Azerbaijan rejects Armenian claims over QS university rankings

Azerbaijan has rejected claims published in Armenian media regarding the latest Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings, saying the methodology and overall results demonstrate the growing international competitiveness of the country's higher education institutions.

The 2026–2027 QS World University Rankings, published by British higher education analytics company Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), sparked debate in Armenian media, Caliber.Az reports.

An article published by Sputnik Armenia claimed that Yerevan State University outperforms Azerbaijani universities on nearly all objective indicators, including scientific publications and participation in international research programmes.

According to the QS rankings, six Azerbaijani universities are among the world's top 1,000 higher education institutions, with three ranked in the top 800. Baku State University recorded the country's highest placement, ranking 565th globally.

Overall, 10 Azerbaijani universities were included in the global QS rankings. Armenia, by contrast, was represented only by Yerevan State University, which was placed in the 1001–1200 band.

The report argues that the interpretation presented by Sputnik Armenia is one-sided, noting that the QS World University Rankings assess universities using a methodology based on nine indicators grouped into five categories: research performance (50%), graduate employability outcomes (20%), internationalisation (15%), learning experience (10%) and sustainability (5%).

It says universities are evaluated across all of these categories to determine their overall rankings.

According to the analysis, Yerevan State University scored above 50 points in only two indicators—graduate employability outcomes and faculty-to-student ratio—neither of which measures research performance.

It also states that five of the six Azerbaijani universities ranked in the global top 1,000—Baku State University, Azerbaijan State University of Economics (UNEC), Azerbaijan State Oil and Industry University, Azerbaijan Technical University and Khazar University—outperformed Yerevan State University in six of the nine criteria used by QS.

The report further says data from international bibliometric databases contradict the claims made regarding research performance. According to SciVal (Scopus), Baku State University and the Azerbaijan State University of Economics each published more than 1,000 scientific papers in 2025, while Yerevan State University recorded fewer than 700 publications.

It adds that Azerbaijan's geographical position at the crossroads of Europe and Asia provides favourable conditions for international academic cooperation, academic mobility and the integration of its universities into the global education system.

The report describes education as an important element of Azerbaijan's soft power policy, citing initiatives such as the French-Azerbaijani University (UFAZ), the Italian-Azerbaijani University and the Turkish-Azerbaijani University. It says expanding international partnerships, dual-degree programmes and joint research projects has strengthened the global standing of Azerbaijani universities.

According to the report, these efforts are supported by state investment in higher education and overseas scholarship programmes, through which thousands of Azerbaijani citizens have studied at leading universities around the world and contributed to the development of the country's education system, public administration and economy.

It concludes that the improved performance of Azerbaijani universities in international rankings reflects a consistent state policy aimed at internationalising higher education, developing human capital and expanding international scientific cooperation.

The report says the latest QS rankings demonstrate the steady development of Azerbaijan's higher education system and the growing international competitiveness of its universities, adding that interpreting individual indicators outside the broader QS methodology does not provide an objective picture and may lead to misleading conclusions.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov