Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a global higher education analytics firm, has released its World University Rankings 2025, featuring over 1,500 universities. The University of Macau jumps nine places from last year to rank 245^th, and the Macau University of Science and Technology also rises by 41 places from 505^th last year to 464^th.

With the SAR Government’s sustained effort to optimise the quality of higher education institutions, universities in Macao have continued to improve positions in multiple world university rankings and rankings by subject. In the World University Rankings 2024 previously published by Times Higher Education (THE), a total of 1,904 universities were listed. The University of Macau broke into the top 200 in the world for the first time, ranking 193^rd, whilst the Macau University of Science and Technology ranked in the 251-300 band.

In recent years, the SAR Government has established a new higher education system to strengthen and enhance the level of institutional governance. A higher education quality assurance regime has also been introduced to promote the continuous improvement of education quality. The number of students in Macao’s higher education institutions has increased by 60% from approximately 34,000 in the 2018/2019 academic year to approximately 55,500 in the 2023/2024 academic year, in which the proportion of postgraduate students has steadily grown from 25.53% in the 2018/2019 academic year to 39.00% in the 2023/2024 academic year. In addition, the number of higher education programmes has also risen from about 280 in the 2018/2019 academic year to over 360 in the 2023/2024 academic year.

At the same time, the SAR Government has continued to support local universities in optimising their disciplinary distribution, focusing efforts on the development of scientific research and strengthening international and regional co-operation, with a view to offering diversified programmes, cultivating industrial talents required for the development of adequate economic diversification under the ‘1+4’ strategy, and facilitating the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area into a higher education innovation hub. In response to social development trends and industrial development needs, higher education institutions in Macao have actively launched a number of degree programmes in disciplines related to Big Health, Modern Finance, High and New Technology, Exhibitions and Trade, Culture and Sports, among others, at bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral levels.