IIT Madras tops NIRF rankings for seventh consecutive year

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has retained its position as the country’s leading higher education institution, securing the top spot in the Ministry of Education’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) for the seventh straight year. The rankings were released on Thursday by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru followed IIT Madras in the overall category, while also emerging as the highest-ranked university in the country. Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) secured second place among universities, with Manipal Academy of Higher Education and Jamia Millia Islamia taking the third and fourth positions, respectively.

In the colleges category, Delhi University’s Hindu College claimed the top rank, pushing Miranda House to second place. Hans Raj College, Kirori Mal College, and St Stephen’s College filled the third, fourth, and fifth positions.

For research institutions, IISc Bengaluru continued to lead, followed by IIT Madras. Among open universities, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) maintained its dominance, with Karnataka State Open University in Mysuru taking the second spot.

The NIRF rankings, introduced in 2015, evaluate institutions on parameters such as teaching, learning, research, graduation outcomes, and outreach. This year’s results once again underline the consistency of IIT Madras and IISc Bengaluru in shaping India’s higher education landscape.