Two Dutch universities have achieved spots in the top 100 in a ranking of scientific universities around the world, with Utrecht University being named the number one science university in the Netherlands.

CWTS Leiden Ranking 2022

Published annually by the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS), the Leiden Ranking acts as a comprehensive guide to the scientific performance of over 1.300 major universities around the world. 

The ranking of the higher education institutions included in the study is based on data and statistics that provide insight into the quality and the wider impact of the universities’ scientific publications. 

While the top spot in this year’s ranking goes to Harvard University, the top 10 is dominated by Chinese universities. The highest-ranking European university is the University of Oxford in 22nd place. 

Five Dutch universities secure spots in the top 150 

All 13 Dutch universities were featured in this year’s ranking, and two even managed to secure spots in the top 100: the Utrecht University (UU) and the University of Amsterdam (UvA)! UU claimed the 80th position, making it the best scientific university in the Netherlands, while UvA was only a few places behind in 90th. The ranking comes just a few short weeks after UvA was named the best university in the Netherlands.

According to CWTS’ data, the university in Utrecht published 9.899 scientific papers between 2017 and 2020, over half of which belong to the top 50 of their respective field. The majority of UU's publications were in the field of biomedical and health sciences. Similarly, over in Amsterdam where UvA published 9.464 papers in the same time period, the most popular field amongst academics was also biomedical and health sciences.

While both universities managed to hold on to places in the top 100, their rankings did slip slightly compared to 2021. The University of Groningen fell just outside of the top 100 this year, coming in 111th place with a total of 8.623 scientific publications. It’s followed by Leiden University in 146th and Radboud University in 149th.

For more information about the ranking, or to see how your university performed, visit the Leiden Ranking website.