellowships and awards conducted research at the University of Freiburg in the past years.
Methodology
The ranking of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation shows where in Germany international visiting scholars conducted research on fellowships or awards from the foundation in the past five years. To avoid statistical biases arising from the different sizes of the host institutions, the ranking puts the stays in relation to the number of professorships at the respective institution.
Starting with the 2023 edition, the ranking considers higher education institutions (universities, universities of applied sciences, universities of music and art) separately from non-university research institutes and other institutions for better comparability.
Sustainability Rankings
THE Impact Rankings
Results of the current ranking
Every year, the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings (THE Impact Rankings) investigate the impact of higher education institutions worldwide on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. In 2024, the University of Freiburg ranks among the top 100 internationally in four SDGs: SDG 6 (rank 81), SDG 9 (rank 32), SDG 13 (rank 92), SDG 16 (rank 42). In SDG 16, it achieves 1st place nationwide.
Methodology
The methodology of the rankings is built around the individual SDGs. Higher education institutions receive a score and ranking for their activities in the SDGs for which they provide data. To participate in the overall rankings, higher education institutions must submit data for at least four SDGs, one of which must be SDG 17.
The overall ranking score is calculated on the basis of the score on SDG 17 (which accounts for 22 per cent of the overall ranking) and the three strongest other SDGs for which a university provided data (each of these accounts for 26 per cent of the overall ranking).
QS World University Rankings: Sustainability
Results of the current ranking
The University of Freiburg is ranked fourth nationally overall in comparison to 47 other universities on the ‘QS World University Rankings: Sustainability 2024’. The University of Freiburg scored particularly high in the category ‘Environmental Impact’, taking first place nationally; internationally, the University of Freiburg is ranked 55th in this category. It achieved especially high ratings in ‘Environmental Education’ and ‘Environmental Research’, receiving the highest score nationally in the former and the third-highest in the latter. In the area ‘Social Impact’, the University of Freiburg placed 7th nationally and a joint 145th internationally, scoring especially high in the field ‘Health and Well-Being’ – third-highest in Germany. On the overall ranking, the University of Freiburg is ranked joint 94th, thus achieving a top 100 placement internationally for the first time on this ranking.
Methodology
The ‘QS World University Rankings: Sustainability’ rate universities with regard to their commitment to sustainability in research, teaching, and society in an overall ranking as well as in three categories: ‘Social Impact’, ‘Environmental Impact’, and ‘Governance’. The ‘Social Impact’ and ‘Environmental Impact’ categories each account for 45 per cent of the overall ranking, and the ‘Governance’ category is weighted at 10 per cent.
Subject Rankings
THE World University Rankings by Subject
Results of the current ranking
The current ‘World University Rankings 2024 by subject’ from Times Higher Education (THE) include ratings in eleven subject groups. In several of these, the University of Freiburg is among the top 100 or 200 universities in international comparison. At the national level, it is ranked among the 10 best universities in multiple subjects:
- Life Sciences: 6th place nationally, 65th place internationally
- Arts and Humanities: 6th place nationally, 76th place internationally
- Clinical and Health: 6th place nationally, 98th place internationally
- Computer Science: 8th place nationally, 101st–125th place internationally
- Engineering: 9th place nationally, 176th–200th place internationally
- Social Sciences: 10th place nationally, 176th–200th place internationally
Methodology
In accordance with the methodology of the ‘THE World University Rankings’, 18 indicators in the areas of teaching, research environment, research quality, international orientation, and industry are taken into account. Their weighting varies depending on the subject group.
QS World University Rankings by Subject
Results of the current ranking
The current QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024 include a total of 55 subject-specific rankings in the following five broad subject areas: ‘Arts & Humanities’, ‘Engineering & Technology’, ‘Life Sciences & Medicine’, ‘Natural Sciences’, and ‘Social Sciences & Management’. The University of Freiburg is listed in 33 subject rankings.
In the QS World University Rankings by Subject, the University of Freiburg secured several top 100 and top 200 spots at the international level and top 10 spots at the national level, such as:
- Dentistry: 1st place nationally, 51st–100th place internationally
- Anatomy and Physiology: 2nd place nationally, 51st–100th place internationally
- Agriculture and Forestry: 5th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Law and Legal Studies: 6th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- History: 6th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Modern Languages: 6th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Classic and Ancient History: 7th place nationally, 51st–100th place internationally
- Biological Sciences: 7th place nationally, 101st place internationally
- Medicine: 7th place nationally, 135th place internationally
- Environmental Sciences: 7th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Geography: 7th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
Methodology
The rankings are based on five indicators: ‘Academic Reputation’, ‘Employer Reputation’, ‘Research Citations per Paper’, ‘H-Index’ (key figure for the global perception of researchers in specialist circles), and ‘International Research Network’. The degree to which the indicators are weighted varies from subject area to subject area.
ShanghaiRanking’s Global Ranking of Academic Subjects
Results of the current ranking
The ‘Global Ranking of Academic Subjects’ includes assessments in 55 subjects from natural sciences, engineering, life sciences, and medical and social sciences. In many subjects, the University of Freiburg is ranked in the top 100 and top 200. At the national level, it achieved numerous top-10 placements:
- Computer Science and Engineering: 2nd–3rd place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Dentistry and Oral Sciences: 3rd–7th place nationally, 76th–100th place internationally
- Water Resources: 4th–7th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Geography: 5th–9th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Biomedical Engineering: 6th–10th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Ecology: 7th–8th place nationally, 76th–100th place internationally
- Statistics: 7th–11th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Psychology: 7th–12th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Human Biological Sciences: 8th–9th place nationally, 76th–100th place internationally
- Biotechnology: 8th–9th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
- Medical Technology: 8th–10th place nationally, 51st–75th place internationally
- Biological Sciences: 8th–12th place nationally, 101st–150th place internationally
- Mathematics: 10th–13th place nationally, 151st–200th place internationally
Methodology
The ranking takes various aspects into account in measuring the research performance of universities, such as publications, citations, and academic awards. The ‘Global Ranking of Academic Subjects’ compares five key indicators, which are weighted differently depending on the subject.