Mainland China’s Peking University secures first place in Asian league table, while Hong Kong institutions all slide lower in ranking
- Prestigious academic institution in Beijing beats National University of Singapore to claim first place among Asia’s varsities
- British analytics company behind the list says Hong Kong still boasts ‘one of the highest concentrations of quality universities’ in the world
Peking University in Beijing has beat out Singapore’s top college to claim first place in an influential league table for Asia, while all of Hong Kong’s academic institutions have taken a collective tumble in the rankings.
British firm Quacquarelli Symonds, which compiled the Asian University Rankings 2023, on Tuesday said that despite the slight drop in the list, Hong Kong remained a world-renowned academic hotspot, with three local varsities ranked among the continent’s top 20.
“Hong Kong not only boasts one of the highest concentrations of quality universities in the region, but in the world,” the company said.
The city’s two oldest academic institutions, the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and Chinese University (CUHK), each fell one spot to a respective fourth and 12th places among the 760 varsities ranked in Asia.
A representative for HKU said it was working towards its plan to become Asia’s “global university”, a move which would enhance its international reputation.
A spokeswoman for CUHK also said the result should be considered in the broader context of the city’s overall performance, explaining: “CUHK’s result was not an outlier and the university maintains a very competitive overall position in Asia.”
The ranking was also historic for Peking University, which claimed the top spot for the first time, overtaking the National University of Singapore, which held the position in past listings.