Breadcrumbs

Rankings and reputation

Our university stands proudly on the world stage as a provider of future-focused, international education and an active player in global research. Our rankings reflect these strengths.

QS Rankings

QS World University Rankings 2024

Placed 250th in the world and the #1 University in New Zealand for Research (measured by citations per faculty member).

QS Rankings by Subject 2023

15 subjects and subject areas ranked by QS, 10 in the top 300 globally:

  • Accounting & Finance (251-300)
  • Communication & Media Studies (201-250)
  • English Language & Literature (251-300)
  • Education (201-250)
  • Geography (151-200)
  • Hospitality and Leisure Management (101-150)
  • Law (251-300)
  • Philosophy (201-210)
  • Sociology (251-300)
  • Sports-related Subjects (101-140)

QS Sustainability Ranking 2024

Ranked 99th in the world, with a 27th place in Environmental Education and 36th place in Environmental Impact.

Find out more about our all our QS Rankings here.

QS Annual Survey

QS uses an annual survey to assess institutions’ academic and employer reputation:

If you employ our graduates and would like to take part in this annual survey, please click on the button below to sign up for the survey.
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If you are an academic in a university anywhere in the world, or if you have knowledge of academic research in your area of expertise, and would like to take part in the survey, please click on the button below to sign up for the survey.
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      QS Stars

      Given an overall rating of 'Excellent' (5 stars) by QS in their QS Stars Ratings, which aim to give prospective students an additional tool to use when choosing a university.

      Times Higher Education (THE) Rankings

      THE Impact Rankings 2023

      Ranked 92nd in the world.

      The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings score institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

      The ranking reflects the University of Waikato’s commitment to using the power of our research and our people to make a significant, positive contribution on both a local and global scale.

      We are proud to be ranked 32nd in the world for SDG17 Partnership for the Goals, 34th for SDG14 Life below Water, 44th for SDG15 Life on Land, 48th for SDG16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions and 51st for SGD5 Gender Equality. You can read more about our commitment to sustainability here.

      THE World University Rankings 2024

      We are ranked in the 401-500 band globally.

      THE Rankings by Subject 2024

      Five subjects ranked by THE in the top 300 globally:

      • Business and Economics (151-175)
      • Education (251-300)
      • Life Sciences (251-300)
      • Psychology (251-300)
      • Social Sciences (176-200)

      Find out more about our THE World University and Subject Rankings here.

      International student satisfaction

      The 2023 International Student Barometer surveyed over 117,000 international students studying all over the world.

      90% of the students surveyed who studied at the University of Waikato were very satisfied or satisfied with their experience. Our satisfaction rates are higher than the comparable benchmarks for the international universities and the six New Zealand universities that took part.

      Students on stairs in WMS

      Waikato Management School: Triple Crown status

      Waikato Management School is a member of an elite group of business schools worldwide that have earned 'Triple Crown' status – an international acknowledgement of excellence in business education. We are accredited to AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA – only 1% of the world's business schools have met the strict standards of all three accreditation bodies.

      MBA students

      Internationally accredited MBA

      In 2022, Waikato Management School received re-accreditation for its MBA programme from AMBA for five years, the maximum length of accreditation available.

      Students working in Tauranga engineering lab

      Engineering New Zealand accredited

      At Waikato, our eligible engineering programmes are fully accredited by Engineering New Zealand. This means that our Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) students benefit from a qualification that is benchmarked to international standards and recognised internationally.

      Computer Science students using laptops

      iSchools member

      Our School of Computing and Mathematical Sciences is the first New Zealand member of the international group of iSchools – a partnership of the world's leading information schools. Membership reflects the international standing of our research into the relationships between information, people and technology; ranging from cyber-security and data mining to graphic design.

      Student success stories