23
Universities in South Africa
586692
Students
49000000
Population
23 universities in South Africa are listed in 26 different university rankings (by institution) as well as 5 different subject specific rankings. 18 of these universities are listed in at least one institution or subject specific ranking.
Most comprehensive collection of university ranking scores worldwide. We monitor continuously 110 different university and subject rankings so that you can conveniently compare all rankings in one place.
- Oldest university in South Africa:
- University of Cape Town was founded in 1829
- Largest university in South Africa:
- North-West University with 72994 students
Latest ranking updates related to universities in South Africa
- 10 Oct, 2020: NTU Africa updated with University of Cape Town ranked highest among 4 listed universities in South Africa.
- 10 Oct, 2020: NTU Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers updated with University of Cape Town ranked highest among 6 listed universities in South Africa.
- 16 Sep, 2020: RUR Ranking Agency (Moscow, Russia) published most recent results of RUR Research Performance Ranking. Includes 4 universities from South Africa.
- 16 Sep, 2020: RUR Ranking Agency (Moscow, Russia) published most recent results of RUR Reputation Ranking. Includes 7 universities from South Africa.
Highest subject rankings of universities in South Africa
#1
Anthropology
(University Ranking by Academic Performance - By Subject)
(University Ranking by Academic Performance - By Subject)
#3
#1
University of the Witwatersrand
#2
Engineering - Mineral & Mining
(QS World University Rankings By Subject)
(QS World University Rankings By Subject)
#12
#1
University of the Witwatersrand
#3
Environment / Ecology
(NTU by Subject (2019))
(NTU by Subject (2019))
#136
#1
Universiteit Stellenbosch
#4
English
(QS World University Rankings By Subject)
(QS World University Rankings By Subject)
#201
#1
University of Johannesburg
Student satisfaction:
3.7 / 5.0
(1789 reviews)
Click to rate
| #147 | #1 | 4icu - Top English-Speaking Universities [01 July, 2020] | |
| #193 | #1 | 4icu - World Ranking [01 July, 2020] | |
| #201 | #1 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
3.8 / 5.0
(1094 reviews)
Click to rate
| #186 | #3 | 4icu - Top English-Speaking Universities [01 July, 2020] | |
| #201 | #2 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #11 | #2 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
4.1 / 5.0
(93 reviews)
Click to rate
| #501 | #5 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #54 | #4 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #477 | #3 | CWUR Center for World University Rankings [15 June, 2020] | |
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Student satisfaction:
4.4 / 5.0
(1622 reviews)
Click to rate
| #401 | #4 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #24 | #3 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #473 | #1 | CWTS Leiden Ranking [09 July, 2020] | |
| #601 | #7 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #118 | #7 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #651 | #6 | NTU Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers [10 October, 2020] | |
| #601 | #6 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #109 | #5 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #826 | #2 | CWTS Leiden Ranking [09 July, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
4.1 / 5.0
(79 reviews)
Click to rate
| #180 | #10 | QS University Rankings BRICS [06 May, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
4.0 / 5.0
(74 reviews)
Click to rate
| #401 | #5 | THE World University Rankings [24 August, 2020] | |
| #1682 | #11 | URAP World Ranking [15 December, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
2.4 / 5.0
(832 reviews)
Click to rate
| #211 | #11 | QS University Rankings BRICS [06 May, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
4.5 / 5.0
(237 reviews)
Click to rate
| #152 | #2 | 4icu - Top English-Speaking Universities [01 July, 2020] | |
| #401 | #3 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #124 | #8 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
3.1 / 5.0
(456 reviews)
Click to rate
| #2234 | #13 | URAP World Ranking [15 December, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
3.9 / 5.0
(69 reviews)
Click to rate
| #351 | #13 | QS University Rankings BRICS [06 May, 2019] | |
| #2096 | #12 | URAP World Ranking [15 December, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
4.1 / 5.0
(95 reviews)
Click to rate
| #2456 | #15 | URAP World Ranking [15 December, 2019] |
Student satisfaction:
4.0 / 5.0
(29 reviews)
Click to rate
| #281 | #12 | QS University Rankings BRICS [06 May, 2019] | |
| #2445 | #14 | URAP World Ranking [15 December, 2019] |
| #901 | #9 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #1130 | #3 | CWTS Leiden Ranking [09 July, 2020] | |
| #1295 | #6 | CWUR Center for World University Rankings [15 June, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
4.1 / 5.0
(80 reviews)
Click to rate
| #115 | #6 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #139 | #8 | QS University Rankings BRICS [06 May, 2019] | |
| #1001 | #23 | QS World University Rankings [10 June, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
4.1 / 5.0
(167 reviews)
Click to rate
| #251 | #10 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #1936 | #8 | CWUR Center for World University Rankings [15 June, 2020] | |
| #1001 | #25 | THE World University Rankings [24 August, 2020] | |
Student satisfaction:
3.1 / 5.0
(170 reviews)
Click to rate
| #801 | #8 | ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities [17 August, 2020] | |
| #251 | #9 | BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking [11 February, 2020] | |
| #1409 | #7 | CWUR Center for World University Rankings [15 June, 2020] | |
#19
Student satisfaction:
4.4 / 5.0
(29 reviews)
Click to rate
#20
Student satisfaction:
4.3 / 5.0
(33 reviews)
Click to rate
#21
Student satisfaction:
4.2 / 5.0
(64 reviews)
Click to rate
#22
Student satisfaction:
4.0 / 5.0
(21 reviews)
Click to rate
#23
Student satisfaction:
3.7 / 5.0
(5 reviews)
Click to rate
Key Facts about South Africa
Population: 49000000
Capital: Pretoria
Time: GMT +2
Telephone country code: +27
- Religion:
- Pentecostal 8%
- Catholicism 7%
- Methodist 7%
- Dutch Reformed 7%
- Anglican 4%
- Other Protestant 40%
- Atheist, agnostic and unclassified 15%
- Other religions: Islam, Hinduism 12%
- Largest cities in South Africa:
- 1. Cape Town: 3,500,000
- 2. Durban: 3,100,000
- 3. Johannesburg: 2,000,000
- 4. Soweto: 1,700,000
- 5. Pretoria: 1,600,000
Largest international airport in South Africa:
Oliver Reginald Tambo International (JNB): 20.692.780 Passengers/Year; 7 Terminals; 21 km. from Johannesburg city center
Living costs for students in South Africa:
- Big Mac price (South Africa average): 32.34 ZAR (47% cheaper than in United Kingdom)
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- Residential voltage: 230 V
- Frequency: 50 Hz
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- Residential voltage: 230 V
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- Residential voltage: 230 V
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- Residential voltage: 230 V
- Frequency: 50 Hz
Map with location of universities in South Africa
FAQ
University of Cape Town ranks #1 in South Africa in our meta ranking composed of 110 university rankings.
Among all universities in South Africa University of Cape Town is listed in the largest number of rankings. See all 23 rankings where University of Cape Town is listed.
University of the Witwatersrand is ranked best in South Africa for Social Studies & Humanities. See all rankings for the University of the Witwatersrand.
University of the Witwatersrand is ranked best in South Africa for Engineering. See all rankings for the University of the Witwatersrand.
Universiteit Stellenbosch is ranked best in South Africa for Natural Sciences. See all rankings for the Universiteit Stellenbosch.
University of Johannesburg is ranked best in South Africa for Languages & Literature. See all rankings for the University of Johannesburg.
Ranking publishers
4icu
- Universities:
- 196
- Published:
- 01 July, 2020
- Universities:
- 198
- Published:
- 01 July, 2020
British Quacquarelli Symonds, UK
- Universities:
- 1195
- Published:
- 04 March, 2020
- Universities:
- 487
- Published:
- 19 September, 2019
- Criteria used in ranking -QS Employability Rankings:
- Employer reputation 30%
Alumni outcomes 25%
Partnerships with Employers per Faculty 25%
Employer/Student Connections 10%
Graduate employment rate 10%
- Universities:
- 326
- Published:
- 06 May, 2019
- Criteria used in ranking -QS University Rankings BRICS:
- Academic reputation 30%
Employer reputation 20%
Faculty/student ratio 20%
Staff with a PhD 10%
Papers per faculty 10%
- Universities:
- 1106
- Published:
- 10 June, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -QS World University Rankings:
- Academic Reputation 40%
Employer Reputation 10%
Faculty/Student Ratio 20%
Citations per faculty 20%
International Faculty Ratio 5%
International Student Ratio 5%
- Universities:
- 131
- Published:
- 24 June, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -QS 50 under 50:
- Based on the QS World University rankings methodology, the top 50 universities that are under 50 years old.
Academic Reputation 40%
Employer Reputation 10%
Faculty/Student Ratio 20%
Citations per faculty 20%
International Faculty Ratio 5%
International Student Ratio 5%
CWUR Center for World University Rankings
- Universities:
- 1394
- Published:
- 15 June, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -CWUR Center for World University Rankings:
- Research Performance 40%
Quality of Education 25%
Alumni Employment 25%
Quality of Faculty 10%
Centre for Science and Technology Studies, Leiden University, Netherlands
- Universities:
- 476
- Published:
- 09 July, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -CWTS Leiden Ranking:
- Academic research publication
NTU ranking
- Universities:
- 1071
- Published:
- 30 July, 2019
- Universities:
- 742
- Published:
- 10 October, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -NTU Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers:
- Research excellence 40%
Research impact 35%
Research productivity 25%
- Universities:
- 5
- Published:
- 10 October, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -NTU Africa:
- Research productivity 25%
Research impact 35%
Research Excellence 40%
RUR Ranking Agency (Moscow, Russia)
- Universities:
- 752
- Published:
- 04 May, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -RUR World University Rankings:
- Teaching 40%
Research 40%
International Diversity 10%
Financial Sustainability 10%
- Universities:
- 745
- Published:
- 16 September, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -RUR Reputation Ranking:
- Teaching Reputation 50%
Research Reputation 50%
- Universities:
- 469
- Published:
- 16 September, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -RUR Research Performance Ranking:
- Normalized citation impact (Citations of research publications from all university authors compared with world averages) 20%
Citation per papers 20%
Papers per academic and research staff 20%
International research reputation 20%
Share of research publications written in international co-authorship 20%
- Universities:
- 745
- Published:
ShanghaiRanking Consultancy
- Universities:
- 939
- Published:
- 17 August, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -ARWU Academic Ranking of World Universities:
- Alumni winning research prizes 10%
Staff winning research prizes 20%
Research paper publications 20%
Papers published in Nature and Science 20%
Papers indexed in Science Citation Index-Expanded and Social Science Citation Index 20%
Per capita academic performance 10%
- Universities:
- 1136
- Published:
- 14 July, 2020
THE Times Higher Education, UK
- Universities:
- 167
- Published:
- 11 February, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -The World’s Most International Universities:
- Proportion of international students 25%
Proportion of international staff 25%
Proportion of journal publications with one or more international co-authors 25%
University’s international reputation 25%
- Universities:
- 1209
- Published:
- 15 November, 2019
- Universities:
- 153
- Published:
- 21 November, 2019
- Criteria used in ranking -THE Global University Employability Ranking:
- Employability (survey) 100%
- Universities:
- 1357
- Published:
- 24 August, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -THE World University Rankings:
- Teaching 30%
Research (volume, income and reputation) 30%
Citations 30%
International outlook (staff, students, research) 7.5%
Industry income (knowledge transfer) 2.5%
- Universities:
- 367
- Published:
- 15 June, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -Young University Rankings:
- Teaching 30%
Research (volume, income and reputation) 30%
Citations 30%
International outlook (staff, students, research) 7.5%
Industry income (knowledge transfer) 2.5%
- Universities:
- 494
- Published:
- 11 February, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -BRICS & Emerging Economies University Ranking:
- Teaching 30%
Research (volume, income and reputation) 30%
Citations 20%
International outlook (staff, students, research) 10%
Industry income (knowledge transfer) 10%
Urap
- Universities:
- 1863
- Published:
- 15 December, 2019
- Universities:
- 1422
- Published:
- 06 June, 2020
Webometrics
- Universities:
- 868
- Published:
- 01 July, 2020
- Criteria used in ranking -Webometrics:
- Visibility 50%
Excellence 35%
Transparency 10%
Presence 5%