Almost all South African universities participate in international rankings, despite well-aired criticism of the underlying methodology.
While many institutions acknowledge flaws in the assessments run by commercial enterprises, their marketing departments nevertheless position the results as evidence of their stature.
Rhodes University is the only local institution that has walked away, arguing that the rankings may provide a decent measure of research output and institutional status but are ultimately a poor gauge of quality.
“Rankings are an unscientific way of comparing institutions and primarily serve as a means of extracting data. In an era of increasing science scepticism and anti-intellectualism, it is disappointing that so many universities are willing to play a game that is so at odds with basic notions of good science,” says Rhodes University professor of higher education research Sioux McKenna.
Each ranking system applies its own methodology — which is often not entirely transparent — to the data it obtains to determine a final score. Critics say most of the measures are poor proxies for the characteristics they seek to represent, that the weightings applied to the various components are arbitrary, and that calculating the average (mean) score of unrelated components is bad science.
“We tell our students in undergraduate research methods courses that you cannot simply get an average from unrelated metrics. What is the average of six apples and four oranges? The rankings industry will simply tell you it is five,” says McKenna.
A growing number of universities and schools in Europe and the US, including the Sorbonne, Utrecht, Harvard Medical School and the law schools of Columbia, Harvard, Yale and Stanford, have pulled out of the rankings, citing concerns about their lack of objectivity.
But South Africa’s leading research-intensive universities, while acknowledging flaws in the ranking systems, remain participants.
Notwithstanding some of the misgivings around ranking systems, this ranking is important because it uses objective data to rank universities on education, research, faculty and the employability of graduates
— Zeblon Vilakazi, Wits vice-chancellor
Wits University, which announced last month that it had for the first time been ranked the top African university by the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR), says it is proud of the place it has earned. “Notwithstanding some of the misgivings around ranking systems, this ranking is important because it uses objective data to rank universities on education, research, faculty and the employability of graduates,” says Wits vice-chancellor Zeblon Vilakazi.
Wits’ deputy vice-chancellor for research, Lynn Morris, says universities will get ranked, whether they actively participate or not. “It is not possible to pull out of all rankings, as they access publicly available data. As an institution we take a pragmatic approach,” she says.
UCT spokesperson Elijah Moholola says its “strong and consistent” performance across the major global university rankings confirms its position as one of Africa’s leading research-intensive universities and among the world’s top institutions. “UCT is currently ranked 150th globally in the (QS) World University Rankings, 164th in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, 276th in the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR), within the 201–300 band in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) and 124th by US News and World Report Rankings," he says, noting that UCT is the leading African university in all of these rankings, except for the CWUR.
The rankings do have limitations, he concedes, as they emphasise easily measured metrics such as research outputs and reputation, but often under-represent factors that are important for universities in developing countries, such as social justice and service to local communities. “Institutions in the Global South may also face structural disadvantages because many ranking indicators are based on historical reputation, resource intensity and publication patterns that favour established universities in wealthier countries,” he says.
SU views rankings for what they are: useful but partial proxies, not measures of a university’s full worth
— Anél Lewis, Stellenbosch University spokesperson
Stellenbosch University (SU) says its standing is consistent across the major global ranking systems and is notable given the funding, energy and infrastructure challenges facing South African universities. “SU views rankings for what they are: useful but partial proxies, not measures of a university’s full worth. A university ranked 50th globally may make a modest contribution to local challenges, while one ranked 500th may transform thousands of lives through teacher education, health care, agricultural innovation or public service,” says SU spokesperson Anél Lewis.
Former University of the Free State vice-chancellor Jonathan Jansen says the rankings are a charade that must end.
“Every vice-chancellor will say [privately] that they don’t take it seriously, but boast when they are the top in Africa. It is a vanity we cannot afford to participate in,” he says.
Rather than investing in strategies to climb the rankings, universities should be putting their energy into supporting undergraduates from disadvantaged backgrounds, he says. “I would like to see universities that take in students who’ve been failed by the public school system and make them succeed. Where’s the merit award for that kind of accomplishment?”
Prof Johann Mouton, director of the Centre for Research on Evaluation, Science and Technology at SU, is equally sceptical of the value of university rankings. He argues the real beneficiaries are the commercial enterprises that publish the rankings, not the participating institutions. Worse still, despite all the resources universities dedicate to collating information for the ranking firms, the data is of little use.
“You cannot use it for strategic decision-making. There is overwhelming evidence the rankings are not worth the paper they are written on,” he said.
Update: June 15 2026
This story was updated to include comment from Wits University pointing out that the companies that devise university ranking systems can use publicly available data, making it difficult for institutions to pull away entirely
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