The THE Rankings are among the most influential global university rankings, with an increasing number of institutions participating each year since 2011. In the current assessment period, 2,191 universities were evaluated – up from 2,092 in the previous year. Of these, only the most research-intensive faculties make it into the subject-specific rankings, the THE Subject Rankings.
For the University of Passau, the School of Business, Economics and Information Systems continues to perform strongest, placing in the 201–250 range. This puts the school on par with institutions such as Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU) and Sorbonne University in Paris. Internationally, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University once again lead the ranking.
Professor Suleika Bort, Dean of the School of Business, Economics and Information Systems, is delighted with the school’s outstanding performance in the 2026 THE Subject Ranking: "This result once again highlights the international reputation of our faculty. Our students benefit directly from this academic excellence and are introduced early on to pioneering research topics."
Professor Jan Hendrik Schumann, Vice President for Research, also congratulated the school: "On behalf of the entire University Executive, I commend my faculty for this remarkable achievement. The combination of individual research efforts by our academics and ambitious collaborative projects – such as the DFG Research Training Group ‘Digital Platform Ecosystems’ – enables this sustained success."
The rankings assess 18 different indicators covering teaching, research environment, research quality, industry engagement and international outlook. Some data, particularly key figures on students, staff, and financial resources, are provided by the participating universities themselves. Additional data is sourced by THE from academic databases and a global survey of scholars.