Higher education acts as one of the driving forces for any nation’s development by fostering a culture of research and innovation, developing skills and critical thinking capabilities which ultimately accelerate industrial and societal advancement. Higher educational institutions play a pivotal role in skilled human resources which benefits society and economy at a large. Those institutions have become integral part of national competitiveness in this global economy, rather the emergence of global university rankings transformed the way higher educational institutions have been perceived, assessed, evaluated and positioned in the world. These global rankings become powerful and critical as they extend the assessment beyond the academic performance which caters broader areas like research, student mobility, resources, collaborations etc. In the present scenario, higher educational institutions are facing intense competition to achieve and sustain global rankings published by renowned ranking agencies. These ranking agencies deploy different weightage on various criteria and use its own methodology for assigning rankings to higher educational institutions. The importance of different criteria also varies across these ranking agencies. This may push higher educational institutions to perform on this complex landscape of global rankings.

Emerging economies, India has the third largest higher education system across the globe with more than 1300 universities and 52,000 colleges with growing enrolments of more than 36 million in various disciplines. The gross enrolment ratio is expected to reach at 50% with the efforts of the government in the form of new education policy, increase in overall spending in education and infrastructural development.

Despite having notable efforts and infrastructure, Indian higher education is struggling to create a presence in global rankings because of disparity in quality concerned with faculties, curriculum, research and employability. The main challenge of Indian higher educational institutions in global ranking is the framework for higher education. India has performed modestly in prestigious global rankings due to concerns related to focus areas, research, collaborations and infrastructure. BRICS nations like China, Brazil, Russia and South Africa have represented a remarkable success in global rankings due to strategic investments with policy reforms. So, it is important to understand these nuances to comprehend reasons for performance in global rankings for India.

Background of the Study

India’s higher education system is very wide and growing rapidly, yet its institutions lack in global visibility and lagging when compared at global level. In past few years, Indian higher education Institutions gained visibility in globally recognized rankings such as THE, QS, ARWS and CWUR but its position and scores highlight persistent gaps. These gaps need to be examined to align it with strengths and weaknesses of the Indian higher education Institutions against global institutions. This research paper seeks to provide a comprehensive critical review of Indian higher education's position within the global ranking ecosystem. This will not only reveal gaps where Indian higher education Institutions fall short but also recommend strategic reforms on different parameters that may enhance the performance and competitiveness of Indian higher education at global level.

Objectives of Study:To analyse the performance of Indian higher education Institutions in global rankings (THE, QS, ARWU, and CWUR) over the last six years.

• To compare the scores and ranking trends of top 10 Indian higher education Institutions with the top 10 globally reputed institutions, highlighting the performance gap across different parameters.
• To identify key strengths and weaknesses of Indian higher education Institutions in relation to the parameters used by global rankings,
• To suggest strategic areas of improvement for enhancing global competitiveness.

Many studies highlight the progress of Indian higher education system from multiple aspects while there are some studies which focuses on significance of global rankings as a measurement of its progress. Following literature represents studies related to performance of Indian higher education Institutions in light of national as well as global rankings.

Gupta, Sushil, and Gulati (2025) examined the performance of Indian higher education Institutions ranked under the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2019 and compared it with international ranking parameters. Using cluster and discriminant analysis on a sample of 100 institutions, the study identified “research and professional practice” and “peer perception” as the weakest areas, while also noting unsatisfactory performance in “outreach and inclusivity” among top-ranked institutions. The findings revealed that low performance in research and perception criteria significantly contributes to Indian higher education Institutions’ weaker standing in global rankings such as Times Higher Education (THE). The authors proposed a predictive model to guide policy interventions, emphasizing the need for research collaborations, industry linkages, and differentiated institutional strategies to improve India’s global higher education competitiveness.

Ozee and Singh (2022) reviewed the accreditation and ranking systems of Indian higher education Institutions in comparison with global practices, with the aim of assessing their efficacy in enhancing academic quality and global competitiveness. Using an exploratory research approach, the study examined accreditation and ranking parameters of leading Indian higher education Institutions against those of globally reputed institutions. The findings revealed that Indian accreditation bodies often assess leniently compared to more rigorous global standards, particularly in parameters related to research and citations, where Indian higher education Institutions significantly trail. The study emphasized that teaching, learning, research, and industry collaboration are common criteria across systems, but highlighted the lack of global prominence of Indian higher education Institutions in research output and impact. By identifying critical performance gaps, the paper provided meaningful insights for policymakers and institutions to align accreditation and ranking practices with globally viable quality benchmarks.

Maurya and Choudhary (2021) critically examined the status of Indian higher education Institutions in global and Asian rankings, highlighting persistent gaps compared to universities in developed countries as well as emerging Asian economies like China, Japan, and Singapore. Their analysis revealed that no Indian higher education Institutions appears among the top 100 globally, with weaknesses in research output, internationalization, and infrastructure contributing to poor performance. Despite increased private participation and relatively high expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP, Indian higher education Institutions continue to lag in high-impact research publications, foreign student enrolment, and international faculty presence. The study emphasized the need for stronger research-industry linkages, public–private partnerships, professionalized governance, and global collaborations to enhance competitiveness and improve India’s standing in international rankings.

Allam (2019) analyzed the performance of Indian higher education Institutions in major international rankings and compared them with globally reputed universities. The study highlighted that no Indian institution figures in the top 100 of global rankings and very few appear even within the top 200. Findings revealed that global rankings tend to emphasize research output and international outlook over teaching quality and social or cultural factors, which disadvantages institutions in developing countries. Indian higher education Institutions consistently scored lower across indicators such as research, citations, and internationalization, with only specialized institutions like IISc and select IITs managing to secure positions in major rankings. The study underscored the urgent need for Indian higher education to strengthen its global competitiveness through improvements in research quality, international collaboration, and inclusivity.

Khan M. (2018) studies about Indian higher education and its rankings and found that India’s higher education system has expanded over the past two decades with gaining visibility in global rankings but still facing structural challenges. He also added that premier institutions like IITs, IIMs, and IISc have achieved recognition in the top 200 globally but none have consistently broken into the top 100. Research also emphasized on growing enrolments, investment in research, curriculum revisions followed by government efforts. Despite this progress, literature suggests that Indian higher education Institutions must focus more on international collaborations, innovation and research to match the leading global institutions.

Sahney and Thakkar (2016) conducted a comparative evaluation of select Indian technical higher education institutes of national importance to assess their efficiency and effectiveness. Using an integrated data envelopment analysis–analytic hierarchy processing (DEA–AHP) approach, the study analysed inputs and outputs to measure relative institutional performance over a five-year period. The findings highlighted variations in academic, research, teaching, and consulting efficiencies, while also identifying the most efficient institute among the sample. The study provided valuable insights for policymakers, planners, and administrators by offering benchmarks and performance indicators that could guide improvements in efficiency and funding strategies. By integrating multiple methodologies, the research contributed a unique framework for performance measurement in the Indian higher education context.

Yeravdekar V. and Tiwari G. (2014) analysed Indian higher education system in context of global rankings and argued that even though India has a wide higher education network but its institutions remain largely absent from top global rankings because of systemic challenges rooted in its legacies. They also criticized about the gap between policy rhetoric and practical feasibility. They emphasized that rankings often favor Anglo-American institutions within a centre–periphery paradigm, making the field inequitable for developing nations. Moreover, the authors caution that diverting scarce resources into building globally competitive universities may not align with India’s immediate socio-economic needs. Instead, reforms should be focused on strengthening the quality, access, and relevance for India’s higher education system.

Present study is Descriptive and Analytical in nature as it reviews and describes the performance of Indian higher education Institutions in global rankings. It is also analytical in nature as critically evaluating the performance of Indian higher education Institutions considering top 10 globally recognized institutions on various parameters.

Data Collection

Present study is based on secondary data and the period for the study is of six years from the year 2018 to year 2023. The data has been collected from the official reports and database of selected global rankings. Ranks and scores of top 10 globally recognized universities and top 10 Indian higher education Institutions for the six years across four global rankings have been collected for further analysis.

For the purpose of analysing the performance of Indian higher education Institutions, following global university rankings have been taken as a benchmark on the basis of the following criteria;

• Selected global rankings are influential and frequently cited for global rankings of higher education institutions.
• All four global rankings deploy diverse parameters to check the performance of higher education institutions. This helps in capturing the performance from multiple dimensions.
• Study is based on six years from 2018 to 2023 so availability and accessibility of data is considered for the selection of global university ranking system.

Table-1 Major Global Rankings

Source: Compiled from Official websites of Global Rankings (AWRS, CWUR, QS and THE)

Table-2 Ranking Methodology

Following are diverse parameters of four major global rankings on the basis of which rankings have been assigned to all the higher education institutions;

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings (AWRS, CWUR, QS and THE)

Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria

Following inclusion and exclusion criteria have been set to ensure reliability of research;

Inclusion Criteria;

• Top 10 globally recognized universities across four rankings.
• Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions across four rankings.
• Ranking parameters and scores of four global rankings.
• Rankings published between the year 2018 to 2023 by four global rankings.
• Literature published in reputed journals.

Exclusion Criteria

• Rankings for which data has not been published between the year 2018 to 2023.
• Rankings with inconsistent data and methodology.
• Region and course specific rankings which cannot reflect overall performance.
• Opinions and surveys that lacks authenticate content.

Data Analysis

Data analysis has been conducted in multiple ways to check the performance of Indian higher education Institutions across global rankings. A comparative analysis conducted between Indian higher education Institutions and globally recognized institutions in terms of rankings, scores and percentage change in scores across the years as well as four global rankings. Trend analysis and ANOVA have been implemented to identify the differences in scores of Indian higher education Institutions and globally recognized institutions on different parameters.

Ethical Considerations

Present study meets all the ethical research practices by ensuring the quality and reliability of sources and data. Diverse literature has been covered and cited to maintain academic integrity and transparency.

Table- 3 Top 10 Global Institutions as per ARWS rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - ARWS

Table 3 represents top 10 Global Institutions as per their rankings given by AWRS from the year 2018 to 2023. Harvard University and Stanford University retained their top position throughout the years showing global influence followed by University of Cambridge and MIT with close competition. University of California and Columbia University shows steady position at 5^th and 6^th followed by consistency in rankings of California institute of technology and university of Chicago at 9^th and 10^th position. Overall rankings shows the stable position of US universities with close competition between Oxford university and Columbia University.

Table- 4 Top 10 Global Institutions as per CWUR rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - CWUR

Table 4 highlights the rankings of global institutions revealed by CWUR rankings. Havard University maintained its global position on top across six years due to its strong academic and research contribution followed by Stanford university and MIT with close competition. University of Cambridge and University of Oxford have retained its steady position on 5^th and 6^th place representing the strengths of UK’s higher education system. In the middle ranking positions, Columbia university, Princeton university and University of California had positional shifts across the given years followed by almost stable position of University of Pennsylvania and University of Chicago. Overall rankings represent the dominance of universities from US and UK followed by universities from other countries.

Table- 5 Top 10 Global Institutions as per QS rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - QS

Table 5 depicts global rankings of top 10 Global Institutions published by QS across given six years. MIT shows the global dominance for all six consecutive years followed by Stanford university and Havard university. However, they have been challenged by University of Cambridge and University of Oxford in the year 2022 and 2023. The middle ranks shows shuffling positions by different universities namely; California Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich, Imperial college London and University College London while the University of Chicago remained stable on 9^th and 10^th rankings. Overall table reflects the stability of global institutions in terms of rankings led by MIT and other universities from US, UK and Europe.

Table- 6 Top 10 Global Institutions as per THE rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - THE

Table 6 represents the global institutions rankings published by THE from the year 2018 to 2023 with dominance of University of Oxford across given six years. Other universities namely; Havard university, Stanford university, University of Cambridge and California institute of technology appears and show shifts in top five positions reflecting their excellence in research and global reputation whereas Princeton university, Yale University, University of Chicago, ETH Zurich and Imperial College London shows variated positions. Overall composition of top 10 positions remains stable which shows the competitive nature of elite global institutions.

Table- 7 Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions as per ARWS rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - ARWS

Table 7 shows the global rankings of Indian higher education Institutions given by ARWS from the year 2018 to 2023. Indian Institute of science maintained its consistency in top position and improved its rankings from 401-500 band to 301-400 band in the year 2022 and 2023. Positions of IITs, particularly Madras, Delhi, Kharagpur, Bombay and Kanpur fluctuated between band of 500-900 which indicates the strong global recognition. Old universities such as University of Calcutta, University of Delhi and Banaras Hindu University have also maintained their global position with gradual improvement. There were new entrants in top institutions such as AIIMS, Amity university, Homi Bhabha national institute followed by others who are gaining global presence in the set of establishes Indian higher education Institutions.  Overall data represents India’s progress in global rankings with diverse Indian higher education Institutions.

Table- 8 Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions as per CWUR rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - CWUR

Table 8 depicts the performance of Indian higher education Institutions publishes by CWUR from the year 2018 to 2023. Indian Institute of Management (Ahmedabad) and Indian Institute of Science have maintained their top positions across six years. Other reputed Indian higher education Institutions such as Indian Institute of Technology of Bombay, Madras, Delhi, Kharagpur and University of Delhi show slight fluctuating positions over the years. Overall table shows consistent global recognition of core group of Indian higher education Institutions followed by Punjab University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, AIMS, Banaras Hindu University and Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur having presence in the band of 700-900 in global rankings.

Table- 9 Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions as per QS rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings - QS

Table 9 represents global rankings of Indian higher education Institutions as per QS world university rankings from the year 2018 to 2023. Reputed institutions like IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi and Indian Institute of Science maintained their positions in top rankings between the band of 150-200 across the years. Other IITs such as Kharagpur, Madras and Kanpur maintained ranks in the band of 250-300 with their research output and quality education whereas other institutions like University of Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Hyderabad, IIT Guwahati, Jadavpur University and IIT Indore have also gained its significance in the landscape of global rankings of higher education institutions. Overall trend represents the group of elite technical institutions in global presence.

Table- 10 Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions as per THE rankings

Source: Compiled from Official Reports of Global Rankings – THE

Table 10 depicts THE rankings for Indian higher education Institutions across six years. The Indian Institute of Science has maintained its top position for all the years with the band of 251-350 with its rich research and academic reputation. Other reputed Indian higher education Institutions like IIT Bombay, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Kanpur, IIT Indore and Banaras Hindu University appears in the band of 351-800 across all the years but with fluctuating positions. Overall table shows the growing rankings and importance of Indian higher education Institutions in THE rankings.

Table- 11 Difference in Scores of Top 10 Global Institutions and Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions (ARWS)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings –ARWS

Across all ranks, the difference in scores remains consistently high, with Rank 1 showing the maximum possible gap of 100 points across all six years. This underscores the dominance of global leaders in ARWU rankings and the significant distance Indian higher education Institutions must cover. While the score gap is very large at the top (Ranks 1–3, averaging 70–100 points), it gradually decreases for lower-ranked universities. The year-to-year differences are relatively stable, with only minor fluctuations. This reflects a lack of significant progress by Indian higher education Institutions in closing the performance gap over the last six years.

Table- 12 Difference in Scores of Top 10 Global Institutions and Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions (CWUR)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings – CWUR

Unlike THE or ARWS, where the performance gap often exceeds 50–100 points, the differences reported by CWUR are much smaller, ranging from ~25 points at Rank 1 to ~19 points at Rank 10. This suggests that CWUR’s evaluation framework positions Indian higher education Institutions relatively closer to their global peers compared to other ranking systems. The gap systematically decreases from top to bottom. Across the six-year period, the score differences remain fairly stable with only marginal fluctuations. This stability reflects a lack of substantial progress by Indian higher education Institutions in bridging the gap but also demonstrates that they are not falling further behind.

Table- 13 Difference in Scores of Top 10 Global Institutions and Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions (QS)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings - QS

For the highest-ranked positions (Ranks 1–6), the difference in scores remains relatively stable in the 50–61 point range. The average difference is ~52 points for Ranks 1–3 and increases slightly to ~60–61 points for Ranks 4–6. This indicates that while Indian higher education Institutions consistently trail global leaders, the gap at the top half of the ranking spectrum is moderate compared to other ranking systems like ARWU. From Rank 7 onwards, the score gap widens dramatically. This suggests that while Indian higher education Institutions maintain a consistent gap with global leaders in the top slots, they fall substantially behind at the lower end of the top 10, where Global Institutions show much higher consolidated strength compared to Indian peers. While Ranks 1–6 remain relatively stable, the differences at Ranks 7–10 exhibit large year-to-year fluctuations.

Table- 14 Difference in Scores of Top 10 Global Institutions and Top 10 Indian higher education Institutions (THE)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings – THE

Across all ranks, a substantial and persistent gap exists between the scores of global leaders and Indian higher education Institutions. The average score difference ranges from 48.23 (Rank 1) to 57.91 (Rank 7), indicating that Indian higher education Institutions trail significantly behind their global counterparts across the board. The gap tends to be wider at middle-tier positions (Ranks 4–10) compared to the topmost position (Rank 1). This suggests that as one moves down the ranking ladder, the relative distance between Indian and global institutions increases. Though some fluctuations are observed, the overall trend remains largely stable over six years. This indicates that the gap has not significantly narrowed despite ongoing reforms in Indian higher education.

Fig. 1 - Average score difference between Top 10 Global Institutions and Indian higher education Institutions (Ranking wise and year-wise) GAP Analysis

Source: Official Reports of Global Rankings – (ARWS, CWUR, QS and THE)

Across all four ranking systems, Indian higher education Institutions consistently lag behind their global counterparts. The size of this gap, however, varies significantly depending on the ranking agency, reflecting methodological differences in evaluation. The difference in THE scores shows a gradual narrowing trend, falling from 59.1 in 2018 to 50.8 in 2023. This suggests some progress by Indian higher education Institutions relative to global leaders, particularly in research influence and teaching indicators considered by THE.  The gap in QS rankings is the widest among all systems, averaging ~62–70 points. After narrowing between 2018 (69.6) and 2020 (63.6), the difference widened again in 2021 (67.1) and 2022 (67.0), before narrowing slightly in 2023 (62.5). This reflects fluctuations in factors such as academic and employer reputation, as well as internationalization, where Indian higher education Institutions continue to face challenges.  ARWU consistently shows a large and stable gap in the range of 65–68 points, with minimal year-to-year variation. This stability suggests that Indian higher education Institutions have made little progress in research-driven indicators like Nobel laureates, highly cited researchers, and publications in top-tier journals—areas heavily weighted in ARWU methodology. CWUR reflects the smallest gap compared to other rankings, consistently around 20–21 points across all years. This relative closeness is because CWUR gives weightage to factors such as education quality and alumni employment, where Indian higher education Institutions perform slightly better relative to global standards. However, the lack of improvement over time indicates stagnation in bridging this gap.

Hypothesis Testing

• H₀₁: There is no significant difference in the mean score difference across different global rankings.
• Ha₁: There is a significant difference in the mean score difference across different global rankings.
• H₀₂: There is no significant difference in the mean score difference across different years.
• Ha₂: There is a significant difference in the mean score difference across different years
• H₀₃: The effect of ranking system on mean score difference does not depend on year (i.e., no interaction between ranking system and year).
• Ha₃: The effect of ranking system on mean score difference depends on year.

Table – 15 Average Difference of top 10 Indian higher education Institutions vs global Institutions (Two Factor: Ranking System and Year)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings – (ARWS, CWUR, QS and THE)

The ANOVA results indicate that the p-value for the factor ranking is 0.000, which is below the 0.05 significance threshold. Hence, the null hypothesis (H₀₁) is rejected, and it can be concluded that there is a statistically significant difference in the mean score differences between top 10 global and top 10 Indian higher education Institutions across different global rankings.

For the factor year, the p-value is 0.46, which is greater than 0.05. Therefore, the null hypothesis (H₀₂) cannot be rejected, suggesting that there is no statistically significant variation in the mean score differences across the years considered (2018–2023).Finally, the p-value for the interaction effect between ranking system and year is also greater than 0.05, indicating that the effect of the ranking system on the mean score difference is independent of year. In other words, differences across ranking systems remain consistent over time without significant interaction.

• H₀₄: There is no significant difference in the mean percentage change in scores of Indian higher education Institutions across the four global ranking.
• Ha₄: There is significant difference in the mean percentage change in scores of Indian higher education Institutions across the four global ranking.
• H₀₅: There is no significant difference in the mean percentage change in scores of Indian higher education Institutions across the years (2018–2023).
• Ha₅: There is significant difference in the mean percentage change in scores of Indian higher education Institutions across the years (2018–2023).
• H₀₆: There is no interaction between ranking system and year; i.e., the effect of ranking system on mean percentage change in scores does not depend on year.
• Ha₆: There is interaction between ranking system and year; i.e., the effect of ranking system on mean percentage change in scores does not depend on year.

Table – 16 Average Percentage change in top 10 Indian higher education Institutions (Two Factor: Ranking System and Year)

Source: Author’s calculation from Official Reports of Global Rankings – (ARWS, CWUR, QS and THE)

The p-value for the ranking system factor is 0.1848, which is greater than the 0.05 significance level. Therefore, we fail to reject the null hypothesis and conclude that there is no statistically significant difference in the percentage change of scores of Indian higher education Institutions across different global rankings. The p-value for the year factor is 0.000 (< 0.05). Hence, we reject the null hypothesis and conclude that there is a statistically significant difference in the percentage change of scores across different years (2018–2023). The interaction effect was found to be non-significant. This suggests that the variation in the percentage change of scores across years is consistent across ranking systems, i.e., the effect of year is independent of the ranking system considered.

Future Implications and Recommendations

Multi-dimensional strategy is essential to strengthen the India’s global position in higher education landscape. Building strong research and innovation capacity through increased funding, incentives for interdisciplinary projects, and encouragement of globally recognized publications can enhance international visibility. At the same time, fostering internationalization by attracting foreign faculties and students, offering scholarships, and developing joint programs with reputed global universities can enrich academic diversity and knowledge transfer.

It is also equally important to increase visibility of Institution with global outreach, strengthening alumni networks, and enhancing industry connections to improve ranking indicators. Quality teaching must remain a priority, supported by continuous faculty development programs, better student-faculty ratios and modern pedagogical teaching-learning practices. Reforms in governance and funding can also provide the flexibility needed for progress so India should pursue long-term strategic differentiation by realizing that higher education Institutions need not to be excelled equally in all area rather some may evolve as research powerhouses and others can focus on teaching excellence and employability which can collectively contribute to a stronger global presence.

Limitations of the Study

• Present study is conducted for top 10 global Institutions and Indian higher education Institutions as per four rankings which may not represent broader changes and trends in higher education landscape.
• Study is based on quantitative parameters like rankings and scores rather it ignores qualitative parameters to assess performance.
• Every ranking has different methodological frameworks to assign rankings.
• The limitations of secondary data and statistical tools are also applicable to this study.

Future Scope of the Study

Further research can be carried out by expanding the number of higher education institutions and number of global rankings to provide comprehensive analysis of performance. It can also be longitudinal analysis by focusing on longer time frames including more geographical locations. Furthermore, it can be extended by evaluating the impact of government initiatives on performance of higher education institutions in global rankings. 

The comparative analysis of the top 10 Global Institutions and top 10 Indian higher education Institutions across four leading global rankings (THE, QS, ARWU, and CWUR) from 2018 to 2023 highlights a persistent and significant performance gap.

• The gap is widest in QS and ARWU rankings, reflecting weaknesses in international reputation, global research visibility, and high-impact publications.
• The Times Higher Education (THE) ranking shows a gradual narrowing of the gap, suggesting modest progress by Indian higher education Institutions in teaching and research influence.
• The CWUR rankings reveal the smallest and most stable gap, indicating that Indian higher education Institutions perform relatively better in parameters such as alumni employment and education quality, but without evidence of meaningful improvement over time.
• Hypothesis testing confirms that while differences across ranking systems are statistically significant, variations across years are not consistent enough to suggest strong progress. Moreover, the interaction effect indicates that the relative positioning of Indian higher education Institutions does not depend on the year, reinforcing the view of structural stagnation.

Taken together, these findings reveal that Indian higher education Institutions remain far behind global leaders, particularly in parameters such as research output, internationalization, faculty quality, and global reputation. While some narrowing is observed in THE rankings, the overall progress is insufficient to meaningfully alter India’s standing in global higher education rankings.

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