Malaysia is Asia’s second-most improved higher education system, with a national improvement rate of 46% in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings: Asia 2026.
This progress has been driven largely by gains in Academic Reputation, where 73% of Malaysian universities climbed. Ten of the country’s varsities are now in Asia’s top 100, with eight improving their positions in this edition.
Malaysia joins Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, Singapore and Thailand as one of only five systems in Asia to record net improvement.
QS senior vice president Ben Sowter said Malaysia is one of Asia’s most improved higher education systems in the rankings, continuing the positive trend of recent years.
“This is an especially impressive achievement given that more than 550 institutions entered the rankings this year, meaning Malaysian universities have maintained and improved against an increasingly competitive environment,” he said in a press release.
Malaysia also saw 11 universities improve by more than 20 places. Among them, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka made the largest leap, jumping 140 places to =262nd, while Universiti Malaysia Perlis improved by 73 places to =268th.
Multimedia University gained 59 places to 148th, SEGi University advanced 56 places to 350th, and INTI International University rose 48 places to =122nd.
Other notable climbers include Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (+43 to 147th), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT) (+35 to 160th), Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (+29 to =197th), Universiti Malaysia Sabah (+29 to =214th), Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (+22 to =109th), and AIMST University (+21 to =385th).
