For the third year in a row, no Nigerian university has made it into the top 1,000 of the Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings.
The 2026 edition of the ranking, released on June 19, 2025, again left out Nigeria’s 297 universities from the global top tier.
Only three Nigerian universities; the University of Ibadan, the University of Lagos, and Ahmadu Bello University, were listed at all. The University of Ibadan (UI) and University of Lagos (UNILAG) remained in the 1,001 to 1,200 category for the second year, while Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, made its first appearance in the 1,201 to 1,400 band.
The QS World University Rankings are published every year by the British firm Quacquarelli Symonds. They assess schools across the world based on eight indicators. These include academic reputation, employer reputation, research performance, international collaborations, faculty-student ratio, and graduate employability.
Despite having some of the oldest and most respected universities in Africa, Nigerian institutions continue to struggle in key areas that affect their global performance. These include low research output, limited international cooperation, and poor employment outcomes for graduates.
Meanwhile, other African countries are making steady progress. Egypt leads the continent with 20 universities on the QS 2026 list. South Africa follows with 11 universities, including the University of Cape Town, which ranked 150th globally, and the University of Witwatersrand, which came in at 291st.
Tunisia had four universities on the list, while Ghana and Morocco had two each. Kenya, Libya, Sudan, Uganda, and Ethiopia each had one university represented.
The top 10 universities in the world remain dominated by institutions in the United States and the United Kingdom. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) kept its number one spot, followed by Imperial College London and Stanford University.
While Nigerian universities continue to produce thousands of graduates each year, experts say more effort is needed to raise their international standards. Stakeholders are calling for improved funding, stronger research culture, and better global partnerships to help Nigerian institutions rise in future rankings.
