Makerere University has been ranked 23rd in Africa and 639th globally in the 2026–2027 edition of the US News & World Report Best Global Universities Rankings, earning an overall score of 44.9.
The rankings, which are widely used by students, researchers and policymakers to assess the quality of higher education institutions worldwide, saw the University of Cape Town in South Africa retain its position as Africa’s top university and rank 122nd globally.
It was followed by Cairo University in Egypt, the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, the University of Ibadan in Nigeria, and Mansoura University in Egypt.
Makerere’s placement means Uganda’s oldest and largest public university has dropped out of Africa’s top 20 institutions in this particular ranking.
The US News & World Report rankings assess universities using 13 indicators focused largely on research performance and academic reputation.
These include global and regional research reputation, publications, books, conference papers, citation impact, total citations, highly cited papers, and levels of international collaboration.
Despite its continental position, Makerere remained the highest-ranked university in East Africa. The University of Nairobi in Kenya was placed 35th in Africa and 809th globally, making it the region’s second-best institution.
The University of Rwanda ranked 89th in Africa and 1,721st worldwide, while Tanzania’s Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences and the University of Dar es Salaam occupied the 92nd and 93rd positions in Africa, respectively.
Makerere University Academic Registrar, Prof. Mukadasi Buyinza, said the institution was yet to review the ranking methodology in detail.
He noted that Makerere generally performs better in other international assessments, particularly those conducted by Times Higher Education.
“Makerere has consistently been ranked much higher in other evaluations. Being placed 23rd in Africa appears relatively low, and we need to understand which indicators may have affected our performance,” Prof. Buyinza said.
He added that the university places greater emphasis on the Times Higher Education rankings because they assess a broader range of indicators, including teaching quality, research output, community engagement and policy impact.
Makerere Vice Chancellor Prof. Barnabas Nawangwe said this was the first time the university had been assessed by the US News & World Report ranking system and that the institution would study the criteria used.
“Previously, this ranking focused mainly on elite universities in developed countries. We will examine the methodology because several universities ranked above Makerere here have been placed below us by other international ranking agencies,” Prof. Nawangwe said.
In the 2025 Times Higher Education World University Rankings, Makerere was ranked 12th in Africa and retained its position as the leading university in East Africa with an overall score of 37.2, compared to a regional average of 18.8. The 2023 Sub-Saharan Africa University Rankings also placed Makerere fifth on the continent.
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