McMaster is setting the global standard for industry impact, according to a key international ranking. 

With a research output rivalling universities more than twice its size, McMaster ranked 1st in the world in Times Higher Education’s (THE) Industry metric, a significant increase over last year.  

“At McMaster, we have built an ecosystem of innovation that enables our researchers and industry partners to make new discoveries, spark economic growth and advance health and well-being in our local, national and global communities,” says Andy Knights, acting vice-president, research.  

“Industry consistently turns to our researchers to find real-world solutions that lead to new innovations, start-up opportunities and job creation.” 

Learn more about our ecosystem of innovation in the McMaster Industry Liaison Office’s annual report 

This key performance metric underscores McMaster’s ranking as one of the world’s top universities in the 2024 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.  

Placing fourth in Canada, McMaster also ranked among the top 85 public institutions worldwide. Overall, McMaster ranked 103rd globally in the broader institutional rankings amidst growing international competition.  

“Earlier this year, THE once again identified McMaster as a world leader in research that promotes health and well-being for all,” says McMaster president David Farrar.  

“Learning directly from these world-class researchers, our students gain the skills and experience they need to become the next generation of industry leaders and innovators who are prepared to solve the global issues we all face.”

In addition to the university’s world-leading performance in industry impact, McMaster also ranked 1st in Canada and 75th in the world in the Research Quality metric, which quantifies a university’s role in spreading new knowledge and ideas across the globe. This is done by examining the quality and strength of more than 134 million citations across 16.5 million publications from universities across the globe. 

This year, the World University Rankings surveyed over 1,900 universities from 108 countries and regions, up from the 1,799 surveyed last year.  

Using a number of performance indicators, including teaching, research, citations, reputation, knowledge transfer, international outlook and industry income, the Times Higher Education World University Rankings are widely regarded as a barometer of excellence in higher education. 

Earlier this year, McMaster also ranked 33rd in the world for Global Impact, according to the Times Higher Education University Impact Rankings. These rankings are based on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a call to action to end poverty and hunger, reduce inequalities, improve health and education and build a more sustainable, equitable world. 

In addition to the Times Higher Education rankings, McMaster also ranked among the world’s best in this year’s Shanghai Rankings and the university ranked in the top 50 worldwide for the study of life sciences and medicine in this year’s QS Rankings.